The old Spa town of Ilkley is the pivotal town of Wharfedale, undoubtedly the most popular of all the Yorkshire Dales. The area offers some of the most spectacular and unspoilt scenery in the land. For the walker it gives unrivalled tramping ground. High up on the moors next to the white-walled cottage of White Wells (where once donkeys carried gout-ridden gentlemen to be doused in the icy-cold moorland spring) visitors will see a carefully landscaped Victorian scene including two semi-artificial lakes and the river Wharfe meandering through the centre of the town. Ilkley still has a Victorian and Edwardian feel to it. Splendid shops, pubs, restaurants and cafés adorn the tree-lined streets. Bettys, without doubt the finest tea shop in Yorkshire, and therefore the world, is situated on The Grove. Lovely parkland, a choice of open air or indoor swimming pools and a family picnic area providing pleasure for all. It is the starting point of the 84 mile-long ‘Dales Way’ walk, which is breathtakingly beautiful! Nearby Bolton Abbey is one of the region’s most scenic areas and the walk along the river to the ‘Strid’ is a must. Ilkley Moor is the subject of Yorkshire’s unofficial anthem “On Ilkla Moor Baht at”.
