Best Places to Visit Near York
Written by UK Hidden Gems Editorial
Updated 5 August 2026
The best places to visit near York are Clifford's Tower, Pompocali Earthworks, Smawthorne Marsh, Pontefract Castle, Beckett Street Cemetery, Valley of Desolation Waterfall, Nelly Ayre Foss and Mallyan Spout Waterfall.
York is one of England's great historic cities, wrapped in medieval walls with a mighty minster at its heart, yet some of the finest days out lie a good drive beyond it. In the centre itself, Clifford's Tower rises on its grassy mound with sweeping views over the rooftops.
Head southwest towards Leeds and West Yorkshire for a mix of curiosities: the puzzling Pompocali earthworks near Bardsey, a quiet urban marsh at Castleford, the ruined royal castle at Pontefract and a moving Victorian cemetery in Leeds. Travel west into Wharfedale and the Bolton Abbey estate hides the cascades of the Valley of Desolation, tumbling down through woodland below the moors.
Northeast, out on the North York Moors near Goathland, a pair of waterfalls, Nelly Ayre Foss and the towering Mallyan Spout, reward a proper moorland ramble. Since most of these sit thirty kilometres or more from the city, treat them as day-trips out into Yorkshire's castles, waterfalls and hidden green corners.
Here are eight places to visit near York.
Clifford's Tower
Photo: derek dye via Geograph.org.uk
Climb Clifford's Tower Right in the heart of York, this stone keep rises on a steep grassy mound as the largest surviving part of the old York Castle. It is built to an unusual four-lobed plan, like a clover leaf seen from above, and a recent restoration has added timber walkways inside and a rooftop deck for a wide view over the city.
Its history runs deep and dark: in 1190 the wooden tower that stood here burned during the mass killing of York's Jewish community, the grimmest chapter in the city's past. Only a short walk from the centre, it makes an easy first stop.
Pompocali Earthworks
Photo: Gordon Hatton via Geograph.org.uk
Explore Pompocali Earthworks A drive southwest towards the edge of Leeds brings you to this stretch of grassy earthworks, where banks, ridges and mounds sit between Bardsey, Thorner and Scarcroft, waiting to be walked and climbed. Its Roman-sounding name comes from an old mapmaking slip rather than any known Roman town, and the mounds are now thought to be waste from limestone quarrying at the nearby crags, though digging here may reach back to Roman times, when a road ran close by.
It makes a good stop on the circuit around Hetchell Wood, an open, unmarked spot with no facilities, so come prepared.
Smawthorne Marsh
Photo: David Pickersgill via Geograph.org.uk
Discover Smawthorne Marsh South of York in the town of Castleford, this small pocket of woodland, pond and wetland is kept as a green space by local volunteers. Informal paths thread the trees and marsh, and the water draws ducks and other wildlife, with woodland birds and small mammals about.
It is an unassuming urban nature spot rather than a set attraction, free and open with no facilities, a quiet patch of greenery tucked into the town. Worth a wander if you are already exploring the Castleford and Pontefract area, and easy to pair with the castle ruins close by.
Pontefract Castle
Photo: Philip Halling via Geograph.org.uk
Visit Pontefract Castle A little further south, this ruined medieval royal castle stands on a rocky rise above Pontefract, set now in a public park and free to visit. Among the remains are underground cellars cut into the rock, fragments of the curtain walls and the base of the many-lobed keep, with a visitor centre and cafe on site.
Founded soon after the Norman Conquest, it grew into a great royal fortress and prison, and Richard the Second died here in 1400. During the Civil War it held out for the king through three sieges before Parliament ordered it pulled down in 1649.
Beckett Street Cemetery
Photo: Stephen Craven via Geograph.org.uk
Walk Beckett Street Cemetery Over in the Burmantofts area of Leeds, opposite St James's Hospital, this large Victorian cemetery opened in 1845 as one of the first in England paid for by the town rather than a private company. It was laid out in two halves, one for Church of England burials and one for others, each with its own chapel and lodge.
Look out for the guinea graves, shared headstones under which poorer people were buried together, each name inscribed for about a guinea as a dignified alternative to an unmarked grave. Closed to new burials since 2001, it is a quietly moving place to walk.
Valley of Desolation Waterfall
Photo: Anthony Parkes via Geograph.org.uk
See the Valley of Desolation Waterfall For a proper day-trip west into Wharfedale, head for the Bolton Abbey estate, where Posforth Gill runs down through a wooded valley in a series of small waterfalls and cascades. The bleak-sounding name comes from a great storm in 1826 that tore the valley apart, though it is green and calm now.
A footpath climbs past the falls and out onto Barden Fell moorland, rising towards Simon's Seat at 485 metres, so you can make it as gentle or as long as you like. The estate charges for parking, and dogs are not allowed in this part of it.
Nelly Ayre Foss
Photo: John Ryles via Geograph.org.uk
Find Nelly Ayre Foss Out in the North York Moors near Goathland, a good hour's drive northeast of York, this small, wide waterfall spills over rock ledges on West Beck in a wooded valley. It is the quieter cousin of the better-known falls nearby and is often taken in on a walking circuit with Mallyan Spout and Thomason Foss.
Lying a couple of kilometres upstream of Mallyan Spout, it is reached on foot from Goathland, with the final drop to the water a steep and slippery scramble. Peaceful and little-visited, it rewards anyone happy to work a bit for a quiet spot by the beck.
Mallyan Spout Waterfall
Photo: Anthony Foster via Geograph.org.uk
Discover Mallyan Spout Waterfall Also at Goathland, this tall, thin waterfall drops around seventy feet over a mossy ravine wall where West Beck tumbles down, making it the highest fall in the national park. A footpath beside the Mallyan Spout Hotel descends to the beck, then follows a rocky ledge along the ravine to the falls, a short walk that turns slippery in places.
It runs at its fullest after heavy rain and can dwindle to a mere trickle in dry spells, so time your visit for after a wet stretch. Paired with Nelly Ayre Foss, it rounds off a fine day in the moors.
FAQs
What is the best place to visit in the centre of York?
Clifford's Tower is the obvious highlight in central York, a four-lobed stone keep on a grassy mound with a rooftop deck giving wide views over the city.
Where can you find waterfalls near York?
The finest waterfalls near York lie further out. The Valley of Desolation sits on the Bolton Abbey estate in Wharfedale, while Nelly Ayre Foss and Mallyan Spout tumble through the North York Moors near Goathland.
Are the places near York suitable for a day-trip?
Yes. Most of these spots, from Pontefract Castle to the Goathland waterfalls, sit thirty kilometres or more from York, so they work best as relaxed day-trips out into Yorkshire.
Conclusion
York itself gives you Clifford's Tower and its clover-leaf keep, but the real reward is heading out across Yorkshire for the day. Southwest towards Leeds you can puzzle over the Pompocali earthworks, wander the marsh at Castleford, explore the royal ruins of Pontefract Castle or walk among the guinea graves of Beckett Street Cemetery.
West in Wharfedale, the Valley of Desolation offers gentle woodland cascades below the open moor, while northeast on the North York Moors the falls of Nelly Ayre Foss and Mallyan Spout make a grand day among the beck-cut ravines. From ancient castles and quiet nature spots to some of the county's prettiest waterfalls, these are the places to visit near York.
