Rievaulx Abbey

The Cistercians founded Rievaulx in 1132, the first house of the order in the north of England, and at its height more than 600 monks and lay brothers lived in this narrow wooded valley beside the River Rye. What English Heritage looks after today is generally reckoned the most complete abbey ruin in the country. Stand in the roofless nave with the valley sides climbing on both hands and you understand why Wordsworth wrote about it and Turner painted it. Of all the days out within an hour of Thirsk, this is the one visitors talk about afterwards.

From Tea Time Cafe on the market place, head east out of Thirsk on the A170 and up Sutton Bank, then carry on through Helmsley. In Helmsley, follow the signs onto the minor road that drops north west into the Rye valley. It is narrow and steep in places, so take it gently. Around 18 miles in total, about 40 minutes, with parking on site.

There is one public transport option and it needs planning. The seasonal Moorsbus M5 links Thirsk with Helmsley, and from there you change to the M4 to reach Rievaulx. In 2026 the M5 ran on Saturdays, Sundays and bank holidays from 3 April to 27 September. On any other day you need a car; check moorsbus.org for the next season's dates. Walkers have a third choice: park in Helmsley and take the scenic route between the castle and the abbey on foot, which turns the trip into a proper day out.

Start with the audio tour, which is the best way to read the ruins, since the walls stand high enough that you can follow the plan of the church and the monastic buildings as you go. Then the museum, which holds the artefacts dug from the site, and the Shattered Remains display on the Dissolution, which explains how a community this size was broken up. There is an on-screen presentation, a shop, and a cafe with views down the valley. Rievaulx Terrace, the National Trust site immediately above, gives you the postcard view looking down on the abbey and can be added on a joint ticket.

The scale is the thing. Byland is free and Fountains is bigger, but Rievaulx has the standing stonework, and the tall arcades of the presbytery are the most photographed medieval walls in Yorkshire for good reason. The setting does the rest: a steep wooded valley that hides the abbey until you are almost on top of it. The museum is better than most, and the cafe view earns its keep at the end of a walk round.

Come before 11am or after 2pm and you will have far more of the ruins to yourself; the middle of the day in July and August is the crush. Book online if you can, since it saves 15 per cent, and National Trust members should use code G03ANZ at the online checkout rather than turning up expecting the card to work at the desk. The ground is grass and gravel and the valley catches the wind, so wear something with a grip and take a layer more than you think. Breakfast at ours before you set off, because the drive over Sutton Bank takes longer than the map suggests and the cafe at the abbey stops serving well before closing time.