8 Adventures in England’s Yorkshire Dales National Park That Feel Like You’re On a Film Set

Known for its otherworldly moors, looming limestone cliffs, and endless muddy tracks, England’s Yorkshire Dales National Park is a hiker’s dream. But it’s also a landscape lifted straight from Wuthering Heights, the world of Harry Potter, and battle scenes from The Lord of the Rings.

Best Yorkshire Dales Adventures and Landscapes

1. The Wild Moors of Top Withens

The tumbledown stone ruin of Top Withens might not look like much at first – just another weathered speck where the Yorkshire moors stretch into the sky. But it’s long been rumoured that Emily Brontë found her inspiration for the dark romance of Wuthering Heights here.

Read more: 4 Literature-Inspired Walks in UK’s South

Since then, this abandoned farmhouse has become a pilgrimage site for literature lovers and twinned souls alike. There’s no proof the Brontë sisters ever stood within the moss-covered walls (a rather grumpy sign points that out), but they did roam these moors.

The moors might seem still at first, but it’s not a stillness of peace – it’s the charged hush before a storm, humming with invisible static. Sit on the soft grass beneath the gnarled tree that bows over the ruin and absorb the whistling quiet.

Sunshine flickers to cloud and chill in moments. Heather clings to the hillsides, still maroon from winter, waiting to burst into purple by August. Plump-bodied grouse dart. And sometimes, a hare leaps from nowhere and vanishes like a phantom. The moss here isn’t just aesthetics: sphagnum was once used to dress wounds in war, and the peat beneath your boots is made of centuries of plant matter that never decayed.

Hot tip! Don’t pass over the nearby village of Haworth, where the sisters lived. It’s now home to the Brontë Museum and the sisters’ final resting place.

Read more: Remember to leave no trace

2. The Lost World of Malham Cove

You might not know it, but you’ve probably seen Malham Cove – even if you’ve never set foot in the UK. This cinematic limestone crescent starred in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, when Harry and Hermione camped atop the cliffs while evading dark forces.

But the cove doesn’t need spells to feel bewitching. Carved by a thundering Ice Age waterfall over 12,000 years ago, the cove now sits in silence at the end of a gentle valley.

The truly marvellous side of Malham Cove lies at the summit: a surreal limestone pavement of clints (blocks) and grikes (fissures). These deep cracks shelter rare and fragile life: tiny ferns, alpine flowers, and mosses like Hart’s tongue and Haircap, all thriving in protected alkaline soil. Take your time here. If you’re lucky (like I was), you’ll watch the sun rise slowly into the sky as morning mists billow across the landscape.

Hot tip! On a dry day, the climb is steady, but the stone, polished by the feet of countless walkers, can be slippery when wet. Watch your footing, especially in the wind. If you’re tempted by photos at the edge, stay well back. Your nerves will thank you (and so will your Mum).

3. All Aboard the Ribblehead Viaduct

Looking up at the Victorian viaduct, a train streaming past above your head, you’d be forgiven for thinking you’d stumbled underneath the set of the Hogwarts Express. Alas, no. That honour goes to the Glenfinnan Viaduct in Scotland. Still, Ribblehead has its own magic.

Get there early enough to cross to the western side and watch the stonework glow in the late sun. Then grab a pint with the locals at the eccentrically worn Station Inn. Order a classic plate of ham, egg and chips, or a hot drink to warm up, timed, if you like, to the pub’s countdown to the next train.

Once darkness settles properly, head outside and away from the pub’s lights. If you’re lucky enough to have a clear sky, look up. The stars above are dazzling, scattered from horizon to horizon like ice crystals across the sky. After all, the Yorkshire Dales National Park is an official Dark Sky Reserve.

Hot tip! Use a red headlamp or low lighting to keep your eyes cosmically-sharp.

Read more: How To Become a Stargazing Know It All

4. Gordale Scar – Iceland in Miniature

Round the bend into Gordale Scar and you’ll feel like you’ve left the UK entirely. Following the stream to its source, you’re suddenly swallowed by a towering limestone gorge, its 100m cliffs closing in on either side. At the throat of the cavern, twin waterfalls crash over moss-slicked ledges into a dark, trembling pool. Eerie and beautiful, with ancient stones, raw and half-formed.

No surprise, then, that The Witcher used it as a filming location for Season 2. And, with an even more impressive fantasy pedigree, Tolkien supposedly drew on it as inspiration for Helm’s Deep in The Lord of the Rings.

Like its neighbour Malham Cove, Gordale Scar was sculpted during the last Ice Age by glacial ice, then carved deeper by meltwater. Today, it’s still evolving. Tufa rock, soft and lime-rich, seeps from the cliff face, layering and reshaping the gorge from the inside out.

England? Felt more like Iceland to me.

Hot tip! Don’t stop here. A short way ahead lies the shaded plunge pool of Janet’s Foss, which fills quickly with swimmers on sunny days. If you’ve got time, drive (or walk) up to Malham Tarn: a misty, otherworldly basin and the highest limestone lake in England.

5. Peaking at Pen-y-ghent

Part of the famous Yorkshire Three Peaks Challenge, Pen-y-ghent isn’t the tallest, but it’s often the first walkers’ tackle (and a great option if you’re short on time). With a silhouette like a crouched lion rising above the moors, it looks suitably dramatic without needing a full day to climb it. At just 694m, let’s call it a short, sharp workout rather than a marathon.

The classic route begins in Horton-in-Ribblesdale, a quiet stone village with a train station and, of course, a pub. For a steeper and more direct route, you can start at Dale Head and head straight up the front. It’s quieter, the views hit faster, and the wind will remind you quite insistently that you’re alive.

At the top, you might see as far as the Lake District, the Howgill Fells, and across to Whernside and Ingleborough.

Hot tip! If you’re doing the Three Peaks Challenge, bring good boots, waterproofs, enough snacks to share, and some training.

Add-On Adventures in Yorkshire Dales National Park

If you have time, these cinematic side quests pack a punch.

6. Stay at Grassington

All Creatures Great and Small from 1978 and a revival in 2020 was filmed in this market town, which dates back to the 7th century. Pull up a seat at The Devonshire, where muddy boots are welcome, and you’ll likely be joined by a panting pack of locals’ dogs.

7. Seduced at Castle Howard

Bridgerton’s steamiest scenes had a very regal backdrop – this 17th-century baroque masterpiece near York. Castle Howard was the Duke and Daphne’s high-society home in Season 1. Wander its sweeping staircases, mirrored salons, echoing marble corridors, and walled rose gardens, and see how many non-PG scenes you can mentally re-enact without blushing down to your corset strings.

8. Spooky in York

Within York’s medieval walls, the former Viking city now thrives on ghost stories and shadowy vibes. Most famous is the Shambles – its crooked medieval buildings and butcher’s hooks may not officially be Diagon Alley; the Harry Potter author says it wasn’t the inspiration – but its similar aesthetics means the wizarding crowds keep coming.

The real haunt, though, is York Minster: a gothic giant that took 250 years to build, survived plague, fire, and lightning, and featured in Elizabeth and The Crown. Still not spooked? Head to the Treasurer’s House, where Roman soldiers are said to march through the cellar walls. And if you see a woman down a snickelway who calls herself ‘Mad Alice’, don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Fancy Another UK Adventure? Get Amongst These

• Loch Lomond Scotland: Where The Highlands Meet The Lowlands
• A Week Exploring Northumberland Changed My Perceptions, And Blew Me Away
• 9 Bonnie Hikes to Wander on Your Next Scottish Adventure
• 4 Literature-Inspired Walks in the UK’s South

Kate was supported by Visit Britain, Visit North Yorkshire, and Yorkshire Dales Guides.