Whitby, GB

The black-and-white house on Pier Road that has been frying haddock and serving fish pie since 1939, the famous sit-down choice for Whitby fish and chips. The restaurant upstairs outshines the takeaway window. Best when you want the classic with a harbour view and don't mind the queue.

A big, bright, family-run fish-and-chip restaurant near the station that took the National Fish and Chip Awards Restaurant of the Year title and sources its fish responsibly. Less old-world charm than the harbour spots, more consistent frying. Best for a large group that wants a sure thing.

Fusco's harbourside fish-and-chip restaurant and takeaway, run by the same family frying in Whitby since 1968 and overlooking the water on Pier Road. The Fusco name carries weight locally. Best when you want chippy classics right on the harbour with a sit-down option.

A modern wood-fired sourdough pizzeria on the West Cliff that opened in 2021 with an open kitchen, a log burner and toppings that run well past margherita. The dough is the talking point. Best for a relaxed dinner when you've had your fill of fried fish.

A Georgian restaurant-with-rooms on the Sandsend seafront holding AA Rosettes, where the daily catch dictates a short menu of chowder, scallops and wild fish. The most serious seafood cooking in the area. Best for a special dinner a couple of miles up the coast from town.

An independent steak-led bistro in the heart of Robin Hood's Bay, open for brunch through dinner, with Whitby-market fish and local butcher's meat. It tops the village's restaurant list with locals and walkers alike. Best as the dinner reward after a coastal walk into the bay.

A quirky, plush restaurant and bar in the Royal Hotel on the West Cliff, by the Whale Bone Arch, running from pizzas and small plates to scallops and steak. The interior and sea outlook are as much the draw as the food. Best for a smarter dinner or cocktails with a clifftop view.

A courtyard bistro and coffee shop off Church Street with a strong vegetarian and veggie-leaning kitchen, serving breakfast through lunch and homemade cakes. The sheltered yard is the nicest seat in the old town. Best for a long, unhurried daytime meal with plenty of meat-free options.

A small Thai restaurant tucked into the entrance of Whitby train station, run with care and a notably long list of vegan and vegetarian dishes. A reliable change of pace from coastal British fare. Best for a midweek dinner when you want something other than fish and chips.

A vintage cafe on Silver Street with a walled courtyard, big breakfasts and a gin list running into the hundreds, dog-friendly throughout. Equal parts brunch spot and afternoon hideaway. Best for a leisurely morning or a quiet courtyard drink later on.

A tiny independent coffee house known for fresh-made bagels with creative fillings, proper espresso and a stack of cakes. Locals rate it the best coffee stop in the old town. Best for a quick, high-quality breakfast or a caffeine break between sights.

A relaxed, dog-friendly cafe on Skinner Street with Buddha bowls, hearty toasties and a strong vegan and gluten-free spread alongside good coffee and cakes. More wholesome-lunch than greasy-spoon. Best for a daytime meal that isn't fried.

A snug beach cafe right on the Sandsend front serving crab sandwiches, hot lunches and views straight out to sea, a favourite of surfers, walkers and families. Simple food, unbeatable position. Best after a beach walk up the coast from Whitby.

A small Pier Road gelato counter from the same family behind Quayside, churning a rotating set of flavours like cherry, pear-and-ricotta and apple strudel. The flavours change often enough to reward repeat visits. Best for a harbourside cone on a sunny afternoon.

A 16th-century pub on Church Street near the 199 Steps, serving up to five real ales and a board of Yorkshire 'yapas' of local cheese, cold meats and tinned fish. One of the oldest and most characterful pubs in town. Best for an atmospheric pint with a snacking platter.

A roughly three-mile clifftop and beach stretch of the Cleveland Way running northwest from West Cliff to the village of Sandsend, with wide sea views the whole way. Flat by Yorkshire-coast standards. Best as an easy one-way walk you can reverse along the sand at low tide.

A short, flat loop out along the West Pier to the lighthouse and back up to the Whale Bone Arch and Captain Cook statue on West Cliff. Pure sea air and harbour views with no climbing. Best for a quick leg-stretch or a sunset stroll.

A moderate clifftop loop of around five miles past the abbey headland to Saltwick Bay and Saltwick Nab, returning through the abbey grounds. Big cliff-and-sea drama with a fossil cove halfway. Best for walkers who want more than the in-town strolls without committing to a full day.

A scenic six-and-a-half-mile stretch of the Cleveland Way along the clifftops between Robin Hood's Bay and Whitby, with constant North Sea views and the abbey on the skyline. A proper half-day walk. Best done one way with the bus or a taxi back.

A moors walk from Goathland village down a wooded valley to Mallyan Spout, the tallest waterfall in the North York Moors, with a longer loop via Beck Hole on old railway track. Inland greenery instead of coast. Best for a moors day-trip pairing with the steam railway.

An easy woodland circuit of around two miles through Sneaton Forest to the thirty-foot Falling Foss waterfall, with a seasonal tea garden beside the falls. Sheltered, shady and good for families. Best on a warm day when the open-air tea garden is serving.

A gloriously old-school independent museum in Pannett Park, crammed with Jurassic fossils, Whitby jet, whaling relics and ship models in original wooden cases. Run by a local society, it has barely changed in decades and that's the charm. Best as a rainy-day deep dive into the town's odd history.

A small craft distillery offering guided tours that walk you through the copper still, the gin's foraged moor botanicals like heather and kelp, and a tasting at the end. Hosts get strong marks for warmth and knowledge. Best for an adults' afternoon, though non-drinkers are catered for.

A heritage steam line whose trains run from Whitby up the Esk Valley to Grosmont and on across the moors to Pickering, calling at Goathland of Harry Potter and Heartbeat fame. The ride through the moors is the attraction. Best for a slow scenic day out, especially with kids.

A microbrewery and tap room in a converted barn beside the abbey ruins, pouring its own cask beers with a pizza oven going in the afternoons and abbey-and-bay views from the yard. Rustic and unpretentious. Best for a pint with a view after the abbey climb.

A small-boat operator running North Sea trips in season to spot minke whales, dolphins, porpoises and seals, with a skipper who reads the herring shoals to find them. Sightings vary with the day. Best for a few hours on the water when conditions and the calendar line up.

A free art gallery sharing Whitby Museum's building in Pannett Park, with watercolours of Victorian Whitby and rooms devoted to the Staithes Group and the Weatherill family of marine painters. Quiet and small. Best as a free indoor break, especially in bad weather.

Harbour and coastal pleasure trips aboard heritage boats including the former lifeboat Mary Ann Hepworth, taking in the harbour mouth, the piers and the abbey from the water. Short, gentle and weather-permitting. Best for a quick family outing on the water.

The gaunt 13th-century Benedictine ruin on the East Cliff headland that Bram Stoker stared at while sketching Dracula. English Heritage runs it with an audio guide and a small museum, and the silhouette against the sky does most of the work. Best for anyone who wants the one view that defines the town.

The 12th-century clifftop church at the top of the 199 Steps, with rare Georgian box pews, a triple-decker pulpit and a graveyard that fed straight into the Dracula story. The climb is the point as much as the church. Best paired with the abbey since they share the headland.

The working harbour split by the River Esk, crossed by a 1908 electric swing bridge that still opens to let masted boats through. This is where the fishing boats land, the gulls patrol and the whole town funnels together. Best for a slow wander between the old town and West Cliff.

The 17th-century harbourside house where a teenage James Cook lodged as an apprentice, now a tight, well-curated museum of his Whitby years and Pacific voyages. The original attic where apprentices slept is part of the tour. Best for anyone curious how a coal-port lad became the era's great navigator.

A quiet rocky cove about a mile east of town below the cliffs, known for fossil hunting, the eerie wreck stumps and the wave-cut platform of Saltwick Nab. It empties out as soon as you leave the abbey crowds behind. Best at low tide for rock pools and ammonite-spotting.

The slim stone lighthouse at the end of the West Pier, climbable in summer up a tight spiral of about 80 steps to the lantern room. It gives a sea-level-to-rooftop sweep of the harbour mouth and abbey. Best for a cheap, quick high point that most visitors walk straight past.

A former smugglers' village six miles south where cobbled alleys tumble steeply down to a rocky shore famous for rock pools and fossils. There are tiny shops, a couple of pubs and the bay itself at the bottom. Best for an afternoon of wandering and tide-pooling away from Whitby's bustle.

A Victorian-style terraced park behind the town centre, home to Whitby Museum and the Pannett Art Gallery, with formal planting, a big adventure playground and quiet benches. Volunteers keep it immaculate. Best as a green break with kids or a rainy-day pairing with the museum.