Hello,
We are planning a trip for early May to a convention in London for 2 days, then want to travel to York and surrounding areas and end up at Manchester to fly home to Chicago. We want to hire a car in York (don't want to drive in London - 1st time with left handed driving etc) so thought we would train up to York then drive for the rest of the trip. Want to see Yorkshire Dales, Hawes etc searching family history. Any recommendations? Thanks

For the very last leg of the trip, there's an excleent train service between York and Manchester Airport, operated by Transpennine Express. So if you want to rent a car in and around York, but would prefer not to drive over to Manchester Airport, take a look at www.tpexpress.co.uk

York isn't the easiest place to drive around - i should know i took my driving test there (three times!). Actually, as long as you are not smack in the City centre you will be okay. There are some lovely places to visit from York. I would try Ripon and nearby Fountains Abbey, Grassington, and Richmond (most of these can be combined). If you have the confidence drive to Whitby and Robin Hoods Bay they are delightful.

You don't want a car in York itself - but you definitely will want one for the rest of Yorkshire.

I personally would take the train up to York and spend the first full day/night there "car-less". Then you can collect your rental car and start exploring.

Before anyone can give you good touring recommendations - we need to know how many days you have after leaving London.

Thanks for the suggestions. I'm in London May 3 &4th, planning on leaving London the 5th and ending up in York, Hawes, the Dales etc and eventually Manchester on the 10th for a flight home early the 11th. I have a sister traveling with my wife and I who has problems walking so I need to be able to include her in the activies thus the need for the car.

well - as we said, you can't really use a car IN central York. It is a medieval, walled city w/ little parking.

Are you interested in the moors/Castle Howard/etc too - or just the Dales/Hawes?

You have plenty of time for a nice tour. The 5th is the end of the Bank Holiday weekend so you'll want to book your train north as far ahead as your schedule is set. I'd stay May 5-6 in York. That will give you 1.5 days for the city. Then pick up your car and head NW into the Dales - you could stay May 7-10 in Wensleydale and use it as a base for Hawes and all of the Dales. Then you'd have a reasonable drive down to MAN for your last night.

If you also wanted to see the Moors - stay in York one more night and do a day trip on the 7th to the moors, Whitby, Robin Hood's Bay, etc.

Then on the morning of the 8th head up to Wensleydale and stay til the afternoon/evening of the 10th.

There is a Yorkshire fodorite -- Morgana-- who hopefully will see your thread in the morning. She can give you really good specific advice . . . . .

Hi Deke, glad you are heading up this way. You have had some good advice already, but please note that North Yorkshire is a very large county, and 'the Dales' cover a big area too, so it would be good if you could plan an itinerary to make the most of your time up here.. There's loads to see and do so if you could let me know a bit more about your interests that would be very helpful. You mention Hawes and family history, so I assume the 2 are connected? Hawes is lovely, as is the surrounding area, so it would be a good place to base yourself. This website is good for accommodation. You may want to consider a farm stay - many farms do a very reasonably priced bed and breakfast, they often just have a couple of rooms for visitors, and it's a great way of staying somewhere quiet and peaceful in beautiful surroundings.
www.yorkshirenet.co.uk
I was slightly concerned about your sister, as York is very much a walking city, not a driving one. Some of the old lanes can be uneven etc, so she will need to pace herself, and it's always pretty bus. Plenty of places she can take a rest though. Also visiting Fountains Abbey can involve plenty of walking, although there is a small car park near the entrance that is reserved for people with limited mobility. If you park at the main Visitor Centre you have a pretty steep hill to go up and down to reach the abbey.
May 5th is Bank Holiday Monday and York will be VERY busy that day, especially if the sun is shining! It will be considerably quieter for the rest of the week.
Do get back to me if you have any questions. I live close to the Dales and visit most weekends, so can assist with nice restaurants, pubs etc, as well as what to visit.

York tourist info will offer electric mobile buggies (not sure if free or rent)I think.

Don't ignore the railway museum because the subject may not be to your taste. It is impressive

http://www.shopmobilityyork.org.uk/

here is the link if you need it

Hello janisj, bilboburgler and Morgana - I sent an email to the scooter people. We will see what they say. Thanks for your tips.

Morgana - we are researching the Metcalfe family line. From what we know the family had it start in Yorkshire and the Metcalfe Society is based in Hawes I believe. So we thought we would do a little research and in the process just do some sightseeing, so we are open to suggestions. We do not want to drive back to London so we plan on ending up in Manchester probably on the 10th to do a little sightseeing and then fly out on the 11th.
Deke

Following on from Bilbo's excellent suggestion above, I've checked the Fountains Abbey website for disabled access - this link may be of interest.
http://www.fountainsabbey.org.uk/vis...ilities5g.html
The Fountains estate covers a large area, including Studley Royal Water Gardens (all included in admission price) so this would be a good way of getting to see everything.
Wensleydale does look your best bet for a base in the Dales - the Metcalfes does seem a famous family in the area! Leyburn and Middleham with its castle (where Richard III was raised) are nice too.

For getting around the sights in York, you could try the open top bus tours. See:

http://www.yorktourbuses.co.uk/

Tickets are valid for 24 hours, so you can hop on and off.

York Minster is a must.
I also enjoyed York Castle Museum, especially the Victorian Street.

A mate of mine took his mother around Fountains in a wheelchair a few weeks ago. The site has a streem through the middle and paths on both sides. One side is tarmac and the other is gravel.

Do not try to push anyone up a gravel path. He said he almost died on that path!

We have recently greatly enjoyed a day trip from Nottingham to Manchester Airport via Chatsworth, one of the most beautiful of the big houses. A drive from York to Manchester Airport via this marvellous site would be easy enough and thoroughly enjoyable!

You have more than enough suggestions for your time in York and the Dales. However, if you are a fan of "All Creatures Great and Small", Thirsk, the home of James Herriot is a reasonable drive from York. The surgery of his practice is now a museum which replicates what his life and those of his partners was in the 40's.

Middleham is interesting as someone earlier mentioned. As a Richard III fan who hopes he didn't do the murders, I was interested in his boyhood home. One of my favorite memories is being there early in the morning and seeing horseback riders galloping along a hillside with the morning mist behind and in front of them. One of those moments of "Oh, drat, I just finished a roll of film! And no time to reload!" so I just enjoyed it and for some reason it impressed itself on my mind.

Most of the places I can think to stay at around Yorkshire are B&B'S and guest houses and have stairs, which might be difficult for your sister.

Here's a site with accommodations in Yorkshire for the handicapped:
www.iknow-yorkshire.co.uk/yorkshire_dales/.

Some B&Bs do have ground floor rooms. If so, it is usually prominently mentioned on their website. Do remember that it should say "ground floor" since "1st floor" is a US 2nd floor . . . .

My wife and I did a similar trip in 2007, taking the train from London to Leeds, then on to York, where we rented a car for a few days. Here's my trip report: http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=35014913

Enjoy!

If your sister can't manage stairs then many places in North Yorkshire do have ground floor rooms available, especially when the B and B is in an annex to the main house. I've also stayed in various barn and outbuilding conversions without stairs. Also there are numerous bungalows all over North Yorkshire offering accommodation without stairs!

Thanks everyone for your comments. I'm building a great list, now to decide which one.