Best beaches in Yorkshire
Yorkshire's dramatic coastline offers some of England's most spectacular beaches, from the fossil-rich shores beneath Whitby's Gothic abbey to hidden surfing havens and traditional Victorian resorts. Whether you're seeking family-friendly golden sands, rugged clifftop adventures, or charming fishing village authenticity, Yorkshire's diverse coastal gems promise unforgettable seaside experiences along this wild and beautiful stretch of the North Sea.
A traditional family beach below Whitby's West Cliff, with beach huts, donkey rides and a paddling pool right by the pier.
A quieter fishing-village beach next to Whitby, with rock pools to explore among the sand and low cliffs.
A cobbled fishing village tumbling down a ravine to a Jurassic shale foreshore, where ammonites turn up and the Coast to Coast Walk ends.
Scarborough's main resort beach, backed by arcades and a promenade, with the 11th-century Scarborough Castle standing guard above the bay.
Quieter and rockier than South Bay across the headland, with a longboard-friendly surf break shaped by the town's sea defences.
Yorkshire's best-known surf beach, cliff-backed and beginner-friendly, with named breaks like Pumphouse and Bunkers, a step quieter than Scarborough's bays.
Five miles of sand, sheltered at one end by Filey Brigg — a mile-long rocky headland reaching out into the sea.
On Europe's fastest-eroding coastline, where a striking 1991 sea-defence scheme still holds the cliff-top village back from the sea.
A chalk-cliff gully harbour where traditional cobles — flat-bottomed fishing boats — are still launched from the beach today.
Home to Britain's oldest water-balanced cliff lift, built in 1884, on a beach that's also a genuine surf spot.