“The best view in Europe, if not the world.”

My dad always makes this pronouncement as we drive down Lythe Bank and glimpse the dramatic view along the coast towards Whitby.

The white horses - as we call the breaking waves - spilling onto the long stretch of sand, with the profile of Whitby’s piers and Abbey on the far headland is a sight to uplift even the most depressed spirits.

Whitby is a long-time favourite haunt for my family, particularly in winter, when bracing walks around the town and up the iconic 199 steps to St Mary’s Church are the perfect antidote to Christmas excess.

Amazingly, when I was young, may dad would park the car close to the bandstand in the harbour. That would be impossible today, with the volume of visitors to the resort, but in winter ample free parking is available on West Cliff.

From here, visitors can walk through the town’s famous whalebone arch, reflecting its whaling past. Erected around 1853, the original jaw bone was replaced in 1963 and again in 2003, with a bone donated by Alaska. It stands beside a monument to Captain Cook, whose statue looks out over the sea.

It was in 1753, as Cook's career was just taking off, that several Whitby merchants came together with just two ships to form the Whitby Whaling Company and set out for Greenland. The early whalers consisted of both local fishermen and a number of more experienced Dutch specialists.

Between 1753 and 1833 there were 55 whaling ships operating from Whitby harbour and by 1768 a Whitby ship, Jenny, was noted as one of the two most successful whaling ships in the British fleet.

When I was a child, it was fishing that dominated the harbour. The fleet was huge, with ships moored two or three abreast. Today it is a shadow of its former self, with just a couple of boats roped to the harbour wall.

Serving as an important defence for the town, Whitby’s piers have withstood many a violent lashing from storms over the years. Dating back to the 16th century, the west harbour pier was rebuilt and finished in 1814, with a lighthouse added in 1831. The shorter, east side pier, was built later in 1854.

A walk along the west pier is as bracing a stroll as you will get, with the wind coming off the North Sea and the gulls wheeling overhead.

We ate in Botham’s tea room in Skinner Street, above their welcoming cake shop. With its old world charm and elegance, it is a popular dining location. The Whitby firm also has a café in its Baxtergate shop.

After lunch, a walk along cobbled Church Street to the town’s iconic 199 steps took us past shops selling everything from paintings to books, ceramics, clothing and confectionery. Jewellery handcrafted from the fossilised wood remains known as Whitby jet can also be found. Carry on up Henrietta Street a certain smell will draw the visitor to a small building nestling beneath the cliffs. Established in 1872, Fortune's Kippers is now a world famous, smokehouse.

It is best not to interrupt people as you walk up the gentle curve of the steps that lead to the church and on to Whitby Abbey. If they look as though they are concentrating, they usually are - counting the steps to the summit.

Perched high on a cliff, it is easy to see why the haunting remains of this ruined Benedictine abbey served as inspiration for Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Managed by English Heritage, it also has a visitor centre.

INFORMATION:

Whitby is two hours drive from Bradford; it is accessible by train via Leeds and Scarborough, and from Leeds on the Coastliner bus service.

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