Cultural highlights

What can a visitor to the North York Moors National Park expect to see and enjoy.
What sort of cultural heritage experiences and features can be discovered?

The diversity and choice is simply staggering – and inspiring. Here are a few suggestions of places to catch the cultural distinctiveness of the North York Moors National Park:

To see how our culture has come about,  Ryedale Folk Museum is a good starting place. Here you can find out about the people and events, traditions and practices which have shaped the culture of the North York Moors over thousands of years. For more information you can visit Ryedale Folk Museum's website.

The National Park Visitor Centres at Sutton Bank, The Moors Centre at Danby and The Old Coastguard Station at Robin Hood's Bay give you an insight into the area. You can discover how the landscape has affected the way in which people live. You can learn to read the clues in the landscape and on maps so that you can understand what you are looking at. You can find out about farming and fishing communities, about the Courts Leet which began in mediaeval times and discover what's going on today.

What makes the culture of the North York Moors so interesting and different?

Well, where else can you find out about local traditional games like merrils and quoits and maybe have a go? Where can you drink beer and water gleaned from the local landscape and appreciate the importance and beauty of local crafts such as fishermans' ganseys? Where else might you partake of the songs, the music, the very dialect which encapsulates the essence of this unique National Park? With little effort and a bit of forward planning you can take in this and more to make your visit a cultural success.

If you want to experience at first hand the culture of the North York Moors, there is no better way than visiting an agricultural show or local produce market. You can drop in at one of the many local craftshops or artists studios or watch demonsrations of local games and traditional crafts, like hedgelaying and besom making, at a museum or visitor centre.

Culture is not just the past, the theatres, festivals and other events in and around the North York Moors National Park are part of the North York Moors' living heritage, so plan your visit around these events, activities and heritage attractions throughout the area and you will not only take part and soak up the atmosphere, you will become a real part of the evolving cultural scene.