Things to do in Whitby
Climb the 199 steps to the Abbey where Dracula came ashore
Great views of Whitby and the coast. Can pick up the coastal path to Robin Hoods Bay from there.
If you go past the steps and down the street underneath you will find the famous smokehouse which sells home smoked kippers.
Visit the Whitby Brewery
East Cliff, Whitby Yo22 4JR
11am - 5pm tel 01947 228871
On the cliff top. A micro Brewery that serves its own local Whitby beer which I'm told is very good. A good stopping off point after a walk along the coastal path or to recover from the 199 steps.
Coastal Path to Robin Hoods Bay (there is a bus service if you only want to walk one way.)
Walk to Sandsend along the beach (check tide times) there is a nice pub and a tea shop when you get there.
Follow the Whitby Trail leaflet from Tourist Information
Take a fishing boat trip from the harbour
Take a Whale watching cruise from the harbour
Take a Ghost walk around Whitby. Signs are at the Market place on road up to the Abbey and at the top of the cliff near Captain Cooks Monument next to the Whale Bones. They usually start about 7.30pm - 8pm £5 each
Catch a Steam Train and take a ride across the Moors to Goathland (Railway Children and Heartbeat filmed there) Pickering and Grosmont.
Timetables available on line or from the Railway station in Whitby near to the Co-Op
There is a nature park walk at the back of Whitehall Landing, follow the riverside walkway on the development around to the left and walk out the back of the apartments to find a footpath which takes you back inland along the riverbank. This is also a good place to take a photograph of the steam trains as they leave Whitby.
There is a footpath to the pretty village of Ruswarp along the riverbank, (the path on the other side of the river is better if you want to walk all the way to Ruswarp.)
Take a walk to Malham Spout Waterfall in Goathland. Access the path at the side of the Malham Spout Hotel in Goathland. Path is for the sure footed. There are car parks available in Goathland.
Staithes is a quaint little fishing village just up the coast. There is a nice little pub on the harbour. sit outside with a coffee and enjoy looking out to sea. It is a ten minute walk up and down a steep hill! Quirky little art shops and galleries to explore along the way.
Explore the Rock Pools at Robin Hoods Bay beach - another steep hill! There is also a little museum at Robin Hoods Bay which is interesting.
The villages of Thornton-le-Dale, Pickering and Malton are also nice stopping off points. Pickering hosts a famous 1940's weekend which is interesting and fun. Check Tourist Information for up to date dates. Pickering also hosts an agricultural livestock market every week which is interesting. Malton is fast becoming famous as a foodie destination with lots of artisan food producers.
Climb the 199 steps to the Abbey where Dracula came ashore
Great views of Whitby and the coast. Can pick up the coastal path to Robin Hoods Bay from there.
If you go past the steps and down the street underneath you will find the famous smokehouse which sells home smoked kippers.
Visit the Whitby Brewery
East Cliff, Whitby Yo22 4JR
11am - 5pm tel 01947 228871
On the cliff top. A micro Brewery that serves its own local Whitby beer which I'm told is very good. A good stopping off point after a walk along the coastal path or to recover from the 199 steps.
Coastal Path to Robin Hoods Bay (there is a bus service if you only want to walk one way.)
Walk to Sandsend along the beach (check tide times) there is a nice pub and a tea shop when you get there.
Follow the Whitby Trail leaflet from Tourist Information
Take a fishing boat trip from the harbour
Take a Whale watching cruise from the harbour
Take a Ghost walk around Whitby. Signs are at the Market place on road up to the Abbey and at the top of the cliff near Captain Cooks Monument next to the Whale Bones. They usually start about 7.30pm - 8pm £5 each
Catch a Steam Train and take a ride across the Moors to Goathland (Railway Children and Heartbeat filmed there) Pickering and Grosmont.
Timetables available on line or from the Railway station in Whitby near to the Co-Op
There is a nature park walk at the back of Whitehall Landing, follow the riverside walkway on the development around to the left and walk out the back of the apartments to find a footpath which takes you back inland along the riverbank. This is also a good place to take a photograph of the steam trains as they leave Whitby.
There is a footpath to the pretty village of Ruswarp along the riverbank, (the path on the other side of the river is better if you want to walk all the way to Ruswarp.)
Take a walk to Malham Spout Waterfall in Goathland. Access the path at the side of the Malham Spout Hotel in Goathland. Path is for the sure footed. There are car parks available in Goathland.
Staithes is a quaint little fishing village just up the coast. There is a nice little pub on the harbour. sit outside with a coffee and enjoy looking out to sea. It is a ten minute walk up and down a steep hill! Quirky little art shops and galleries to explore along the way.
Explore the Rock Pools at Robin Hoods Bay beach - another steep hill! There is also a little museum at Robin Hoods Bay which is interesting.
The villages of Thornton-le-Dale, Pickering and Malton are also nice stopping off points. Pickering hosts a famous 1940's weekend which is interesting and fun. Check Tourist Information for up to date dates. Pickering also hosts an agricultural livestock market every week which is interesting. Malton is fast becoming famous as a foodie destination with lots of artisan food producers.
EMERGENCY NUMBERS AND CONTACTS FOR WHITBY
A&E open 24 hours:
Scarborough Hospital 15.5 miles
tel 01723 368111
Woodlands Drive, Scarborough, YO12 6QL
James Cook University Hospita l 28.8 miles
tel 01642 850850
Marton Road, Middlesborough, Cleveland, TS4 3BW
Doctors
Whitby Group Practise
tel 01947 820888
Springvale Medical Centre, Rievaulx Road, Whitby, YO21 1SD
Sandsend Surgery
tel 01947 894948
East Row, Sandsend, Whitby, YO21 3SU
Dentists
Station Road Dental Practise
tel 01947 880328
The Surgery, Station Road, Whitby, YO22 4RA
Whitby Dental Care
tel 01947 605080
9 Victoria Square, Whitby, YO21 1EA
A&E open 24 hours:
Scarborough Hospital 15.5 miles
tel 01723 368111
Woodlands Drive, Scarborough, YO12 6QL
James Cook University Hospita l 28.8 miles
tel 01642 850850
Marton Road, Middlesborough, Cleveland, TS4 3BW
Doctors
Whitby Group Practise
tel 01947 820888
Springvale Medical Centre, Rievaulx Road, Whitby, YO21 1SD
Sandsend Surgery
tel 01947 894948
East Row, Sandsend, Whitby, YO21 3SU
Dentists
Station Road Dental Practise
tel 01947 880328
The Surgery, Station Road, Whitby, YO22 4RA
Whitby Dental Care
tel 01947 605080
9 Victoria Square, Whitby, YO21 1EA
Well what a lot has happened since my last Blog!
Things had been going wonderfully well with happy guests and busy bookings. We had just had Wi-Fi installed for our guests use and upgraded to a new large screen TV to enjoy the TV package we had ordered.
Air bnb had just awarded us Superhost status again and we had earned another Certificate of Excellence from Trip Advisor. Ellyn & I had been considering a couple of building projects to make our apartment even better, but then everything stopped..............bookings were cancelled and confusion and uncertainty took their place.
As my great nephew aged 4 years old declared "those pesky bugs have spoilt everything!"
We are currently closed and not accepting bookings until the government tell us otherwise. As soon as we are allowed we will be open again.
We are lucky in that we had ear marked last years profits for possible building projects so we do have some money in the business to enable us to keep afloat, as although no money is coming in, it certainly keeps going out!
We still have to pay for all the services etc that we need. We are lucky we did this as I'm sure a lot of businesses are struggling at the present time.
During this time of uncertainty we have been revisiting our cleaning procedures and systems and looking at what we need to do. Sarah our housekeeper is wonderful and all our guests comment on how clean the apartment is when they arrive. Due to the added threat of COVID-19 we have looked at what else we need to do in order to help our guests and Sarah stay safe.
I have attached our cleaning schedules at the bottom of this blog to share with you.
The PPE and sanitisers that I ordered have arrived ready for sarah to use whilst she cleans after guests leave and before new ones arrive. We will provide hand sanitiser for guests to use during their stay. We don't expect guests to clean during their stay as the apartment is always sparkly clean for their arrival but we do provide a few items for guests to use if they want a quick clean up during their stay, and for their peace of mind we will increase the range of cleaning products available to guests to use should they so wish.
Our linens will be washed on 90 degree hot washes. (All our bed linens and towels are 100% cotton so it won't damage them).
I'm sure all our guests who have had to cancel their holidays are feeling disappointed at having to postpone their holidays. We have offered everyone of them a no quibble full refund in the hope that they will rebook once this situation is sorted out.
It is a frightening and uncertain time we are all going through. On the whole it seems to be bringing out the best in people who are showing kindness and respect to others. People are putting themselves on the front line by going to work to keep us safe and looked after and keeping us fed, providing transport, volunteering......all the things we sometimes take for granted and we thank them all every single one of them.
We have signed up for the Whitby weekender thank you weekend which is hopefully going to take place at the beginning of October. Businesses in Whitby are coming together to offer free things to frontline NHS workers to say thank you to them. Hotels, B&B's, Holiday rentals, restaurants, pubs even launderettes are offering free services to people. The frontline workers have to register and depending on how many businesses sign up people will be given a free service or room for the weekend. We have offered up our apartment free to a registered family to come for the weekend. It is not a lot and we can't help everyone but it is the businesses people of Whitby giving what they can as a gesture and we are happy to help in our own small way.
We also thank the people who have stayed away from Whitby to protect all the lovely people who live here. We hope that now the restrictions are being eased slightly people will behave responsibly and continue to observe the social distancing guidelines.
We can't wait to welcome guests back, please be assured we are doing everything we can to ensure guests stay safe and have a wonderful holiday, and as soon as the government tell us we are safe to reopen we will.
Things had been going wonderfully well with happy guests and busy bookings. We had just had Wi-Fi installed for our guests use and upgraded to a new large screen TV to enjoy the TV package we had ordered.
Air bnb had just awarded us Superhost status again and we had earned another Certificate of Excellence from Trip Advisor. Ellyn & I had been considering a couple of building projects to make our apartment even better, but then everything stopped..............bookings were cancelled and confusion and uncertainty took their place.
As my great nephew aged 4 years old declared "those pesky bugs have spoilt everything!"
We are currently closed and not accepting bookings until the government tell us otherwise. As soon as we are allowed we will be open again.
We are lucky in that we had ear marked last years profits for possible building projects so we do have some money in the business to enable us to keep afloat, as although no money is coming in, it certainly keeps going out!
We still have to pay for all the services etc that we need. We are lucky we did this as I'm sure a lot of businesses are struggling at the present time.
During this time of uncertainty we have been revisiting our cleaning procedures and systems and looking at what we need to do. Sarah our housekeeper is wonderful and all our guests comment on how clean the apartment is when they arrive. Due to the added threat of COVID-19 we have looked at what else we need to do in order to help our guests and Sarah stay safe.
I have attached our cleaning schedules at the bottom of this blog to share with you.
The PPE and sanitisers that I ordered have arrived ready for sarah to use whilst she cleans after guests leave and before new ones arrive. We will provide hand sanitiser for guests to use during their stay. We don't expect guests to clean during their stay as the apartment is always sparkly clean for their arrival but we do provide a few items for guests to use if they want a quick clean up during their stay, and for their peace of mind we will increase the range of cleaning products available to guests to use should they so wish.
Our linens will be washed on 90 degree hot washes. (All our bed linens and towels are 100% cotton so it won't damage them).
I'm sure all our guests who have had to cancel their holidays are feeling disappointed at having to postpone their holidays. We have offered everyone of them a no quibble full refund in the hope that they will rebook once this situation is sorted out.
It is a frightening and uncertain time we are all going through. On the whole it seems to be bringing out the best in people who are showing kindness and respect to others. People are putting themselves on the front line by going to work to keep us safe and looked after and keeping us fed, providing transport, volunteering......all the things we sometimes take for granted and we thank them all every single one of them.
We have signed up for the Whitby weekender thank you weekend which is hopefully going to take place at the beginning of October. Businesses in Whitby are coming together to offer free things to frontline NHS workers to say thank you to them. Hotels, B&B's, Holiday rentals, restaurants, pubs even launderettes are offering free services to people. The frontline workers have to register and depending on how many businesses sign up people will be given a free service or room for the weekend. We have offered up our apartment free to a registered family to come for the weekend. It is not a lot and we can't help everyone but it is the businesses people of Whitby giving what they can as a gesture and we are happy to help in our own small way.
We also thank the people who have stayed away from Whitby to protect all the lovely people who live here. We hope that now the restrictions are being eased slightly people will behave responsibly and continue to observe the social distancing guidelines.
We can't wait to welcome guests back, please be assured we are doing everything we can to ensure guests stay safe and have a wonderful holiday, and as soon as the government tell us we are safe to reopen we will.
I've been a bad girl............I've just looked at my last blog from a couple of weeks ago and in it I said I was going to design and get printed some postcards to advertise the apartment and also put together a slide show of things to do in Whitby for our Facebook page and I haven't done either!!! In my defence my day job gets very busy at this time of year so I haven't been sat on my bottom doing nothing (tempting though that sounds) and I have been kept busy emailing and texting our many visitors. Nevertheless I said I would do it so I had better get on with it.
We have been very busy with lots of lovely holiday makers enjoying the apartment and a lot of them have been kind enough to leave us some great reviews on Trip Advisor. We now have nine 5* reviews from our happy holidaymakers which is fantastic. Thank you to all of the people who have taken the time to write a review for us, we do appreciate it. We have a lot to live up to now, expectations from our future guests will be high and we don't want to disappoint them.
Trip Advisor have told us that we are one of their top owners in that we respond to visitors enquiries quickly and efficiently,(my daughters love it too because they say mum now answers her mobile phone!) and we have a beautiful apartment that our guests are saying lovely things about and giving us 5* reviews. They have also told us that we are being considered for one of their Badge of Excellence awards, the selection process will take place in October... so fingers crossed. Ellyn & I are really pleased that we are being considered for this award and are so proud at what we have achieved in the four short months we have been letting the holiday apartment.
Sarah our housekeeper has been working exceptionally hard to keep the apartment in tip top order, our guests appreciate what she does and so do we. She must be worn out. We wouldn't be having the success we are having without her. Thank you Sarah we and the holiday makers love you !!!
We have had our first repeat booking...its so exciting. It sounds stupid to get excited about that but its a measure that people really mean what they are saying in their reviews and are wanting to come back. The couple came in May and have now booked to come back in October, I think they like Whitby when it is a bit quieter and they have told me they want to visit the 40"s weekend event in Pickering. In previous years they have visited and stayed in a caravan but after trying our apartment they want to return especially as they tell me that the caravan wasn't any cheaper than what they pay for the apartment and the apartment is a lot nicer. Of course it is....Sarah wouldn't allow it to be any other!!
We have been very busy with lots of lovely holiday makers enjoying the apartment and a lot of them have been kind enough to leave us some great reviews on Trip Advisor. We now have nine 5* reviews from our happy holidaymakers which is fantastic. Thank you to all of the people who have taken the time to write a review for us, we do appreciate it. We have a lot to live up to now, expectations from our future guests will be high and we don't want to disappoint them.
Trip Advisor have told us that we are one of their top owners in that we respond to visitors enquiries quickly and efficiently,(my daughters love it too because they say mum now answers her mobile phone!) and we have a beautiful apartment that our guests are saying lovely things about and giving us 5* reviews. They have also told us that we are being considered for one of their Badge of Excellence awards, the selection process will take place in October... so fingers crossed. Ellyn & I are really pleased that we are being considered for this award and are so proud at what we have achieved in the four short months we have been letting the holiday apartment.
Sarah our housekeeper has been working exceptionally hard to keep the apartment in tip top order, our guests appreciate what she does and so do we. She must be worn out. We wouldn't be having the success we are having without her. Thank you Sarah we and the holiday makers love you !!!
We have had our first repeat booking...its so exciting. It sounds stupid to get excited about that but its a measure that people really mean what they are saying in their reviews and are wanting to come back. The couple came in May and have now booked to come back in October, I think they like Whitby when it is a bit quieter and they have told me they want to visit the 40"s weekend event in Pickering. In previous years they have visited and stayed in a caravan but after trying our apartment they want to return especially as they tell me that the caravan wasn't any cheaper than what they pay for the apartment and the apartment is a lot nicer. Of course it is....Sarah wouldn't allow it to be any other!!
I have just checked the date of my last blog and I can't believe it has only been a month since I was being so surprised at how well the bookings for Whitby14 had started. Things have continued to go mad, we were fully booked up for July and have only one day free in August and now September is booking up as well. We have already had Christmas week booked and now New Year has gone as well. Are we ever going to get a holiday of our own? I'm not moaning though Whitby14 is there to pay its own way and at the moment it is doing that rather well. The October half term break has been popular and we have two short breaks booked in for then. I expect we will now start getting bookings from couples
who want a quieter break once the children have returned to school in September.
We have had some lovely people to stay and they have been kind enough to leave us some fantastic reviews with all of them saying they would like to return again which is great.
We had a new water heater installed last month as the old one decided to start playing up and we couldn't have that for our guests. Keith the plumber did a fine job getting it all done in the one day we had free in July and now we have a super new immersion heater and lots of hot water again.
John & I met up with our housekeeper Sarah and her husband Tim last week, it was nice to meet up socially for a change. Tim said I told Sarah I love her more times than he does! But its true I do love her, she is doing a fantastic job, the apartment is looking beautiful, our guests all comment on it, and nothing is too much trouble for her.
We stocked up on bottles of wine and nibbles for our guests while we were there, they keep telling us that they appreciate having a little present to get their holidays off to a relaxing start so we will continue to do it for them. I just need to make sure that John or Paul don't get their hands on it when they are busy doing the odd job or two that keeps the apartment looking great... at least not until after the jobs have been done!
Whilst we were up in Whitby I updated our visitor folder with lots of new leaflets on attractions and things to do in Whitby and the surrounding area. The folder is quite big now. There are all sorts of things I would like to see and do when I get the chance.
It was the Steampunk weekend in Whitby last week end, where people dress in fantasy victorian engineering costumes. It sounds weird but it looks amazing. I wonder what our guests thought about it all. I would have loved to have photographed it myself.....maybe next year.
There are lots of events coming up in Whitby in August, the regatta, folk weekend , the steam trains are running their summer timetables and English Heritage re running events up at Whitby Abbey, our guests will be spoilt for choice. My recent visit to the tourist information office in Whitby has inspired me to put together a little slideshow of events for our Facebook page. Its on the to do list so watch out for it.......
In the meantime enjoy your summer sunshine.
who want a quieter break once the children have returned to school in September.
We have had some lovely people to stay and they have been kind enough to leave us some fantastic reviews with all of them saying they would like to return again which is great.
We had a new water heater installed last month as the old one decided to start playing up and we couldn't have that for our guests. Keith the plumber did a fine job getting it all done in the one day we had free in July and now we have a super new immersion heater and lots of hot water again.
John & I met up with our housekeeper Sarah and her husband Tim last week, it was nice to meet up socially for a change. Tim said I told Sarah I love her more times than he does! But its true I do love her, she is doing a fantastic job, the apartment is looking beautiful, our guests all comment on it, and nothing is too much trouble for her.
We stocked up on bottles of wine and nibbles for our guests while we were there, they keep telling us that they appreciate having a little present to get their holidays off to a relaxing start so we will continue to do it for them. I just need to make sure that John or Paul don't get their hands on it when they are busy doing the odd job or two that keeps the apartment looking great... at least not until after the jobs have been done!
Whilst we were up in Whitby I updated our visitor folder with lots of new leaflets on attractions and things to do in Whitby and the surrounding area. The folder is quite big now. There are all sorts of things I would like to see and do when I get the chance.
It was the Steampunk weekend in Whitby last week end, where people dress in fantasy victorian engineering costumes. It sounds weird but it looks amazing. I wonder what our guests thought about it all. I would have loved to have photographed it myself.....maybe next year.
There are lots of events coming up in Whitby in August, the regatta, folk weekend , the steam trains are running their summer timetables and English Heritage re running events up at Whitby Abbey, our guests will be spoilt for choice. My recent visit to the tourist information office in Whitby has inspired me to put together a little slideshow of events for our Facebook page. Its on the to do list so watch out for it.......
In the meantime enjoy your summer sunshine.
Crikey that was quick! I advertised our holiday apartment for rent on Trip Advisor on Wednesday and the response was overwhelming.
We have taken four bookings in the space of 36 hours. We hoped that Trip Advisor would be a good marketing tool but it has surpassed our expectations. It was really easy to put up our advert, I had taken some photographs of the apartment and of Whitby and a quick bit of copywriting to describe our apartment and we were away.
All the bookings are for the next 6 weeks so I suppose we were popular because of availability as much as desirability. We hope that once our holiday makers have enjoyed a holiday in our apartment they will want to come back again because it is so nice and also spread the word amongst their friends. I have already had one couple who stayed last month getting back in touch asking about availability in October.
I was hoping for a quick little holiday in my apartment but I can't get in, its booked up!!
I know that the internet is very popular and that sites like Trip advisor are often the first "go to" sites for people looking for that perfect holiday let but we won't forget the those who like the traditional methods of booking so this week I will be designing some postcards with details of the apartment to use for advertising.
I am feeling a little more relaxed about letting out the apartment, Sarah is being very supportive and is a godsend. Tim her husband joined the team last week and fixed our key safe for us which will make getting the keys to our guests a lot simpler. We have been extremely lucky in finding them.
Our first Trip Advisor guest will be staying this weekend coming so fingers crossed they will like it.
I'll keep you up to date in a week or two.
We have taken four bookings in the space of 36 hours. We hoped that Trip Advisor would be a good marketing tool but it has surpassed our expectations. It was really easy to put up our advert, I had taken some photographs of the apartment and of Whitby and a quick bit of copywriting to describe our apartment and we were away.
All the bookings are for the next 6 weeks so I suppose we were popular because of availability as much as desirability. We hope that once our holiday makers have enjoyed a holiday in our apartment they will want to come back again because it is so nice and also spread the word amongst their friends. I have already had one couple who stayed last month getting back in touch asking about availability in October.
I was hoping for a quick little holiday in my apartment but I can't get in, its booked up!!
I know that the internet is very popular and that sites like Trip advisor are often the first "go to" sites for people looking for that perfect holiday let but we won't forget the those who like the traditional methods of booking so this week I will be designing some postcards with details of the apartment to use for advertising.
I am feeling a little more relaxed about letting out the apartment, Sarah is being very supportive and is a godsend. Tim her husband joined the team last week and fixed our key safe for us which will make getting the keys to our guests a lot simpler. We have been extremely lucky in finding them.
Our first Trip Advisor guest will be staying this weekend coming so fingers crossed they will like it.
I'll keep you up to date in a week or two.
