Short Strolls (up to 5 miles)

Walking in Yorkshire doesn't always have to involve mountains, valleys and breathtaking scenery. Our cities and towns can be just as exciting. With the right guide you can uncover Yorkshire's unique history.  So get those walking boots on and start exploring our urban delights. And the best bit is, if it starts raining you're never too far from a warm and welcoming a pub to shelter in.

A great place to start is York. And the best way to see this historic city is with a fascinating and fun guided walk. Exploring York offers guided tours, including their popular World Tour of York which operates every Saturday at 11am and 2pm.

For those who prefer self-guided walks and tours, Visit York has produced a series of nine walking trails for the city, including Medieval Churches, a Railway Heritage Trail, A Rowntree Trail - taking visitors on a tour of the city's chocolate heritage, a Roman Trail and many more. 

For exciting family fun, try a Treasure Trail, a printed booklet containing all the directions needed for a self guided walk. Trailers can complete a Murder Mystery, Treasure Hunt or a Spy Trail around the best historic and scenic sights of York.

If you're near Leeds, the Leeds Owl Trail is another great way to really get under the skin of the city. Search for the owls dotted around the city and uncover some of its hidden secrets.

Enjoy one of four walks developed by Otley Walkers are Welcome, which explore the countryside surrounding Otley, as well as the delightful town itself.

Fancy a walk with a literary twist? The Passionate Bronte's is a light-hearted guided walk around Haworth, home of literature's most famous sisters.

More family walking fun can be found in Hull. Following the fish of the Seven Seas Fish Trail as they swim across the pavements, leading the way from the old town to the beautiful riverfront.

The brave, or foolish, amongst you will love the chilling Ghost Walk around Whitby. Walk where Dracula once stalked and look for signs of fresh vampire activity.

For those who fancy stretching their legs a bit further, the options are truly breathtaking. As well as our National Parks to explore, there are even more wonderful walking areas to discover, like the South Pennines, the chalk settings of the Yorkshire Wolds and the rugged coastal trails.

In between those, you'll find miles and miles of charming country lanes, unspoilt villages, canal towpaths, lush valleys, archaeological sites, and wildflower meadows. Yorkshire's varied landscape offers variety and activities for all abilities of walker. If you're not in the mood for a long distance walk, you can enjoy shorter snatches of the long distance paths at your own pace. Or, just make your own exploration wherever and whenever you feel like it. Yorkshire can be as mild or as wild as you want!

If you find walking a challenge or your group includes a wheelchair or buggy, then have a look in our Easy Access section.

The Yorkshire Dales offers a bounty of fantastic walks for everyone. Some of the best family routes are at Aysgarth Falls that takes in a series of breathtaking waterfalls and the gem of a walk to Mill Gill Force and Whitfield Gill Force from Askrigg. Follow the 5 mile moderate Malham Landscape Trail, which takes in the popular visitor sites of Malham Cove, Janet's Foss and Gordale Scar.

Follow the 4.5 mile Ingleton Waterfalls Trail through ancient oak woodland and magnificent Dales scenery via a series of spectacular waterfalls and geological features. There's also a refreshment centre ideally located about halfway along the trail.

How about taking a halter trained alpaca for a walk in the Hambleton Hills, near Thirsk in North Yorkshire? Walks of 1, 1.5 or 2 hours are available for adults over 16 (younger children over 10 can accompany an adult). These delightful creatures are curious and friendly, most endearing and easy to handle.

Alternatively, you can swap your two feet for four hooves and go llama trekking around picturesque Nidderdale. And the best bit is, the llamas carry your picnic. Native to the high Andes of Peru, these gentle beasts must find Yorkshire's mellower climate almost tropical. A half day trek covers approximately 3.5 miles over fields, tracks, woods and gentle roads. It does contain hills, but nothing too strenuous. 

Get away from it all and discover 18 miles of walking trails around Dalby Forest, near Pickering. Dalby Forest in the North York Moors National Park has over 8,000 acres of woodland to explore and enjoy, including play areas for children and barbecues for the family. Explore the Visitor Centre with the Tree Tops Restaurant, or Dalby Courtyard with its craft workshops and cycling facilities. Choose from any one of the nine trails that start from various point in the forest and take in the views across the forest and moors, and you may well encounter some of the local wildlife.

A bracing walk on the coast is guaranteed to whet your appetite. For spectacular cliff top walks, try Flamborough Head where foaming waves crash against towering cliffs and seabirds wheel noisily around ancient smugglers' caves and tiny hidden coves. Or head north to Robin Hood's Bay and venture along the beach or cliff path, returning along a disused railway.

There are endless short walks in Yorkshire, and countless guidebooks to help you explore the area. As a start you can gain inspiration here and here or check out dogwalksyorkshire.com which has an ever expanding directory of short dog friendly walks, as well as details of pubs, cafés and accommodation that will welcome you and your pooch.

The whole of the Yorkshire Wolds is ideal walking country, with gentle hills, tranquil dales, picturesque villages and attractive farmsteads.  Explore the peaceful landscapes with a specifically designed pack of walks available to purchase and enjoy 15 circular walks through the rolling hills and picturesque villages. The Walk the Wolds pack includes walks to suit all abilities, from easy to challenging.  Highlights include three walks from Driffield, "Capital of the Wolds" and the challenging Thixendale-Kirby Underdale Circular, exploring the intriguing landscape of dry chakland valleys and green meadowlands.

Take a walk with Ashley Jackson, the famous watercolour artist, as he celebrates his passion for Yorkshire by sharing his vision of the Holme Valley. Ashley invites you to find the hidden gems around the back streets and beautiful landscape surrounding Holmfirth on this 2.5 mile route. 

If you have ever fancied following in an artist's footsteps then this walk is for you, stop at exact locations along the walk to compare the artist's watercolour interpretation and your own. Follow up the steps behind the Church, be lead through back streets with houses nestled into the hill side and out in to open countryside, spotting birds, hamlets, hidden streams and most importantly fantastic views. Download the route here.

Try the canal-side paths alongside the Huddersfield Narrow canal (look out for kingfishers).  Explore the wooded valleys, such as Shipley Glen or the National Trust's Hardcastle Crags (near Hebden Bridge) or lose yourself in the quiet corners of the North Dean Woods.  Follow Brontë pilgrims from Haworth to the Brontë Waterfalls or wander Ilkley Moor (with or without your hat), looking at the unique collection of prehistoric 'cup and ring' carvings on the rocks here.

Or how about trying one of Yorkshire Water's walking routes?  The trail around Digley Reservoir, near Holmfirth, is an invigorating 4.9 mile walk along lanes, fields and over open moorland or a shorter walk of 1.2 miles long, ideal for families.  Alternatively the 4 mile circular loop around Ramsden Reservoir close by also provides amazing views of the South Pennines. Within a few miles of its centre, Sheffield fades into the magical Peak District with a series of reservoirs such as Damflask, Agden and Dale Dike built to quench the thirst of workers and industry.  These also offer wonderful walking opportunities by their waterside or climb the contours for a magnificent view of Boots Tower, above Strines Reservoir. Download a range of Yorkshire Water reservoir walks here.

Discover five rural churches in the lowlands of north Doncaster and explore the extensive region of wetland which occupied the flood plain of the Humberhead Levels several thousand years ago on four waterway walks, four linear routes varying between 1.1 - 3.9 miles each created by Heritage Inspired.