Robin Hood's Bay

Yorkshire holiday 17

Robin Hood's Bay is perhaps the jewel in the crown of Yorkshire's coast, although it gets uncomfortably crowded with tourists at the height of the season. It's a picturesque fishing village, crammed precariously into a ravine in the cliffs. Its inaccessibility (originally surrounded by marshy moorland) meant that in the 18th century it was a hotbed of smuggling. Interconnecting cottages, tunnels and passageways and the connivance of many locals (fisherfolk, farmers, gentry, clergy were all complicit) meant that it was easy for the smugglers to escape the Excise men.  Read more about its history HERE. 

It remains a labyrinth of narrow passageways, steps and steep cobbled streets. However, most of the cottages are now holiday homes, and the upper part of the village, with larger properties built in Victorian and Edwardian times, now has many hotels and guesthouses. 

I chose to visit in the early evening, so it was cooler for exploring and much less busy, though there were groups of people enjoying the warm evening outside the several pubs scattered through the village. 

The disadvantage was that it was high tide, which meant I couldn't really take the iconic shot of the village from the beach.  This was the best I could do. I'm not too sure how that ice-cream van got down on to the beach! I think he'd have to wait for the tide to recede before he could get home for his dinner.