Dales Way
- A long distance trail from beautiful North Yorkshire to the majestic Lake District
- Explore the historic ruins of Bolton Priory and Bardon Tower
- Finish your walk by the glistening shores of Lake Windermere, Beatrix Potter country
- Relax in cosy and friendly country inn’s with real ales and giant Yorkshire puddings!
- View the unfolding vistas through the eyes of Wordsworth and Ruskin
Gallery
Itinerary
Day 1 Arrive IlkleyArrive in the lovely Yorkshire town of Ilkley. Settle into your accommodation and perhaps enjoy trying an ale in the local pub.
With a French bistro and real ale bar, The Crescent Inn offers stylish rooms with free Wi-Fi. The bright and airy bedrooms have luxury Egyptian linens and a flat-screen TV. All rooms feature a modern bathroom with a power shower, hairdryer and White Company toiletries. Le Bistro Pierre serves fresh home-cooked meals, featuring quality ingredients and local produce. The bar offers a range of fine wines and light snacks, and full English breakfasts are available daily. Check in 3pm – 6pm.
The ivy-covered Craiglands Hotel is set in mature, landscaped grounds and is just a 5-minute walk from lkley town centre. The grand Victorian building has traditional rooms which have a satellite TV and a private bathroom with a hairdryer and tea and coffee facilities, some feature views across the Yorkshire Moors. A log fire is the centre piece of the sleek lounge bar area. You can also enjoy freshly prepared local produce in the stylish Brasserie 1 restaurant which has French windows that open onto a spacious garden terrace.
Tivoli Place is a friendly, family-run 4 star guesthouse situated close to Ilkley town centre. All rooms are appointed to a high standard all with en-suite, tea & coffee making facilities, T.V and free WiFi connection. Breakfast is served daily between 7.30 - 9.00am in the dining room.
Starting at the Old Bridge in Ilkley, you make your way north on your walk up to Burnsall and through lush meadowlands and past Bolton Priory. Pass by stunning bridges and medieval settlements before Burnsall Bridge comes into view, marking the end of the stage. This quaint little town provides a few tea rooms and a local shop.
Ascent: +315m / Descent: -245m
The Red Lion was originally a 16th century Ferryman’s Inn and offers comfortable accommodation, it combines ancient and modern, the rooms have gleaming bathrooms, Victorian brass beds, beamed ceilings and antique furnishings, some rooms even come with log fires. You can enjoy an evening meal in their newly refurbished restaurant with oak floors and panelling, log burning stove and beautiful views of the River Wharfe.
Wharfe View is a family run B&B in the peaceful village of Burnsall. They have two large spacious double and twin rooms and a private sitting / dining room with colour TV and open log fire. As many organic products as possible are sourced locally for their full English breakfast, and they offer organic cereals, fruit juice and fruit. The farm is a working organic farm with sheep and some cattle.
Your hosts Wilma and Jack have many years' experience in looking after walkers. There is oil-fired central heating and hot water, the accommodation is open plan, with a lounge and a bedroom area, there is an en suite bathroom with double size shower unit with thermostatic controls, WC, vanity unit, shaver point and heated towel rail.
As you leave Burnsall the river roars dramatically beneath limestone crags. Begin to climb and admire the amazing views over Wharfedale. Walk into Grassington, a fabulous Dale’s village with oodles of charm. Discover more stunning views over the pretty farmland, laid out like a patchwork quilt around you as you head up to Coniston Pike. After some gentle woodland walking, follow a riverside until you come to your destination for this evening, Hubberholme, a pretty little village.
Ascent: +280m / Descent: -135m
This traditional Dales Inn with flagged floors, stone walls and mullioned windows is the last remaining family owned free house in the area. It offers comfortable accommodation, quality home cooked food, well-kept cask beers from Black Sheep and Yorkshire Dales Breweries together with an excellent selection of wines and Malts.
Keith and Hazel look forward to welcoming you to their home - a restored traditional 17th century stone farm cottage with magnificent views over Yockenthwaite hay meadows and moor. Guests are welcome to enjoy the tranquil garden with extensive views, the guest snug with TV and on cooler evenings to sit by the log-burner in the dining room. Aga cooked breakfasts include free-range eggs from the hens in the croft, homemade bread and home preserves. All of the guest rooms have been recently refurbished and have new bath/shower facilities. The double and twin rooms have en-suite shower rooms and the single room has a private bathroom. The heating and hot water are provided by biomass boiler and clothes can be dried in the boiler room. There is Wi-Fi throughout the building. Please note that there is no mobile phone signal in the area
Church Farm is a 16th century farm house and family-run hill farm of 1,000 acres. You will enjoy comfortable accommodation offering en-suite rooms, complimentary Cavendish & Clarke toiletries, robes, chocolates and fluffy white towels. They have a private guests' lounge with TV and real wood burner.
Today you leave Wharfedale and enter Dentdale. This path takes you past the river and to Deepdale Gill, which is a splendidly rugged area. The path then climbs, and later you can take in the views of the three peaks, Whernside, Pen-y-ghent and Ingleborough. Evidence of the impending Lake District is now visible as you head towards the impressive Dent Head Viaduct.
The Sportsman Inn is the only accommodation at the end of this walk in Cowgill. If it is full, we will book you into Dent with return taxi transfers (included in the cost of your trip).
Ascent: +410m / Descent: -440m
This building is steeped in history dating back over 350 years. From the drovers taking livestock to nearby market towns to the present day guest, this 17th century Inn continues its long tradition of meeting the needs of those who stay and dine. All rooms have their own private bathrooms and are centrally heated with tea and coffee making facilities and splendid views over-looking the river Dee and famous Settle / Carlisle railway line. The bar serves a selection of cask ales and they offer a wide range of meals from locally sourced ingredients and take pride in keeping things local.
Please note due to the location of this accommodation there is no mobile phone signal and no internet or Wi-Fi.
The George and Dragon is a grade 2 listed building situated in the centre of Dent Village overlooking the famous Adam Sedgwick Memorial Fountain. It has 10 comfortable bedrooms all with en suite facilities, each room has a colour television and free tea and coffee making facilities.
Stone Close Tea Room and B&B is located in the heart of the picturesque village of Dent, nestled in the Yorkshire Dales National Park. A warm welcome greets you to this 17th Century grade II listed building. Many of the features you will see are original, to retain the historical character and charm of the property.
After passing Scar Force and Dent Station (England's highest railway station), you will wind your way through meadow and forest as steep hills rise on both sides and the ominous Whernside looms some 2414 ft above you.
A short while after Dent, the river which had become more of a stream earlier today, is back to its crashing glory and the bird life is in full flow again. On this section, you will get the sense of leaving Yorkshire and entering the Lake District. Spend the night in Sedbergh.
Ascent: +205m / Descent: -310m
At the Dalesman no two guest rooms are the same and they have paid attention to finer details incorporating things such as Hungarian goose down and zoffany wall paper. The Dalesman is one of the most popular pub / restaurants in Sedbergh, it has earned itself a reputation for providing good quality food cooked by their very own in house chef. The inn has a traditional style Bar and Smithy plus an evening Buttery, the bar has a welcoming log burner and traditional Tetley‘s fine hand-pulled ales, Black Sheep and Dalesman ales.
The Black Bull is located in the Yorkshire Dales and is a unique destination in which to relax, indulge and tune-out. The Black Bull are immensely proud of their team, people who are professional, unstuffy and dedicated to ensuring your stay is a memorable one.
The Red Lion is an old village pub that dates back to the 1800s and is renowned for tasty home-cooked food, local ales and friendly atmosphere.
The views and landscapes are delightful today as more evidence of the approaching Lake District forms up ahead, as you pass through slate-roofed villages and amble across a beck. The mighty Howgills dominate the skyline for most of the day. Pass Black Moss Tarn and cross the River Sprint before heading into Burneside, your next port of call. There is limited accommodation in Burneside so you will be transferred to nearby Kendal for your overnight accommodation this evening, and transferred back to the path tomorrow morning.
Ascent: +280m / Descent: -335m
Bridge House in Kendal is a beautiful 'listed' Georgian building, a former station-master's house and was built in approximately 1840. The house has two guest bedrooms: a twin and a double, both with en-suite shower rooms. Each room has TV and tea & coffee making facilities and all the amenities you require for a comfortable overnight stay.
Mandy and Brian offer you a warm welcome to Balcony House B&B, their Victorian family guest house in Kendal. All rooms are furnished and decorated to the highest standard in keeping with the Victorian style, offering modern comforts including tea and coffee, tv-dvd, radio alarm clock and complementary extras.
Hillside is a family run B&B, situated in the historic market town of Kendal. Set in an elevated position within Kendal’s conservation area, Hillside is just a couple of minutes’ walk (200 Meters) uphill from the town centre. Awarded a Visit Britain 4 Star Rating, Hillside offers six en-suite guest bedrooms where they hope you will enjoy a restful night. All of the bedrooms offer a remote control LCD TV with Freeview, free Wi-Fi, alarm clock, hair dryers, thermostatically controlled radiators and well stocked refreshment trays.
As you head off to the River Kent, you may be lucky enough to catch a glimpse of Kingfishers on this section. Pass plenty of interesting old mills, including an entire village of them at Cowen Head. The scenery becomes rockier as you progress to the end of the Dales Way and the river really comes into its own as it crashes and gurgles over the rocks.
As you see the majestic lake ahead you can choose the long or short way to your final destination, Bowness-on-Windermere, a great place to celebrate your amazing journey.
Ascent: +270m / Descent: -220m
The house is traditionally built in Lakeland style circa 1900 and retains many of its original features. Each room has complimentary tea/coffee making facilities, flat screen TV, DVD player, clock radio/CD player, hairdryer and ironing facilities. Complimentary toiletries can also be found in all the bathrooms which are all furnished with showers. The Floral displays through the house enhance the building’s appearance and have been awarded several Windermere In Bloom awards.
The Angel Inn is located in the Lake District, with the shores of England's largest lake Windemere easily accessible. The Inn has views of the village, and offers access to the best of the Lake District, such as Scafell Pike and lake Wastwater. The Inn has a large pub garden, with views over the lake and Claife Heights to the Langdale Pikes. The rooms are modern and spacious, and offer an en suite, and tea and coffe facilities.
Tucked atop a wooded hill and boasting stunning views of Lake Windermere and open fells. Built in 1868, Blenheim Lodge has retained many of its original Victorian features, character and charm. Each of their lovingly furnished bedrooms is unique in look and feel, with no two rooms alike. Many include antique furniture such as their beautiful Louis XV beds and early 19th century 4-Posters, the latter of which have been beautifully refurbished with gorgeous silk drapes and canopies.
Onward Travel.
This trip has a carbon score of 7kg per person per night, meaning it’s one of our best trips! For comparison, a carbon count of 7kg is equivalent to 1 single running shoe (not even a pair!). Here at Macs, we pride ourselves on being a responsible travel company and continue to adopt, develop and innovate ways to positively impact the environment. Find out more information about how we've carbon counted our trips.
Other Information
Is it for me?The Dales Way is a remarkably beautiful walk through some of England's finest scenery. The walking is relatively gentle and provides you the time to take it a bit easier than most long distance walks and really sink into the geological wonder that surrounds you.
Classic Routes | If you’re the active, outdoorsy type, who’s interested in taking on the great routes of the world or looking for a challenge, then our Classic Routes are for you. We’re talking the West Highland Way in Scotland, the world renown Tour Du Mont Blanc and Germany's Moselle Cycle Path, to name but a few!
Inn to Inn Walking | Walk from place-to-place changing accommodations each night. Generally staying in B&Bs, inns, and guesthouses.
Solo Travellers, Families with Teens
The minimum age for this tour is: 12 Years
This walk is graded moderate and the walking surface is on everything from good walking trails to forestry roads and rough hillsides. The daily distances are anywhere between 9 and 16 miles, therefore you will have a good fitness level in order to make the most out of your tour.
One of the highlights of this tour is the high standard of the accommodation. We specifically choose the hotels, inns, guesthouses and B&B’s to ensure that you enjoy every minute of your stay. They all offer a warm welcome to walkers, traditional hospitality and delicious local food.
Accommodation Location
We will always try and accommodate you at the locations detailed in your itinerary. Occasionally, because of limited availability, there is the option to be accommodated at an alternative location. In the unlikely event that we have to accommodate you elsewhere we will advise you of this before confirming your booking.
Single Rooms
This independent walking vacation is available to solo walkers but as all our vacations are priced per person based on two sharing there is a single supplement payable to cover the additional costs we incur.
Meals
A hearty breakfast is included each morning. Lunch and dinner are not included so you are free to choose from the available options. Most of your accommodations will more than happy to provide a packed lunch on request and this can be booked on arrival. Dinner is available either at your accommodation or nearby pubs or restaurants.
The route is not extensively way marked but navigation is straightforward using the Macs Adventure App which has maps, GPS tracks and daily route information. Simply download the GPS tracks for offline use and follow the route on your phone with the assurance that navigation on this tour will be made simple. You will find more information on downloading the app in your Macs Adventure Account.
Recommended Reading
If you would like more information on the route please see our recommendation below:
- Map: Harvey Dales Way Map 1:40 000
- Guidebook: Dales Way Trailblazer
- 7 Nights in B&B’s, guest houses, small hotels and country inn’s
- 7 Breakfasts
- Daily luggage transfers
- Transfers as stated within the itinerary
- Access to maps, GPX tracks and daily route information with the Macs Adventure navigation app
- All your trip documents provided digitally through your online Macs ‘My Account’
- 24/7 Telephone support from our UK office
- Travel insurance
- Travel to Ilkley
- Travel from Bowness-on-Windermere
- Lunches & Dinners
- Drinks and snacks
- Personal equipment
- Additional Nights
This trip is available to start on any day of the week from the beginning of April till around mid-October. You can start on any date that suits your travel plans, subject to availability.
In order to help with availability, we recommend avoiding finishing in Bowness at the weekend - all B&B's only accept 2 night bookings at the weekend in Bowness and if you do end up here at the weekend we will need to book 2 nights here and include return transfers between there and Burneside. These will be included at no extra charge. Alternatively you can add an extra night in Bowness which we highly recommend anyway!
By Air
The closest airport is Leeds Bradford and there are frequent bus links to Ilkley. Travel time from Leeds Bradford Airport via Leeds is approx. 1 hour. Manchester Airport is approx. 2 hours 30 minutes by public transport to IIkley via Leeds. London Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted are probably the best options for those travelling from outside the UK. From the airport you would travel to Kings Cross, where trains leave approx. every half an hour to IIkley via Leeds.
By Rail
Ilkley is well serviced via Leeds (approx. 30 minutes) which connects with most major towns, trains leave every hour from Leeds. For more information check out the National Rail Enquiries web page.
By Air
Manchester Airport is the closest airport to Bowness-on-Windermere and it takes approx. 2 hours 30 minutes to reach by train.
By Rail
Windermere is the closest train station which is a short 10 minute bus or taxi journey from Bowness-on-Windermere. From here you can connect to most major towns in the UK, including Manchester (2 hours), Newcastle (3 hours), Glasgow (3 hours) and London (4 hours).
Your bags will be collected from your accommodation each day and moved onto your overnight accommodation. Please limit your luggage to 1 bag of up to 18kg / 40 lbs per person.
At Macs Adventure, we work in partnership with many luggage transfer providers who set a limit on how many bags/suitcases they will transfer per person, and also the weight of the bag/suitcase. This limitation can be a challenge, especially as airlines generally have limits that are higher. However, our luggage providers have reasons for these limits (usually due to the Health and Safety of their employees), which we must respect. The transfer of additional bags (if possible with the local transfer providers) are subject to a surcharge, and unfortunately overweight bags will not be transferred.
The distances and ascent/descents are approximations of the recommended routes.
Online Documents
At Macs Adventure we care about the environment! We’re taking action to minimize the impact we have by converting the majority of our tour documentation for online delivery.
On this tour, all your detailed tour information will be digitally delivered. You will have access to this documentation via “My Account” on our website.
Please be prepared by packing all necessary items, for example, proper rain gear (jacket and pants), sun hat, sunscreen. Your information pack has a detailed equipment list which includes standard walking gear such as good walking boots or shoes, warm and waterproof clothes for the cooler months and lightweight clothing for summer, and a day pack.
It is strongly recommended that you secure adequate travel insurance.
We offer a range of itineraries so you can choose your preferred daily distance so hopefully you will find an itinerary that suits your preferred level of activity. If you currently don’t enjoy an active lifestyle we suggest regular walking in hilly terrain supplemented by cardio vascular exercise for at least 6 months prior to your walk. A good gym or personal trainer will be able to draw up a personalised training programme.
Your bags will be transferred from your accommodation as per your itinerary and moved onto your next overnight accommodation. We ask you to limit your luggage to one bag of up to 20kg per person.
We suggest you book as soon as your plans are finalised as the Dales Way is extremely popular through the summer.
You will need good walking shoes/boots (ideally waterproof), comfortable walking clothes, waterproof jacket and trousers, a daypack and hats/gloves etc. You can download a full equipment list from the downloads page of our website.
Traditionally April/May has always been the most popular time of year because the theory goes that the weather is better. Although I believe any time between late March and September offers a wonderful experience.
Unfortunately we are unable to accommodate walkers with dogs as many of the accommodation providers we use do not accept pets.
You can use public transport, or local taxis to continue to your next overnight stop.
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Save %6 Days 5 Nights
The Yorkshire Dales In Comfort
Classic walking through the Dales, staying in charming Yorkshire villages and townsHighlights- Burnsall, home of Dick Whittington
- The stone-built village of Grassington
- Tea rooms, local brews and cuisine
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Save %8 Days 7 Nights
Yorkshire Pub Walks: Ales & Dales Trail
Classic inn to inn walking with plenty of opportunities to sample the best pubs & food in YorkshireHighlights- Pub walking in the charming Yorkshire Dales
- Have a pint at the highest pub in the UK
- Walks sections of England's iconic national trails
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Save %21 Days 20 Nights
Pennine Way Complete (21 Days & 20 Nights)
Walk the full Pennine Way at a slightly more relaxed pace, breaking up some of the longer sections.Highlights- Break up some tough days on our longest itinerary
- The wild and windswept moors of Brontë country
- The rolling Swaledale and Wensleydale valleys