Grassington, United Kingdom
Grassington is a town of 1,792 people in England, United Kingdom.
Why visit Grassington
Townapedia lists 59 museums and landmarks, 1 park or trail, 24 places to eat, 13 places to stay and 13 attractions in and around town.
Highlights include Grassington Bridge, Manor House Barn and approach bridge, War Memorial and old mine shaft?.
Weather in Grassington
Forecast from MET Norway (CC BY 4.0). Full forecast
About Grassington
Grassington is a town and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. The population of the parish at the 2011 Census was 1,126. It is situated in Wharfedale, about 8 miles (10 km) north-west from Bolton Abbey, and is surrounded by limestone scenery. Nearby villages include Linton, Threshfield, Hebden, Conistone and Kilnsey.
From the Wikipedia article Grassington (this version), under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Travel tips from other travellers: Grassington on Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Things to do13
Grassington Bridge
Bridge
Bridge in Grassington, Craven, North Yorkshire, England, UK
Manor House Barn and approach bridge
Bridge · 1.5 mi
Grade II listed building in Thorpe, Craven, North Yorkshire, BD23
Burnsall Bridge
Bridge · 2.6 mi
Bridge in Hartlington, Craven, North Yorkshire, England, UK
1 more on the map.
Museums and landmarks59
Fort Gregory
Monument and historic site · 1.3 mi
Site of Brigantian (Celtic) fort against the Romans.
47 more on the map.
Parks, trails and playgrounds1
Restaurants and cafes24
Old Hall Inn
Bar and pub · 0.8 mi
Main Street, Skipton
Mo-Sa 12:00-23:00; Su 12:00-22:30; Apr-Oct Mo-Sa 09:00-23:00;...
CoffeeEco
Cafe · Coffee Shop, Cake
6 Main Street, Skipton
Mo-Su 09:00-16:00; We off
Dales Ice Cream
Ice cream
1 Wood Lane, Skipton
Mo-Su 08:00-17:00
Black Horse Hotel
Bar and pub
4 Garrs Lane, Skipton
Mo-Th 11:30-23:00; Fr-Sa 11:30-24:00; Su 11:30-23:00
Grassington House Hotel
Restaurant
5 The Square, Skipton
We-Su 12:00-20:00+
12 more on the map.
History
The Domesday Book lists Grassington as part of Gamal Barn's estate, including 7 carucates of ploughland (840 acres/350ha) including Grassington, Linton and Threshfield. The Norman conquest of England made it part of the lands of Gilbert Tison. But, by 1118, Tison had suffered a demotion and his lands returned to the king before being given to Lord Percy.
Originally spelled Gherinstone and later documented as Garsington or Gersington, Grassington's name derives from Scandinavian, Anglo-Saxon and Gothic origins, meaning 'town of the grassy ings' or 'farmstead surrounded by grass'.
Historically part of the parish of Linton in the West Riding of Yorkshire, Grassington became a separate civil parish in 1866, and was transferred to North Yorkshire in 1974.
Read more of the history
Though sometimes referred to as a village, Grassington was granted a Royal Charter for a market and fair in 1282 giving it market town status. The market was held regularly until about 1860. Grassington Hall is reputedly the oldest house in Yorkshire, dating from the late 13th or early 14th century. A change in land use from the early 17th century, when lead mining began to assume more importance and brought some prosperity, but Grassington's heyday arrived during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Grassington Town Hall was completed in 1855. The opening of the Yorkshire Dales Railway to Threshfield in 1902 brought new visitors, many of whom settled, some finding work in Skipton or in the developing limestone quarries.
Grassington & Threshfield Golf Club (now defunct) was founded in 1908 and continued until the Second World War.
Grassington was used as the setting for the fictional town of Darrowby in the 2020 Channel 5 series All Creatures Great and Small, instead of Thirsk where the actual story took place; Thirsk had become too large for the small-town feel that the series wanted.
Grassington worked well for filming. "The nice thing was that there weren’t any modern houses in the town center [sic] ... so we didn’t have to change anything completely. What we did change were all the shop signs and the usual things like aerials, satellite dishes, alarm boxes and all of those things".
A memorial of the trade unionist Tom Mann stands in front of the cottage where he died in Grassington.
From the History section of Grassington on Wikipedia, under CC BY-SA 4.0.
More about Grassington
Arts and culture
Grassington is the main residential and tourist centre in Upper Wharfedale. It is centred on its small cobbled square, around which and along the adjoining Main Street are shops, public houses, the folk museum, cafes, restaurants and hotels. Grassington Folk Museum houses a collection which tells the story of Wharfedale. It is an independent museum run and managed by volunteers.
The area is popular with walkers; one of the most popular routes is a circular walk that includes Burnsall. Upper Wharfedale Fell Rescue Association, based in Grassington, is a voluntary mountain rescue organisation which rescues people in trouble on the surrounding fells and in caves.
Grassington Festival was a two-week-long annual event 1980 - 2021, with music, performance and visual arts, held in a number of venues around the town.
Every September since 2011, Grassington has held a 1940s themed weekend. Events include dances and a variety of military and civilian vehicles on display from the period.
In the winter Grassington holds its Christmas Markets, for 40 years this used to be the popular Dickensian Christmas Markets.
There is a Yorkshire Dales National Park information centre, on Hebden Road.
Three miles north of Grassington, at Kilnsey, is the glacially carved overhang of Kilnsey Crag.
Education
Grassington has a Church of England primary school located in the town, and there is another primary school in nearby Threshfield. Secondary education is either at the Upper Wharfedale School, which is a non-selective specialist sports college, or in Skipton at Ermysted's Grammar School (boys only) and Skipton Girls High School, both of which are selective.
From the Wikipedia article Grassington, under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Notable people from Grassington
- Ben HillsAustralian journalist
- John SpencerEnglish rugby union footballer
Born in Grassington, according to Wikidata (CC0). Each name links to its Wikipedia article.
Where to stay13
Churches and places of worship10
Shopping16
Gas and EV charging1
Schools, colleges and libraries4
Grassington Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School
School · Anglican
Hebden Road, Skipton
Map of Grassington
141 places. The map loads OpenStreetMap tiles when you open it.
Getting there and nearby towns
Leeds Bradford Airport (LBA) is the nearest airport with scheduled flights listed in OpenStreetMap, 20 miles away.
- Skipton 8 mi south, about 12 min by car
- Pateley Bridge 10 mi east, about 16 min by car
- Hellifield 10 mi southwest, about 16 min by car
- Cross Hills 11 mi south, about 18 min by car
- Ilkley 12 mi southeast, about 20 min by car
- Barnoldswick 13 mi southwest, about 21 min by car
- Keighley 15 mi south, about 23 min by car
- Colne 16 mi southwest, about 26 min by car
- Bingley 17 mi southeast, about 27 min by car
- Otley 17 mi southeast, about 27 min by car
Drive times are estimates from straight-line distance, not routes.
Towns near Grassington
Keep exploring
Local news
Headlines from INDB.
Reviews, tips and questions
Loading what members have shared...
Sources and licences
- GeoNames (CC BY 4.0): population, coordinates, regions and time zone
- Mapillary (see each image): photos
- OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL 1.0): places, airports, map data
- Wikidata (CC0 1.0): elevation, founding date, time zone, website, landmarks and historic places
- Wikimedia Commons (see each image): photos
- Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0): overview and history text
Photo credits
- 3, Main Street, Grassington, Dave.Dunford, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Grassington at Christmas Dec 2021, Cantab12, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Manor House Barn, Thorpe, Dave.Dunford, CC BY-SA 4.0
- St Peter, Hebden, Tim Green, CC BY 2.0
- St Wilfrid, Burnsall, Tim Green, CC BY 2.0
- Linton almshouses, Alethe, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Grassington Congregational Church, Peter James, CC BY-SA 4.0
- St Mary's Church, Conistone, Tim Heaton, CC BY-SA 2.0
- St Michael and All Angels, Linton-in-Craven (5982532828), Tim Green from Bradford, CC BY 2.0
- Fountaine Inn, Linton-in-Craven, Dave.Dunford, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Grassington Hub and Community Library, Peter James, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Linton-in-Craven War Memorial, Dave.Dunford, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, tallguy, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, tallguy, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, tallguy, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, tallguy, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, tallguy, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, tallguy, CC BY-SA 4.0
.jpg){kind=link}
Page built November 10, 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us or suggest a place.