Staycations are the new vacations. Sometimes the only thing you want to do is hop on a train and let it take you straight to your destination. With a train journey there’s no chance for drama at the departure gate or airline employees laughing at your passport photo (I was 16! I had braces!).

 

If you don’t fancy the usual tourist activity of lazing by a pool, but want to escape the bedlam of the city for a weekend with a difference, then Whitby is the place for you. Set in the idyllic Yorkshire countryside, the view on the journey from London is one long non-stop advertisement for the British countryside and the town itself is packed full of history.

 

Once you arrive, we advise you to head straight for the Magpie Café in the harbour. AA Gill recommends its chips as the best in his world. Then you can sit munching your fish supper looking onto the port where Dracula arrived on Britain’s shores in Bram Stokers famous novel.

 

Situated on the eastern edge of Whitby, the ruined St Hilda’s Abbey is accessed by climbing the 199 stone steps that lead from the end of Church Street. These steps were originally wooden, and were built to allow coffin-bearers to reach the church. To this day there are coffin rests and seats along the stairs to allow your weary London limbs to rest.

 

The Whitby Museum is also a must-see. It exhibits a large supply of Whitby jet (black mineraloid stone popularised by Queen Victoria in her lengthy mourning period) and a hand of glory (the pickled hand of a man who committed murder and whose punishment was to be hung). Sp-oo-oo-ky.

 

And to stay in, Argyle Guest House is located right in the heart of the West Cliff conservation area and only 5 minutes walk to Whitby town centre, harbour and beach. With locally sourced produce and a library of books from which to borrow, you can be reading your Charles Dickens whilst eating smoked kippers for breakfast. A double en suite bedroom ranges from £25-£29 per person.