Whitby Sands & the West Cliff

About

The beach everybody means when they say the beach at Whitby: a long stretch of sand under the West Cliff running north towards Sandsend, backed by beach huts and reached from the town by the cliff lift or by the slope down from the Royal Crescent end. Above it, the West Cliff is the Victorian half of the town, laid out for visitors arriving by train: the Whale Bone Arch framing the abbey across the harbour, the statue of Cook looking out to sea, and the crescents and terraces behind them. It is the flat, open, easy side of Whitby, and the natural counterweight to a morning spent climbing the East Side.

Highlights

• ✓A long sand beach running north towards Sandsend, unusual on this cliff-bound coast
• ✓The Whale Bone Arch on the clifftop, framing the abbey across the harbour
• ✓The statue of James Cook looking out to sea
• ✓Beach huts, and the walk on towards Sandsend at low water

Tips

• →Check the tide before walking north towards Sandsend; the sand narrows and you do not want to be caught against the cliff.
• →The Whale Bone Arch is where the ghost walk starts, so it doubles as a meeting point.
• →This is the exposed side of the town. The wind here is not the same wind as on Church Street.
• →Free.

Best Season