Photo cropped from the original by John Illingworth.
The Station
Skipton is a manned station operated by Northern Rail. It is a busy commuter station on the Airedale line with frequent trains to Leeds, Bradford and beyond. There is a single intercity train that travels daily to London Kings Cross. The station links directly with the Settle-Carlisle line at Settle.
The Metro timetable giving details of the trains to Leeds, Bradford etc is available here.
Skipton is within the area covered by the Dales Railcard scheme but there are travel restrictions when starting a journey from Skipton.
The Weather Right Now
Planning your trip in advance? Click on “Extended Forecast” for a 10 day outlook.
The Local Area
Skipton is known as ‘The gateway to the Dales’, it is a peaceful and idyllic market town with a population of around 16,000. Skipton is surrounded by history and attracts thousands of visitors throughout the year.
Skipton is home to a vast array of shops, individual shops lining the high street and also a beautiful Victorian-style shopping arcade, which was praised by Price Charles, for it’s architecture. On a Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday there is Skipton Market, from pet stalls to clothes and DIY to biscuits there is certainly something for everyone. The market is definitely worth a visit. As well as having a high street full of shops and market stalls there is also a charming maze of cobbled streets and tiny ginnels for you to explore and discover what other interesting attractions Skipton has to offer.
Running through Skipton town is the Leeds Liverpool Canal. You can enjoy a lovely trip along Britains longest inland waterway (127 miles). The Leeds Liverpool canal took 46 years to build and it finally came in at five times the original budget. The canal passes right through the centre of Skipton and at the canal basin there is a junction with the Spring Branch canal, only half a mile long, but a beautiful stretch that winds around the back of Skipton Castle, acting as a moat. Up until 1946 it was used to transport Limestone from a quarry higher up the hill. The boat trips operate cruises daily from the quay in the centre of town (Coach Street). For more information, go to their website.
Skipton is not short of places to eat and drink, there are a number of restaurants and cafes somewhere to suit all the family. With your typical high street franchises and also wide selection of local businesses such as tearooms and bakeries. Not to far from the busy high street is Bizzie Lizzies reputed to be ‘ The BEST fish & chips shop in the country’. There are also several family friendly pubs, serving traditional homemade food and fine ales throughout the day.
Re-live more than 900 years of history at the famous medieval Skipton Castle. From 1090 AD. To the present day, this castle has stood at Skipton, and has endured invasion, civil war and the passage of time and is one of the most complete and best preserved medieval buildings of it’s kind in Europe. It is fully roofed with an enchanting early Tudor courtyard. You can visit down in the depths of the dungeon and right to the top storey of the watchtower. Well worth a visit and open daily from 10am. For more information, go to the website
