Muncaster Castle
A lived-in castle above the Esk with a Hawk and Owl Centre whose flying displays are the real event, gardens to roam and a healthy line in ghost stories for the brave. Far, but it earns the drive.
Ravenglass & Eskdale Railway
Ravenglass, Cumbria
Miniature steam engines - knee-high, fierce, immaculate - haul open carriages seven miles from the coast into the fells. Forty minutes each way of pure, uncomplicated delight.
Sit in the open carriages if weather allows, break at Dalegarth for the waterfall walk or the cafe, and pair with Muncaster Castle for the full far-west day.
Seven miles on a fifteen-inch gauge from the coast into the fells, and the scale is the magic: the engines are miniature but real, steam and all, and children sit low enough to feel the valley rise around them. At Dalegarth there is a cafe, a play area and the turntable, and the walk to Stanley Ghyll waterfall fills the gap between trains.
The diesel is the same valley for half the money, even if the steam departures keep the romance.
What it costs: Seven miles each way, Ravenglass to Dalegarth for Boot.
Looking for more days out in Ravenglass?
What visitors say
★★★★★ 4.7 across 4,333 Google reviews.
Read all 4,333 reviews on Google - filter by star rating thereAlso in Ravenglass
What’s on near you, every Friday
One email a week: what is on this weekend within a sensible drive, and the places worth booking before they go.