Ah, beautiful York… loaded with character and charm, soaked to its core in history and vibrant with life. People come from all over the world to visit this stunning city. But if city life isn’t your thing and you’d prefer to stay somewhere more rural then you’re in luck, as the area around York offers plenty of lovely options.

Pretty towns and villages are plentiful around York, and in particular to the north of the city, heading towards the Howardian Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and the North York Moors National Park. The A19 provides easy access to the quaint villages of Sutton on the Forest, Huby, Alne and Tollerton, all of which are within easy driving distance of the city. With its historic centre, the village of Dunnington lies to the east, and further afield is the attractive market town of Pocklington.

York’s location at the bottom of a valley, known as the Vale of York, results in its landscape being fairly flat and, consequently, very easy to get around. Hills are never far away though, and one that’s really worth a visit is Sutton Bank, which features one of North Yorkshire’s most famous landmarks – the White Horse. This huge white figure, which dominates one side of the bank, dates back to 1857, when its outline was marked onto the bank by a local schoolmaster and his pupils, and has since been cut into the limestone below. The view from the top of the bank is magnificent, looking out over the Vale of Mowbray and the Vale of York.