The Best Pubs in the Yorkshire Dales for a Couple's Autumn Escape in 2026
2 The Square, Grassington: Honest Verdict for Solo Young Travellers
Autumn in the Dales means open fires, local ale, and short drives between market towns—here’s where to eat, drink and stay.
Skipton and the Southern Dales
Skipton, the ‘Gateway to the Dales’, makes a practical base: 45 minutes by train from Leeds, with the castle and the Leeds & Liverpool Canal on the doorstep. The Narrow Boat on Victoria Street sits right on the canal, serves Timothy Taylor’s Landlord and does generous Sunday roasts—expect around £14–£18 for a main. The Woolly Sheep on Sheep Street is a louder, sport-on-the-big-screen option with local lamb and fish pies. For a quieter pint, walk 10 minutes to the Beer Engine, a micropub on Albert Street with rotating cask ales and no music, where two rounds cost roughly £9–£11. Skipton is best in late September and October, before the half-term crowds.
From Skipton, drive 20 minutes to Bolton Abbey and the Devonshire Arms at Bolton Bridge—a posh country inn with a riverside terrace and a bar menu around £15–£22. You’re paying for the setting and the service, not a bargain. The alternative is the Craven Heifer in Addingham, 15 minutes east on the A65, where the black pudding Scotch egg and local gammon are honest and cheaper. If you want a single night out without driving, book a hotel in Skipton town centre and walk. I’d choose the Beer Engine for a couple’s quiet drink, then the Narrow Boat for a full meal.
Hawes, Wensleydale and the Buttertubs
Hawes, in upper Wensleydale, is a 1 hour 20 minute drive from Skipton via the A684, past the Buttertubs Pass. The Crown Hotel on the marketplace is a proper dales pub: flagstones, log fires, Black Sheep and Theakston’s, with mains around £12–£16. The Fountain Hotel, a few doors down, does a solid steak and ale pie and has rooms if you want to stay. For cheese, the Wensleydale Creamery is a 5-minute walk; for a pint after, the White Hart Inn on Main Street is the locals’ choice, with a small bar and no pretence. Autumn colours peak around mid-October in the dale, and the market is on Tuesdays.
Drive 15 minutes east to Askrigg, the filming village for ‘All Creatures Great and Small’. The King’s Arms on the main street is a classic: low beams, a fire, and local game in season. Mains run £14–£19. The Crown at Askrigg is slightly smarter and books up for dinner—reserve if you’re going on a Friday or Saturday. Between them, the village has two decent pubs and a shop; that’s it. If you’re staying overnight, base in Hawes and walk back after dinner rather than driving the narrow lanes in the dark. Skip the big hotel chain on the edge of town; it has no character.
Richmond, Swaledale and Tan Hill
Richmond, at the foot of Swaledale, is 25 minutes from the A1 at Scotch Corner and an hour from York. The town has the Station, a converted railway station with a microbrewery and cinema, and the Black Lion on Finkle Street, a 17th-century pub with a courtyard and local ales. Mains are £13–£18. For a smarter evening, the Frenchgate Restaurant & Rooms does a fixed menu, but that’s not a pub. In Swaledale itself, drive 20 minutes west to Reeth and the Black Bull, a large village pub with a fire and good fish and chips, or the Buck Hotel, which has rooms and a lively bar on weekends.
The Tan Hill Inn, Britain’s highest pub at 1,732 feet, is 30 minutes from Reeth over the moors. It’s worth one visit for the view and the novelty, but the food is average and the drive is exposed in bad weather. Go for a drink, not dinner. If you’re coming from the south, book a hotel in Richmond for two nights and do Swaledale as a day loop: Richmond to Reeth, over to Hawes, back via the Buttertubs. I’d skip Tan Hill on a wet day and spend the time in Reeth instead. Best months: September and early October, before the clocks change.
Before you book
The questions people ask about Grassington, answered with this month’s numbers.
Most do for food, and you should book 2–3 weeks ahead for Friday or Saturday in September and October. Village pubs like the Crown at Askrigg and the Black Bull in Reeth fill up. Walk-ins are fine for a drink, less so for a table after 7pm.
Base in Skipton for train access and choice, Hawes for upper-dale scenery, or Richmond for Swaledale and the A1. Each has walkable pubs and hotel rooms. Two nights in one town beats one night in three; the drives between are slower than they look.
Late September to mid-October: the colours are turning, the fires are lit, and the crowds are thinner than in August. Half-term in late October brings families and higher room rates, and some pubs get very busy. Book early for that week.
