This is our first stop, about an hour and a half (65 miles) by car directly north of Manchester. HF Holidays is supposed to pick us up at the Manchester Airport and transport us there, otherwise it would take us 3 to 4 hours by bus and train to get there.
This February15, 2018 post by Paul Steele describes his weekend walking holiday at Newfield Hall, invited by HF Holidays. Newfield Hall an historic building that was acquired by HF Holidays in the 1930s and the Bald Hiker finds it very impressive. It even has a heated swimming pool so take your bathing suit. He says everyone one looks forward to the dinners and the breakfasts are ample: "Breakfast is a huge array of cooked and cold, from full English to Salmon and egg, porridge to cereals." I wonder if it will displace Munich in Fernando's ranking of breakfasts.
Now we are up near the east coast of England, near the seaside town of Whitby, whose abbey inspired Bram Stoker's Dracula and where Captain James Cook learned how to sail. Whitby looks like a very picturesque town so I hope we'll have a chance to explore it, especially the jet shops. Most of the hikes seem to be along the Cleveland Way. We are staying at Larpool Hall, an imposing Grade II listed Georgian mansion. The last dinner at Larpool Hall is a 5-course farm-to-table dinner so that is something to look forward to. Here are a couple of articles about the area so that we know what to expect.
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| Whitby in the rain |
Zöe Dawes lives in Cumbria and was invited to spend a 3 day holiday in the summer by HF Holidays at Larpool Hall. She speaks of afternoon teas there and also mentions that the walking guides are all volunteers, so apparently HF Holidays is a nonprofit. She also mentions the North Yorkshire Moors Railway with steam engines, which we (the Easy Walkers) will ride to the market town of Pickering. Oh the grandkids would love a vacation here! Zöe says that both the dinner and breakfast were excellent and that for the packed lunch, you order a sandwich with a choice of fillings the night before and then you get to add things to it in the morning from "a tempting selection of ‘ingredients’ which include fresh fruit, raw vegetables, cheese and crackers, dried fruit, hard-boiled eggs, cake, biscuits and loads more." I've read more than once that you don't go hungry on HF Holidays. And I also hear that you can have kippers or blood pudding for breakfast...
Travel Lowdown: HF Holiday's Larpool Hall, Whitby
This is a March 2016 review by a man who took his wife and two young boys to Larpool Hall for a holiday. Previously he and his family had been to Derwent Bank, which is our last stop on our Road Scholar program. They are vegetarians and found the staff at Larpool hall very accommodating to their dietary needs.
Most of the articles are by people who have been invited by HF Holidays so one needs to go to Trip Advisor to find the negative reviews, like a couple who were locked out because they came home after midnight (that won't happen to us) or who complained about the hot water not arriving fast enough in the shower (after all, it is an old house). It also doesn't have a lift. We only hope that the size of our room is adequate, that it has a view (cross your fingers) and that it is quiet.
And it all sounds so very British and old school. I bet you’ll even get the trad British food you’re looking for. I would suspect lots of puddings which appear to vear more toward cake than pudding. I picture us all out in tweeds and MacIntoshes when it’s raining buckets. Too bad we don’t have Mother,s suit. Wait! You do have the coat. Looks like it will be a great change from trendy London. The stuff of British novels. Can’t wait to enjoy the hedgehogs. I only saw one once in Finland.
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