Harmby House - Beautiful Escapes
Yorkshire Dales

Harmby House

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HARMBY House beckons you to the rapturous beauty of Lower Wensleydale—a majestic country sanctuary where up to fifteen kindred souls can gather beneath the warm embrace of rustic beams and shimmering contemporary chandeliers. Here, every corner is a work of careful restoration, lovingly guided by owner Chris, who has breathed new life into these ancient walls. The house pulses with history and modernity entwined: sleek comforts dance alongside equine-inspired touches, all framed by ethereal views of twelfth-century Middleham Castle—the childhood home of Richard III, standing proud just beyond the window’s edge.

The steady, rhythmical cadence of hooves fills the air in this former market town, where jockeys lead proud racehorses from the many bustling stables to the gallops each morning—a stirring spectacle to witness as you wander through the village lanes.

Harmby House is not just a holiday home — it is a place that beckons you to live within its story. To breathe history. To kindle joy. To weave moments into memories, all beneath the vast Yorkshire sky. Your next adventure begins here.

 

 

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PROPERTY DETAILS

Living Space

Sink into a haven of plush sofas, gathered around the heart of the home—a grand fireplace that promises warmth and ease. Through a bay window, you can watch scenes resembling a living oil painting. Or you can unwind with your favourite series flickering on the SMART TV.

 

 

Dining

Gather ‘round the warmly lit, majestic dining table—an altar of celebration where hearty breakfasts spark adventure, and jubilant suppers weave memories. Fetch treasures from Campbells in Leyburn’s bustling market, or summon a private chef to craft a feast that lets you and your party surrender to the luxury of being cared for.

 

 

Kitchen

Step into the kitchen’s bright, inviting heart, where culinary creativity blooms amid a generous electric range, a classic Belfast sink, and a vintage-inspired breakfast table. The space flows gracefully around a corner into the dining room, balancing conviviality and intimate separation.

Sauna

Surrender to the soothing embrace of your private sauna sanctuary—whether with loved ones or in blissful solitude. Let the gentle heat dissolve fatigue like a warm, whispered lullaby after days spent roaming the wild, rugged dales.

 

 

 

 

Courtyard

French doors lead from the dining room and kitchen to a pretty courtyard, sheltered by a tall traditonal stone wall and comfortable seating making it the perfect spot for morning coffees and evening sundowners on a balmy summer’s evening.

Castle

The first of the bedrooms is the romantic Castle Room. Exposed stone feature walls, castle views, a super-king bed and en-suite with walk-in shower, make this an indulgent space for two. While a roll-top, claw-footed bath set on an elevated tiled platform invites you to share long, luxuriant soaks with your significant other.

Little Richard

Drift off in Little Richard’s sumptuous super-king bed, where restful dreams bloom. You’ll have access to your own en-suite in this bedroom too.

The Gallops

A warm, soft and earthy colour palette embraces those staying in staying in this king-size room. Views out to the front offer glimpses of horses and their riders trotting serenely by.

 

The Groom's Room

Wake bright-eyed in the colourful Groom’s Room, a vibrant and cheerful space for one, with views to the front. This and The Gallops share the spacious main bathroom, with its opulent jetted tub.

 

Dante's Loft

Climb the spiral staircase to Dante’s Loft. Hidden away, this room has a double bed and en-suite, and offers glimpses of the stable once home to the famed racehorse Dante.

Gdidy Up!

Unleash joy on the top floor in the en-suite bedroom — Giddy Up — a very special vaulted playground just made for slumber parties. While children will adore this multiple-bedded room (there are three singles and bunk beds), those of all ages are sure to be taken by its charm.

Tack Room

Located on the ground floor, Tack Room is a cosy room with a double bed, there is a  bathroom next to it which has a freestanding bath tub. Please note there is a high step from the hallway to the Tack Room.

Exploring

Exploring

Visit Middleham, a former market town once described as the ‘Windsor of the North’. Ascend to Middleham Castle’s viewing platform and watch Wensleydale spread like a painted dream. Hear the thunder of hooves and hearts as racehorses charge across the countryside—a spectacle that quickens the pulse of every visitor. And come Easter, slip behind the scenes of this equestrian heartbeat with the open stables’ warm welcome. Or venture beyond and lose yourself in the area’s wild poetry—where the Eastern Dales begin, green hills roll endlessly, and history breathes through every stone.

  • Middleham Castle – childhood home of Richard III
  • 15 professional racing stables, visits an be arranged
  • The Gallops – on the edge of village you can watch the jockeys training the horses
  • The Wensleydale Hotel & Restaurant
  • 2 pubs
  • Tearoom
  • Antique shop

Restaurants, pubs and cafes nearby

  • Blue Lion East Witton 2 miles
  • The Wensleydale Heifer at West Witton 5 miles

Leyburn – 2 miles

  • Supermarket
  • Independent shops
  • Pubs
  • Cafes
  • Restaurants

Hawes – 18 miles

  • Pubs
  • Tearooms
  • Convenience stores
  • Independent shops
  • Wensleydale creamery – see the cheese being made

Activities close by

  • Cycling and walking from the door
  • Wensleydale Railway
  • Settle-Carlisle Railway
  • Ribblehead Viaduct
  • Semerwater
  • Forbidden Corner
  • Bolton Castle
  • Richmond Castle and falls
  • Ingleton Falls
  • White Scar Cave
  • Yorkshire 3 Peaks – Ingleborough, Pen y Ghent, Whernside
  • Wensleydale Creamery
  • Dales Countryside Museum
  • Aysgarth Falls National Park Centre
  • Malham Cove & National Park Centre
  • Hawes National Park Centre
  • Reeth National Park Centre
  • Grassington National Park Centre (All Creatures Great and Small T.V. series filmed here)
  • Black Sheep Brewery Masham
  • Nearest Spa – Swinton Park
Good to know

Good to know

  • Sauna on ground floor
  • Super size jacuzzi tub in the house bathroom
  • Catering – we can connect you to caterers and private chefs
  • Pubs – 4 in the village, 1 minute
  • Bed linen and towels provided – you may like to bring dressing gowns for going to the sauna
  • Large courtyard with seating area
  • Hub with music speakers linked to Spotify
  • SMART T.V.
  • Parking – ample off road parking in shared space, additional free parking nearby
  • Safe, contactless check in
  • Iron and ironing board
  • Microwave
  • Tall fridge
  • Tall freezer
  • Two dishwashers
  • Electric range oven
  • Washing machine and tumble dryer
  • Cafetière
  • Open fire, one basket of logs
  • Superfast Wi-Fi
  • Luxury welcome hamper of local produce
  • The ground floor has steps between some of the rooms and may not be suitable for those with mobility considerations
  • Board games
  • Walking guide books
  • First aid kit
  • Torches
  • Travel cot on request
  • High Chair on request
Dogs
  • Dogs are not allowed on the furniture.
  • Dogs are not allowed upstairs.
  • Muddy/wet dogs must be cleaned off before entering the cottage.
  • Maximum of 3 small to medium dogs, please check with us prior to booking.
  • Dog toileting must take place away from the house and any mess cleaned up.
  • There may be a charge if additional cleaning is required.

ROOM DETAILS

Bedroom 1 – Castle

Super king bed – cannot be split

 

Roll-top bathtub in the bedroom

Walk in shower

Vanity basin

W.C.

Bedroom 2 – Little Richard

Super king bed – cannot be split

Walk in shower

Vanity basin

W.C.

Bedroom 3 – The Gallops

King bed

House Bathroom – shared with bedroom 4

Large jacuzzi bath

Walk in shower

Vanity Basin

W.C.

Bedroom 4 – Groom’s Room

Single bed

House Bathroom – shared with bedroom 3

Large jacuzzi bath

Walk in shower

Vanity Basin

W.C.

Bedroom 5 – Giddy Up

3 x single beds

1 x bunk beds – top bunk limited height

Walk in shower

Vanity basin

W.C.

Bedroom 6 – Tack Room

Double bed

Roll- top bathtub

Vanity basin

W.C.

 

Bedroom 7 – Dante’s Loft

Double bed

Walk in shower

Vanity basin

W.C.

FLOORPLANS

THE LOCAL AREA

Visit Middleham, a former market town once described as the ‘Windsor of the North’. Ascend to Middleham Castle’s viewing platform and watch Wensleydale spread like a painted dream. Hear the thunder of hooves and hearts as racehorses charge across the countryside—a spectacle that quickens the pulse of every visitor. And come Easter, slip behind the scenes of this equestrian heartbeat with the open stables’ warm welcome. Or venture beyond and lose yourself in the area’s wild poetry—where the Eastern Dales begin, green hills roll endlessly, and history breathes through every stone.

Middleham has a strong history with horse racing for over 200 years, you’ll often see beautiful racehorses crossing the market square on their way to the gallops where you can see them power across the countryside, an exhilarating sight! There are many famous racing yards based in and around Middleham and if you fancy having a look behind the scenes head there at Easter when eleven yards come together for their annual open day. A must for any racing or equestrian enthusiast.

Exploring

  • Leyburn 2 mile
  • Hawes 18 miles
  • Grassington 22 miles
  • Settle 40 miles
  • Kirkby Lonsdale 40 miles
  • Kendal 45 miles
  • Skipton 30 miles
  • Ripon 18 miles
  • Harrogate 30 miles
  • York 43 miles
  • Whitby 65 miles

Airports/Railways

  • Darlington Mainline station – 24 miles, London Kings Cross 2.5 hours
  • Durham Tees Valley Airport – 26 miles
  • Leeds Bradford Airport 51 miles

REVIEWS

We love to hear back from our guests to find out their experience with Beautiful Escapes.

October 2025
The house was excellent, beautifully decorated throughout with quality soft furnishings, the layout is a little quirky and adds to the character and charm, all 7 bedrooms were excellent for our stay
As the trip was in late October we didn’t use the outdoor space but if the weather had allowed the patio area would have been enough for us (group of 7 couples)
Village/Area, first visit to the area for all of the group, lovely village with real character. Enjoyed a visit to the Dante Arms and Middleham castle as well as a couple of circular walks from the house. Also enjoyed the equestrian feel of the village with the many professional horse racing stable yards, seeing the horses being exercised through the village going up to the gallops.
Booking process was no problem and straightforward, overall, excellent and happy to recommend the house and area to others and maybe return ourselves.
Richard and friends

September 2025

The house was perfect for our large family group, we were celebrating my big birthday!

The children had the top floor and loved it, it meant they could have their own space with T.V. plenty of room for them to play games and chill out. We had my Mum with us and she was going to stay in the ground floor bedroom but she opted instead for the single room next to the stairs to the top floor so that she could be near the children, we didn’t argue with that idea! 🙂

The house is like a Tardis, it just goes on forever it is so beautifully furnished, everything was good quality and well presented, a very generous welcome hamper was much appreciated. We all tried the sauna which was so relaxing, the children loved the big jacuzzi bath too.

We all got up early to see the racehorses at the Gallops, what a sight to see, stunning horses, so nice to see them being ridden through the village and the jockeys were so friendly stopping for the children to have photos.

Thank you for a very special stay, Jenny, Lee and all of the family x

August 2025

What a special place Harmby House is, it exceeded all our expectations which were high to begin with, it was to celebrate two big birthdays. Lots of space, comfy beds, great bathrooms and a good kitchen for cooking – the house is in the centre of the village which is very pretty, four pubs and the Wensleydale Hotel was lovely for morning coffee and treat for supper one night.

Also recommend the Blue Lion in the next village was equally good, some of the group also enjoyed good food at the Wensleydale Heifer in West Witton and the Sandpiper in Leyburn.

We enjoyed some fantastic walking and the sauna was wonderful to ease away the aching muscles too! Lots of places to visit you are spoiled for choice, we enjoyed the creamery at Wensleydale and had a nice day out over towards Grassington.

The highlight has to be seeing the racehorses being ridden past each day, we got up early one morning so that we could watch the jockeys exercising them up at the gallops, it was a wonderful sight, not to be missed.

We are already talking about a return trip!

Best regards,

Helen & Nick & John & Sally & friends

July 2025

Wow! Harmby House was wonderful, it was beautifully presented, excellent quality throughout, we loved our stay here. We were a large group of family an friends all different ages from 80 to 3! The house worked really well for us.

So much to see and do, fantastic walking from the door, great pubs in the village and we all went to the restaurant at the Wensleydale Hotel in the village for supper and it was excellent,.

We visited Aysgarth Falls, Forbidden Corner, Grassington to see where All Creatures Great and Small is filmed, it was just like in the T.V. series, we also visited Wensleydale Creamery and went on the railway which was a lovely way to see the area and the beautiful countryside.

I highly recommend Harmby House to any everyone, you won’t be disappointed!

Thank you for everything, Sue and all the gang!

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