We visited Fountains Abbey two days ago — right after visiting Rievaulx Abbey — and the two sites are perfect for visiting on the same day. The ruins at Fountains Abbey can be seen«up close» and they’re fascinating. There’s also a walk along the water to the gardens, but we didn’t think the gardens were at all worth the extra walk; in fact, they were rather crummy-looking. However, the abbey ruins are *very* well worth visiting(and worth the admission price). The Visitor’s Center has a very attractive and good-sized gift shop with some nice items. Also; the two women working at the ticket desk were *very* friendly. Note that the amount of walking is substantial, and there’s a steep climb uphill when returning to the Visitor’s Center.
Jonny Q.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Manchester, United Kingdom
This place is pretty awesome — in fact it better had be as it’s an Unesco world heritage site and I’m sure they just don’t give out these awards willy nilly! Situated in North Yorkshire, a great part of the world with Harrogate, York and Knaresborough just around the corner it’s a load of old ruins which have stood up to the test of weathering quite well considering the Abbey’s were dissolved by Henry the 8th back in the day. The painter Turner was inspired by this area and produced some great paintings back in the day — and it still draws loads of painters and photographers to the area to try and recreate these images! A National trust site, it’s free with membership but £11 entry on the day — not bad value as the miles of gardens with incredible man made lakes will keep you occupied for hours. There’s 2 food options — just at the main entrance there’s a large café(scones and sausage & mash were ace) and there’s a smaller tea rooms in the far part of the park near the deer grounds. Overall a fantastic place to get out to and enjoy a day — it was also such a sunny day that this made it deserve a 6th «enjoying life» star!