Europe IV: Helmsley

After a great time in Durham with the Byers, Monday morning we took the hour long train ride to York and then hopped on a 30 minute bus to get to the small, quaint town of Helmsley, England.  Matt and I knew we would be going non-stop in London, Durham, and Paris so we wanted one part of this trip to be secluded and relaxing.  The Feversham Arms in the English countryside seemed perfect.

When we got off the bus in Helmsley, I could tell where our hotel was by the steeple poking out from some trees.  I had seen in pictures that a church was right across the street from the hotel, so we headed straight there.  Now remember, Helmsley is very small.  It only takes about ten minutes at a leisurely pace to walk across the town center.  So, within minutes we were at the hotel.

It was still very cold outside and we were exhausted, so as soon as we checked in and got to our room we crawled under the covers and took a two hour nap.  Speaking of our room, it was pretty great.

In fact, the entire Feversham Arms was pretty close to perfect.  The staff was incredibly friendly and attentive, the food in the restaurant was amazing, and the interior and exterior were really beautiful.  It wasn't too small or too big.  Matt and I came away from the hotel feeling like this was "our" hotel.  That may sound silly, but we had a really great, special time here and this is the first hotel I've stayed in that as soon as I left I genuinely missed it.  This place feels really special to us and I hope Matt and I get to return.

After we woke up, we showered and got ready for dinner.  Our hotel package came with breakfast and dinner included so we ate at the hotel each night.  Not only did that make the time spent there 100% stress free, the restaurant was so good I wouldn't have wanted to eat anywhere else anyway.  There was plenty of variety so each night the meal felt different.

Each night after dinner we would choose a DVD from the library and get in bed early to watch it.  Yeah.  This portion of the trip was relaxing.

The next morning we woke up to a surprise.  Remember how our weather had been winter-like to this point in the trip?  Well, the next day had a high of 79 degrees!  It was the most bizarre change of weather I've ever experienced.  Everywhere we went that day people could not stop talking about how warm it was - like Los Angeles when it rains.

Well, since we were right next to a national park, we decided we would go on a walk (hike to us American folk).  We didn't have a car, so after having breakfast in bed we went to the front desk to find a hike that lead out of Helmsley.  We were directed down the street (and by down the street I mean like 50 steps from the front door) to a wooden sign for Cleveland Way.  From there, we would find markers leading us down a 2 1/2 mile hike to Rievaulx Abbey.

This walk was one of our favorite things we did in Helmsley (and all of England for that matter!).  It was perfect.  We were constantly surprised by beautiful views of fields and green rolling hills, by streams that had perfect spots on the shore to sit and relax a while, and of random farm animals that would block or approach the path.

Like I said, the hike ended at the ruins of Rievaulx Abbey.  It was so beautiful!  And peaceful.  We could've sat there for hours.

After hanging around for a while we turned around and headed back to Helmsley.  When we arrived we stopped by Ryeburn Ice Cream for a refreshing cone.  I am not exaggerating at all when I say this was the best ice cream I've had in my entire life.  A perfect way to end a perfect walk through the country.

The next day we woke up and had breakfast in bed (again!) and then it was time to head down to the spa (are we spoiled or what!? I just feel indulgent for writing all this!) for our massage.  We put on our swanky robes in the room and headed down.

After our massage, we decided to sit by the pool as it was another abnormally warm day in England.

A couple hours later, we decided to go on another walk since the previous day's trek was so successful.  Once again we headed to the front desk to get a suggestion from the concierge.  This day a new guy named Paul, the self proclaimed "human Sat Nav," was there and he was more than a little excited to help us.  After a long conversation consisting of him explaining all the different options, he held up a finger, went back to the desk, and made a phone call.  We heard him ask the person on the line if he could send some guests to walk through their property.  They obviously said yes because he gave a big toothless grin and proceeded to give us directions to Duncombe Park.

This park was closed for the day but we were able to walk through it due to Paul's phone call.  It also didn't hurt that the owner of this park and house is Lord Feversham.  We were again treated to beautiful views, this time of expansive sheep-filled fields and the town of Helmsley itself.

After that walk we returned to the hotel, enjoyed our last dinner, and got ready to leave for Paris in the morning.

Helmsley was one of those rare places that you develop an immediate bond with and want to go back.  It seems crazy when planning another trip to Europe to go back to Helmsley instead of the million cities we've never seen, but we'd do it again in a heartbeat.

Europe I: London, Europe II: Leavesden Studios, Europe III: Durham