This gaunt and imposing 1,500 years old remains was initially build as a Christian monastery in the 7th century. It later became a Benedictine abbey and declared a Grade I Listed building. Visitors can step up famous 199 steps, or Church Stairs, to reach the top of the hill and meet this magnificent gothic ruins. Since its foundation by Royal Princess Hild of Whitby in 657, Whitby Abbey has been a bustling settlement: a burial place for a king, the meeting place for Celtic and Roman clerics, the home of the first English poet Saint Caedmon, and inspiration for the legendary story of Dracula.
Now, it is in the care of English Heritage, and you can walk through the history.