Goathland is a village in the North York Moors national park.
The village is on the North Yorkshire Moors Steam railway line and is in the middle of some of the country’s most beautiful countryside.
Mainly volunteers run the railway although it is a charitable trust with several paid staff. It operates most of the year including over the Christmas period. It is the second longest preserved line in Britain and carries more than 250,000 passengers annually.
Goathland Station was used for Hogsmeade Railway Station in the Harry Potter films and the line used for his journeys.
Goathland has a history that dates back to Viking times. During the Victorian era the village was a spa town.
The village has hotels and guesthouses with the largest being Mallyan Spout Hotel named after one of the nearby waterfalls.
Blackfaced sheep have the right to graze on the village green, they are quite tame and often beg food from the many tourists that visit Goathland.
It is just a small village with a few shops, Post Office, school and public houses but attracts many visitors because of the television series Heartbeat.
Although the series is set in the fictional village of Aidensfield many of the programmes landmarks are easily recognisable including stores, garage/funeral directors, pub and station.
This village is definitely worth a visit especially in the late summer when the purple heather covers the ground as far as the eye can see.
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