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These are the most beautiful spots to visit in the north of England

Oil seed rape fields near Bamburgh Castle in Northumberland. Picture date: Wednesday June 9, 2021. (Photo by Owen Humphreys/PA Images via Getty Images)
Bamburgh Castle, Northumberland (Getty)

It's the summer of staycations, and it seems that not even those famed for adventures in far-flung places can get enough of our green and pleasant land - especially up north.

Harrison Ford, aka Indiana Jones himself, has been spotted filming the fifth film in the franchise in North Shields, as well as various other locations across the North of England.

But which are the most gorgeous spots in the North, ready to tempt intrepid (and ok, perhaps less intrepid) travellers? These beautiful locations will have you joining the M6 in a flash...

Bamburgh Castle, Northumberland

The Indiana Jones crew have recently decked out this 1,400-year-old castle with sandbags and barbed wire for filming purposes.

Set in a striking location on the northeast coast, above the glorious Bamburgh beach, the current castle was built by the Normans but lies on the ancient site of a Celtic fort.

Currently closed for the filming, the castle is set to reopen on the 14th June.

York Minster, Yorkshire

World-class concert pianist Ke Ma rehearses on a £100,000 piano at York Minster, ahead of a performance to highlight the plight of musicians and the arts. (Photo by Danny Lawson/PA Images via Getty Images)
Stained glass and world class music at York Minster (Getty)

There's a reason why much of the Harry Potter franchise was filmed in York, a city which mixes picturesque beauty with fascinating ancient history.

Perhaps the best spot of all, in a town packed with competition, is York Minster - the oldest cathedral in all of northern Europe. Come for the magnificent medieval stained glass windows, stay for the pretty grounds and the tiny carvings of wooden mice.

Grasmere, Cumbria

Early morning mist over Lake Grasmere in the Lake District National Park. (Photo by: Martin Berry/Loop Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
Beautiful views - no matter what the weather (Getty)

The Lake District is famously beautiful - so much so, in fact, that it's inspired everyone from William Wordsworth to Taylor Swift to write poems and songs about it.

In a region offering lovely vistas down every hillside and around every watery shore, it's hard to know which lakeside spot beats all the rest - but Grasmere probably pips them to the post.

You can visit Wordsworth’s former home, Dove Cottage, or hire a rowing boat to pootle around the lake.

Read more: Funny people are twice as likely to come from the North

Stanage Edge, Derbyshire

View from Stanage Edge at sunset. (Photo by: Robin Whalley/Loop Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
View from Stanage Edge at sunset. (Getty Images)

This craggy gritstone outcrop, with soaring views over the Dark Peak moorlands, is one of the most famous spots in The Peak District - especially since Keira Knightley came here to brood in picturesque style in the 2005 adaptation of Pride And Prejudice.

It's popular with climbers and runners, but you can walk up at a more sedate pace from the nearby village of Hathersage.

Watch: Mist cloaks Cumbria's Eden Valley in beautiful winter scene

Lindisfarne, Northumberland

Chrsanthemum coromarium flowers in the National Trust's Gertrude Jekyll walled garden and Lindisfarne Castle on Holy Island, on 27th June 2019, on Lindisfarne Island, Northumberland, England. The Holy Island of Lindisfarne, also known simply as Holy Island, is an island off the northeast coast of England. Holy Island has a recorded history from the 6th century AD; it was an important centre of Celtic and Anglo-saxon Christianity. After the Viking invasions and the Norman conquest of England, a priory was reestablished. (Photo by Richard Baker / In Pictures via Getty Images Images)
Lindisfarne Castle on Holy Island, surrounded by sea, and seals (Getty)

Lindisfarne, widely known as Holy Island, is only accessible to the mainland at low tides, via a causeway.

The difficulty involved in getting there, the wild coastal landscape and the ancient monastery founded there by Saint Aidan of Iona in the sixth century AD all conspire to give it a truly magical, mysterious aura.

While you're there, be sure to have a tot of the famous Lindisfarne Mead, which has been made on the island for centuries.

Robin Hood's Bay, Yorkshire

UK, England, Yorkshire - A small fishing village called Robin Hood's Bay, located on the coast of North Yorkshire, England. (Photo by: Edwin Remsberg / VWPics/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
The little fishing village is perfect for Instagram (Getty)

Think Robin Hood, think Sherwood Forest and Nottingham. Right? Well, it seems that the man feared by the bad and loved by the good may occasionally have ventured further north.

The exact etymological origins of this quaint fishing village, with picturesque houses dotted down a steep staggered hill to a wide sweep of white beach, remain uncertain.

What is certain, however, is that the view of the windy bay is one of the best outlooks on Yorkshire's 'dinosaur coast' - if not the whole of the UK.

Scarfell Pike, Cumbria

A view of Wast Water towards Scafell Pike on a bright sunny day, Lake District, Cumbria, England, United Kingdom, Europe
Sweeping vistas and (sometimes) sunlight. (Getty)

You'll need strong legs and some careful planning to climb the steep and rocky 978 metres up to The Lake District's Scarfell Pike, both the tallest mountain in the UK and our highest war memorial - but you'll be rewarded with magnificent views of craggy peaks, rolling fells and glassy water.

Whitby Abbey, North Yorkshire

View of Whitby Abbey. (Photo by: Gary Smith/Loop Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
Dracula vibes at mystical Whitby Abbey (Getty)

The ultra-atmospheric gothic ruins of Whitby's 7th century abbey stand perched on the water's edge in the pretty seaside town.

Standing there, it feels like no surprise that Whitby Abbey is a location in Bram Stoker's classic vampire novel Dracula. Try to catch a sunset, glinting through the glassless windows, then reward yourself with fish and chips in town. Perfection.

Watch: Playful seal removes driver's mouthpiece off north England coast

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