A short drive, a different century

Half the pleasure of a self-catering week in the Yorkshire Dales is how quickly the landscape changes character. One morning you are walking a limestone scar above Malham; the next you are standing in the shell of a Cistercian abbey or wandering a Georgian water garden. The dales sit in the middle of an extraordinary cluster of historic houses, ruined abbeys and formal gardens, and almost all of them are within an hour's drive of the main holiday cottage centres at Hawes, Leyburn, Grassington, Reeth and Settle.

A car is more or less essential, as rural bus services are thin and seasonal. The trick is not to over-plan. Two or three proper days out in a week, with the rest left for walking and pub lunches, feels about right. Here are the places most worth building a day around.

Wensleydale and Swaledale: castles, abbeys and a folly

Start with Bolton Castle, near Redmire, built in 1379 by Richard le Scrope and still very much standing. Mary, Queen of Scots was held here in the late 1560s, and the four towers give a fine view down Wensleydale. There is a walled garden, a tearoom and a birds of prey display; allow half a day.

Middleham Castle, a few miles east, is a different experience — the massive Norman keep where Richard III spent much of his childhood. It is a compact ruin, easily combined with a wander around Middleham's racing yards and a coffee on the square. Nearby, the Forbidden Corner at Tupgill Park is a labyrinth of tunnels, follies and surprises that children adore; you must book a slot online in advance, and it closes out of season.

Further east, Jervaulx Abbey is one of the most romantic ruins in Yorkshire, its stonework softened by moss and wildflowers. It sits in private grounds, open daily with an honesty box, and pairs neatly with a morning in Masham. In Swaledale, Easby Abbey and Richmond Castle are barely a mile apart, so they make one easy half-day from Reeth or Leyburn.

Fountains Abbey and the Studley Royal water garden

If you visit only one historic site during your stay, make it this one. Fountains Abbey, near Ripon, was founded in 1132 and is the largest set of monastic ruins in the country — the abbey church, cloisters and mill still give a vivid sense of medieval monastic life. It adjoins Studley Royal, an 18th-century water garden of canals, cascades, temples and follies laid out by John Aislabie, and a deer park beyond.

It is roughly 45 minutes from Grassington and an hour from Hawes. Give it a full day: there are three to four miles of walking between the abbey, the water garden and the deer park, some of it on rough ground, so stout shoes are sensible. Combine it with Ripon itself — the cathedral, the market square and the small museums are all worth an hour. Note that the site is hugely popular in summer holidays, so arrive before 10am or after 2pm if you want quiet.

Country houses on the eastern edge

Head towards York and the Howardian Hills and you reach a cluster of grand houses.

• Castle Howard, about an hour from Leyburn, is the great Baroque showpiece of the region, designed by Vanbrugh from 1699. The house, the lakes, the Atlas Fountain and the long garden terraces justify a full day.
• Nunnington Hall, in Ryedale, is a much smaller affair — a stone manor with a walled garden, a fine collection of miniature rooms and a lovely riverside setting. An easy two hours.
• Rievaulx Abbey and Helmsley Castle sit within a few miles of each other, with the ruins of Rievaulx set in a green bowl of a valley that is worth the trip on its own.
• Newby Hall, near Ripon, combines a handsome house with some of the best-designed gardens in the north, including a celebrated double herbaceous border.

Gardens for every season

The Dales gardens are not just summer attractions. Thorp Perrow at Bedale has one of the finest tree collections in England, with snowdrops and hellebores in February and spectacular autumn colour in October. The Himalayan Garden and Sculpture Park near Kirkby Malzeard is at its best in late May and June, when the rhododendrons and azaleas are out. York Gate at Adel, near Leeds, is a beautifully detailed one-acre Arts and Crafts garden, and the famous garden at Harrogate makes a good wet-weather alternative combined with the town.

Winter visitors should not despair: ruined abbeys and castles generally stay open all year, and there is something genuinely atmospheric about Fountains or Rievaulx on a misty January morning when the crowds have gone.

Practical notes for planning your week

Most country houses open from Easter to late October, while gardens and parkland often run for longer. Even in season, many houses close on Mondays and Tuesdays, so check before you set off — a wasted 50-mile round trip is a frustrating way to spend a morning. In school holidays, timed entry slots are common and worth booking a few days ahead.

Annual membership cards for the conservation charities pay for themselves surprisingly quickly if you plan four or five visits, and they cover parking at many countryside sites. Dogs are usually welcome in parkland on a lead but rarely inside houses or walled gardens. Picnics are allowed in most grounds, which keeps costs down for families, though the tearooms at Bolton Castle and Fountains are both worth the stop. Finally, allow more time than you think: last entry is often an hour or more before closing, and the drive back over the tops in the dark takes longer than the map suggests.