Abbey or priory · near Helmsley · North Yorkshire

Rievaulx Abbey Museum

Rievaulx Abbey Museum is a ruined medieval abbey. Find it 3.3 km west of Helmsley. It holds the status of a Grade I listed building.

Photo: Rievaulx Abbey Museum, Tilman2007/Dr. Volkmar Rudolf (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Where

3.3 km

west of Helmsley

Run by

English Heritage

a national heritage body

How well known

Top 5%

#372 of 8,556 places we list

Warmest months

Jun–Sep

highs of 17–20°C

In brief

Abbey or priory near Helmsley

One of the best-known places to visit in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland

#372 of the 8,556 museums, castles, gardens and other attractions we list, by how widely it is covered (13 Wikipedias). About ↓

Just outside Helmsley

Rievaulx Abbey Museum is 3.3 km west of Helmsley. Towns near it ↓

Cared for by English Heritage

One of the places English Heritage looks after; members usually get in free. About ↓

Grade I listed building

On the official list of protected heritage; Helmsley has 56 listed buildings in all, on its History page. About ↓

Written from OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, the ONS built-up areas and Met Office 1991–2020 averages.

When to go

The seasons here

Afternoons in Helmsley peak at 17–20°C, June to September.

Jan7° / 1°69 mm

Feb7° / 1°64 mm

Mar10° / 2°55 mm

Apr12° / 4°58 mm

May16° / 7°53 mm

Jun18° / 9°72 mm

Jul20° / 11°64 mm

Aug20° / 11°74 mm

Sep17° / 9°67 mm

Oct13° / 7°80 mm

Nov10° / 4°84 mm

Dec7° / 1°78 mm

Green months are the warmest. Typical afternoon highs and night lows in Helmsley, and rain in a month. Met Office HadUK-Grid 1991–2020 averages for Helmsley. Opening times change through the year: check before you go. Helmsley’s full climate →

About

Rievaulx Abbey Museum

Upkeep is seen to by English Heritage. There are Wikipedia articles on it in 13 languages. Our list has 22 more places within 15 km; first among them is Helmsley Castle, at 3.6 km.

Helmsley’s listed buildings and monuments →

Type: Abbey or priory
Run by: English Heritage
Listed: Grade I listed building
Wikipedias: Covered in 13 languages
Town: 3.3 km west of Helmsley
Official site: english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/rievaulx-abbey/things-to-do

Facts: Wikidata (CC0) and OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors).

The map

Rievaulx Abbey Museum and what surrounds it

On this map, Rievaulx Abbey Museum is orange and its neighbours are numbered.

Towns near it

Nearby towns

Kirkbymoorside tops the 8 for size, at 2,763 people. They run in order of distance, starting where it stands.

1 · 3.3 km east of it

Helmsley

1,345 people · 9 places to visit

2 · 6.3 km south of it

Ampleforth

1,239 people · 9 places to visit

3 · 7.5 km southeast of it

Oswaldkirk

233 people · 7 places to visit

4 · 7.9 km east of it

Nawton and Beadlam

946 people · 6 places to visit

Compare the 8 towns

Town	Where Rievaulx Abbey Museum is	People	Places to visit
Helmsley	3.3 km east of it	1,345	9
Ampleforth	6.3 km south of it	1,239	9
Oswaldkirk	7.5 km southeast of it	233	7
Nawton and Beadlam	7.9 km east of it	946	6
Husthwaite	11 km southwest of it	392	5
Kirkbymoorside	12 km east of it	2,763	2
Bagby	12 km west of it	564	7
Hovingham	13 km southeast of it	376	4

Make a day of it

Pair Rievaulx Abbey Museum with these

Around it, within 15 km, lie 22 more, including 3 castles, 2 abbeys or priories and 2 historic houses.

Castle · English HeritageHelmsley Castle3.6 km away 2

Abbey or priory · English HeritageByland Abbey6.6 km away 3

Abbey or prioryAmpleforth Abbey6.4 km away 4

Historic houseDuncombe Park3.3 km away 5

CastleGilling Castle8.8 km away 6AttractionAttraction · National TrustRievaulx Terrace300 m away 7

CastleCrayke Castle14 km away 8

Historic house · National TrustNunnington Hall11 km away

Within 15 km, close and well known first. Numbers match the map.

Asked about Rievaulx Abbey Museum

Where is Rievaulx Abbey Museum?

Rievaulx Abbey Museum is 3.3 km west of Helmsley, North Yorkshire.

What is Rievaulx Abbey Museum?

Ruined medieval abbey in Yorkshire, England, UK.

Who runs Rievaulx Abbey Museum?

English Heritage, so members usually get in free; check opening times before you go.

When is the best time to visit Rievaulx Abbey Museum?

June to September are the warmest months in Helmsley, with afternoon highs of 17–20°C (Met Office 1991–2020 averages).

Is Rievaulx Abbey Museum a listed building?

Yes: Grade I listed building.

What else is there to see near Rievaulx Abbey Museum?

Within 15 km: Helmsley Castle (3.6 km), Byland Abbey (6.6 km), Ampleforth Abbey (6.4 km) and Duncombe Park (3.3 km).

Places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, Open Database Licence) and Wikidata (CC0), placed in the ONS 2022 built-up area (Open Government Licence v3.0). Visitor counts are the latest Wikidata gives, with their year.

Photos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).

Photo credits (8)

Rievaulx Abbey Museum: Tilman2007/Dr. Volkmar Rudolf, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Helmsley Castle: Photograph by Mike Peel (www.mikepeel.net)., CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Byland Abbey: Antony McCallum, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Ampleforth Abbey: martin dawes, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Duncombe Park: Kognos, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Gilling Castle: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
Crayke Castle: Paul Buckingham, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Nunnington Hall: Wehha, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.