Oxenhope is a West Yorkshire village near the town of Keighley and Howarth, famous for the Bronte sisters. This former mill village receives a steady flow of visitors, due to its surrounding countryside and its position as the terminus for the Keighley and Worth Valley Railway. Oxenhope’s other claim to fame is the annual Oxenhope Straw Race, when participants carry a bale of straw around the village, fortifying themselves at each pub that they pass on the way! Oxenhope’s surrounding moorland and hills are an adventure playground for families that like to walk, cycle, and ride or go mountain biking.

Most train enthusiasts love the age of steam. Oxenhope Station is one of the restored stations on the Keighley and Worth Valley Railway network and visitors can see the Exhibition Shed there and buy souvenirs from the shop. Stations on the line and rolling stock were used in the 1970 film, The Railway Children.  If you walk the self-guided Oxenhope Trail, you will also come across another location used in the film, known as Bents House. The KWVR runs five or six working steam locomotives at any one time. Other engines belonging to the fleet are exhibited at Oxenhope Station.

Various ways of enjoying steam travel on this railway could make your holiday special. You can even learn how to drive a steam locomotive by booking a place on The Footplate Experience! Alternatively, you could treat the family to dining in a restored 1930’s Pullman carriage.