Ilkley grew from a village into a spa town in the 19th century, when visitors came to take the cold-water cure, and it is still a prosperous place of stone villas, tree-lined streets, good shops and tearooms. It sits on the River Wharfe in lower Wharfedale, half an hour by train from Leeds and Bradford.
Above the town is Ilkley Moor, the subject of Yorkshire's unofficial anthem, "On Ilkla Moor Baht 'at". The Cow and Calf rocks on its edge are a favourite with climbers and walkers, and the 18th-century bath house of White Wells is a short climb from the town. The moor is also covered with prehistoric carved rocks, the best known being the Swastika Stone.