Whitehaven
Whitehaven is a town and civil parish in the Cumberland district of Cumbria, England.
It is a port on the north-west coast, and lies 4 miles (6 km) outside the Lake District National Park. It is 35 miles (56 km) south-west of Carlisle. The parish also includes the small village of Sandwith. At the 2021 census the parish had a population of 24,040 and the Whitehaven built up area had a population of 22,945.
Getting to Whitehaven
The town has two train stations: Whitehaven and Corkickle. Both of these stations are on the Barrow to Carlisle line, with a travel time of 1 hr 10 min to Carlisle. Access by road is by the A595 trunk road. Whilst the town was once a major port for England, the lack of a tributary to the harbour prevents modern vessels from docking. Occasionally historic tramp steamers will make calls to Whitehaven.
Worth seeing
Whitehaven was attacked by John Paul Jones - founder of the US Navy - during the American revolutionary wars. Many of the cannon which were in the fort at the time are still in the harbour area. However, they were reused in the 1950s as road bollards and are now implanted in the pavements to separate it from the road.
- 01The Beacon Museum
Things to do
Rugby League: Whitehaven play 13-a-side in the Championship, the second tier. This expanded in 2026 and took in clubs such as Whitehaven from the former third tier. Their home ground is Coach Road, half a mile south of town centre. The playing season is Feb-Nov. The Edge is an outdoor activity centre by the harbour.
Where to eat
- 01Cross's Coffee Shop
Established in 1895, so they must be getting something right.
Getting around Whitehaven the local way
- Get inGet off at {{marker|type |wikidata By bike By ferry=== There are no scheduled ferry services to/from Workington.
From Wikivoyage: Workington, CC BY-SA. Not yet checked by us. Last edited 2026-09.
Text adapted from Wikipedia and Wikivoyage, CC BY-SA 4.0. Photograph: KRoock74 (see Commons), Wikimedia Commons.