Reeth centres on a large, sloping village green surrounded by inns and attractive houses. It owed its former importance as the next largest settlement in Swaledale after Richmond - first to its role as a livestock market at the junction of the valleys of Arkengarthdale and Swaledale, and then to the growth of the base-metal mining industry in the moorlands above Upper Swaledale. There is a Swaledale museum and an annual show in September. There is accommodation in small hotels, inns and B&Bs. Reeth is linked by a bridge over the Swale with the smaller village of Grinton.