Photo: MatzeTrier (CC BY-SA 3.0), via Wikimedia Commons
Things to do in Yorkshire
The best holidays are planned around great days out. Here's what's on the doorstep in Yorkshire, from big-ticket attractions to rainy-day savers.
Showing museums, aquariums and attractions with indoor areas — the ones that work whatever the forecast.
🎟️ This weekend near Yorkshire
Events from
Skiddle
Fri 13 Nov · 19:00
Rhythm Of The 90's
Project House, Leeds · 14.4 mi
Tickets on Skiddle ↗
Fri 13 Nov · 18:00
Sanctuary of Senses Ladies night
44 Water Royd Mirfield WF14 9SG, Mirfield · 23.2 mi
Tickets on Skiddle ↗
Fri 13 Nov · 18:30
Evening of mediumship
The Leigon Kippax, Kippax · 16.9 mi
Tickets on Skiddle ↗
Fri 13 Nov · 19:00
Outside The Original Prog Classics Show
Skipton Sound Bar Ltd, Skipton · 21.2 mi
Tickets on Skiddle ↗
Museums & Galleries
1.3 mi from Yorkshire
Mother Shipton's Museum and Gift Shop
Mother Shipton's Cave in Knaresborough, North Yorkshire, is a historic museum and gift shop set within a riverside woodland park. You can explore the cave linked to the legendary p...
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1.3 mi from Yorkshire
Tudor Courthouse Museum
Museum building in Knaresborough, Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England, UK
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2 mi from Yorkshire
The Royal Pump Room Museum
The Royal Pump Room is a Grade II* listed building in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England. Today it houses the town's museum – operated by North Yorkshire Council. It was formerly... — Wikipedia
7.8 mi from Yorkshire
Aldborough Roman Site Museum
Aldborough Roman Site Museum sits on the site of Isurium Brigantum, once capital of the Romanised Brigantes, the largest tribal confederation in Roman Britain. You can explore rema...
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9.4 mi from Yorkshire
The Courthouse Museum
The Courthouse Museum occupies a Georgian courtroom built in 1830 and barely altered since, where you can explore the dock, witness box and Justices' bench and imagine standing tri...
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9.6 mi from Yorkshire
Workhouse Museum
The Workhouse Museum sits in Ripon's original Gatehouse building, where you follow an inmate's journey from admittance in the Guardian's Room through the baths and fumigation proce...
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10.1 mi from Yorkshire
Second World War Experience Centre
The Second World War Experience Centre is a registered charity archive in Otley near Leeds, dedicated to collecting and preserving the personal testimony of people who lived throug...
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10.2 mi from Yorkshire
The Ron Kitching Library
Ron Kitching Cycling Memorobilia, 100 years of cycling
12.1 mi from Yorkshire
Nidderdale Museum
Nidderdale Museum sits in the village of Pateley Bridge in the Yorkshire Dales, and brings to life over 200 years of rural history through thousands of objects displayed in origina...
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12.7 mi from Yorkshire
Horsforth Museum
Local museum in Horsforth, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, United Kingdom
13 mi from Yorkshire
Abbey House Museum
Abbey House Museum recreates authentic Victorian streets and displays childhood toys, offering a hands-on look at Leeds' social history. It suits families and history enthusiasts,...
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13.3 mi from Yorkshire
Thackray Medical Museum
Medical museum in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, United Kingdom
13.6 mi from Yorkshire
M&S Company Archive: Marks in Time
The M&S Company Archive in Leeds, Yorkshire tells the story of the company's role in people's lives since 1884, drawing on a collection of over 72,000 items including founders' not...
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13.8 mi from Yorkshire
Leeds City Museum
Leeds City Museum, established in 1819, is a museum in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. Since 2008 it has been housed in the former Mechanics' Institute built by Cuthbert Brodrick,... — Wikipedia
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14 mi from Yorkshire
Leeds Industrial Museum
The Leeds Industrial Museum at Armley Mills is a museum of industrial heritage located in Armley, near Leeds, in West Yorkshire, Northern England. The museum includes collections o... — Wikipedia
14.1 mi from Yorkshire
Ilkley Toy Museum
Ilkley Toy Museum is a small museum in the centre of Ilkley displaying a private collection of toys gathered over two decades, opened in 2001. You'll see dolls, dolls houses, teddi...
14.1 mi from Yorkshire
Manor House Art Gallery and Museum
17th century manor house on on 14th century site and Roman fort. Now a local heritage and art museum located in Ilkley's old Manor House.
14.4 mi from Yorkshire
Royal Armouries
Royal Armouries in Leeds is a national museum dedicated to arms and armour, home to one of the world's oldest and most extensive collections of its kind. Inside you'll find histori...
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14.7 mi from Yorkshire
Leeds Museums Discovery Centre
Leeds Discovery Centre is the purpose-built display storage facility built for Leeds Museums & Galleries in 2007. It was funded by Leeds City Council and the National Lottery Herit... — Wikipedia
15 mi from Yorkshire
Temple Newsam House
Temple Newsam House is a grand historic mansion in Leeds offering over 40 beautifully preserved rooms filled with art, design and stories, including the Chinese Drawing Room and th...
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Theme Parks
16.7 mi from Yorkshire
Web Adventure Park
The Web Adventure Park is a family theme park in Wigginton, near York, offering a mix of indoor and outdoor attractions under one ticket, including an adventure park, role play are...
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20 mi from Yorkshire
Diggerland Yorkshire
Diggerland Yorkshire is a theme park in Castleford, Wakefield, where visitors of all ages can ride, drive and operate real diggers in a family-friendly setting. There's also a two-...
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20 mi from Yorkshire
Murton Park
Murton Park is a 14-acre attraction near York combining the Yorkshire Museum of Farming, a railway, animals, play areas and living history sites. You can explore the Roman Fort and...
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Where to stay near Yorkshire
Places to stay within easy reach of these days out.
More around Yorkshire
Itineraries
- A weekend in Yorkshire: an accessible itinerary · 2 days
- A weekend in Yorkshire with the kids · 2 days
- A weekend in Yorkshire · 2 days
Haunted Britain
Yorkshire is one of those regions where the plan writes itself once you decide which side of it you want: the coast at Scarborough, Whitby, Filey and Bridlington, the museums and old streets of York, or the countryside and grand houses that sit between the North York Moors and Harrogate. With 3,189 places to stay on BritStays across the region, it's easy enough to base yourself once and dip into all three.
Good days out with children
If you need somewhere that burns off energy, Go Ape - Treetop Adventure is the obvious first call, and Hemsworth Water Park gives you a proper splashing-about day when the weather plays along. For something a bit calmer but still engaging, York Castle Museum tends to hold children's attention better than most museums do, and Mother Shipton's Museum and Gift Shop has the kind of story that keeps younger visitors asking questions all the way home. Ripley Ice Cream is a sensible bribe to hold in reserve.
Where to go when it rains
Yorkshire is unusually well stocked with indoor options, which takes the sting out of a grey forecast. In York, the Yorkshire Museum and York Castle Museum are the big two, with the Bar Convent Museum, the Quilters' Guild and Catton Heritage Museum offering quieter, more specialist visits if the crowds put you off.
Around Harrogate, there's a cluster worth knowing about:
- Royal Armouries — the one to pick if you want a full afternoon indoors
- Leeds City Museum and Leeds Industrial Museum — good contrast between city history and the mills that built it
- Leeds Museums Discovery Centre — for behind-the-scenes collections rather than polished galleries
- Horsforth Museum, the Folk Museum and the Wagon Hoist Mini Musem — small, local and quick to get round
Outdoors and along the coast
The North York Moors is the region's open space, and it works whether you want a long walk or just a drive with a few stops. On the coast, Whitby has the ruin of Whitby Abbey above the town, and Scarborough, Filey and Bridlington each give you a different version of the seaside day — bigger and busier, or quieter and more about the sand.
Rievaulx Terrace is the gentler outdoor option: a National Trust place where the walking is easy and the views do the work. Pair it with Rievaulx Abbey Museum if you want some context for what you're looking at.
Heritage and grand houses
Castle Howard is the headline, and it's the sort of place that comfortably fills most of a day between house and grounds. Beyond it, the region has a run of stately homes — Birdsall House, Farnley Hall, Kirkby Fleetham Hall, The Old Lodge and Sigston Manor — that reward a bit of planning, as access varies. Goddards is the second National Trust property here alongside Rievaulx Terrace, and it's a smaller, more domestic sort of visit, which makes it a good pairing with a bigger day elsewhere.
How to build a sensible day
- A York day: Yorkshire Museum in the morning, lunch in town, then York Castle Museum or the Bar Convent Museum in the afternoon. Two museums is plenty — three is a slog.
- A moors and abbeys day: Rievaulx Terrace and Rievaulx Abbey Museum, then out across the North York Moors towards Whitby and Whitby Abbey.
- A big house day: Castle Howard on its own, or Goddards paired with something smaller if you'd rather not commit the whole day.
- A family day: Go Ape - Treetop Adventure or Hemsworth Water Park in the morning, Ripley Ice Cream afterwards, and keep the afternoon loose.
Where to eat
For somewhere with a 5-star hygiene rating, the Garden Restaurant is a solid tea-room stop if you want lunch without a long sit-down. For pub food, The Royal Oak, Timble Inn and The Mitre all hold 5-star ratings — worth ringing ahead at weekends, as the better-known Yorkshire pubs fill up fast. Ripley Ice Cream is the one to remember on a warm afternoon.
Making it a short break
Two or three nights is the sweet spot. A common pattern is one coastal day around Scarborough, Whitby or Filey, one inland day in York, and one flexible day held back for the Moors or Castle Howard depending on the weather. Basing yourself between York and Harrogate keeps most of the museums within reach; basing yourself on the coast suits families who want beach time every day.
Practical points: check opening days before you travel, as several of the smaller museums and the stately homes don't open daily or year-round. Book pub tables and any timed-entry attraction in advance over school holidays. Take waterproofs and proper footwear for the North York Moors even in summer, and if you're driving to Whitby Abbey or into central York, plan your parking before you set off rather than circling on arrival.
Frequently asked questions
What is there to do in Yorkshire with children?
Go Ape - Treetop Adventure and Hemsworth Water Park are the main active options. For indoor days, York Castle Museum and Mother Shipton's Museum and Gift Shop both suit families. Ripley Ice Cream is a good stop to finish on.
Where should we go in Yorkshire if it rains?
York has the Yorkshire Museum, York Castle Museum, the Bar Convent Museum, the Quilters' Guild and Catton Heritage Museum. Around Harrogate you'll find the Royal Armouries, Leeds City Museum, Leeds Industrial Museum, Leeds Museums Discovery Centre, Horsforth Museum, the Folk Museum and the Wagon Hoist Mini Musem.
Which Yorkshire attractions are National Trust properties?
Two of the listed places are National Trust: Rievaulx Terrace and Goddards. Rievaulx Terrace is the outdoor, view-led visit; Goddards is smaller and more domestic in scale.
Which stately homes and castles can we visit in Yorkshire?
Castle Howard is the best known and easily fills a day. There is also Birdsall House, Farnley Hall, Kirkby Fleetham Hall, The Old Lodge and Sigston Manor, plus the ruins of Whitby Abbey on the coast. Access varies, so check opening days before travelling.
Where can we eat in Yorkshire with a 5-star hygiene rating?
The Garden Restaurant is a tea room, The Royal Oak, Timble Inn and The Mitre are pubs and inns, and Ripley Ice Cream is an ice cream and creamery stop. All five hold 5-star hygiene ratings.
Where's the best base for a short break in Yorkshire?
There are 3,189 places to stay on BritStays across the region. Basing yourself between York and Harrogate keeps most of the museums within reach, while Scarborough, Whitby, Filey or Bridlington suit families who want beach time each day and easy access to the North York Moors.
More ways to explore
Not booked yet? See the best places to stay in Yorkshire.