Fishing, shooting and shows
Kids can start with a mighty roar at Yorkshire Wildlife Park, enjoy go-karts and tractor rides at Farmer Copley’s, and ski the slopes at Xscape. Grown-ups can fish and shoot at Yorkshire Field Sports, walk over to the wild side at Fairburn Ings, or catch a show at the Grand Theatre. Finish with a cocktail at The Alchemist.
Country kids
These days, kids are catered for whichever place you choose for holidays, and Yorkshire’s better than most. Start with a mighty roar at Yorkshire Wildlife Park, home to the only polar bears in England, plus majestic lions, tigers, black rhino and more. Keep the wild theme going at Askham Bryan Wildlife and Conservation Park.
Head off for bouncy fun, go-karts, slides, swings and tractor rides at Farmer Copley’s, then lose a few hours in the maize maze. Enjoy The Great Indoors at Xscape in Castleford, with its snow slope, bowling alley and surf simulator. Or enjoy a day full of diggers, dumpers and construction machinery at Diggerland Yorkshire.
Dig up the past at Leeds Museums and Galleries, then explore arms and armour from across the world in six themed galleries at the Royal Armouries Museum. Head up to York to see how the Vikings lived at the Jorvik Centre. Then try the Minster, a walk round the walls and the Chocolate Story.
Stay in York and see it all on the Hop-on, Hop-Off bus tour, try a little archaeological adventure at DIG, or follow the clues and match the pictures on a Curious About York tour. Finally, the National Railway Museum is the perfect platform for the biggest railway day out ever, with trains, rides and turntables.
For the grown-ups
The indoors here is great, but the outdoors might be even greater. Head up to Yorkshire Field Sports to fish at Newland Hall, shoot air rifles on the 90-yard range or blast clay pigeons to kingdom come. Play a round or two at Scarthingwell Golf Course or Oulton Hall Hotel, or get in the saddle at Saxton Riding Centre.
Take a walk on the wild side at Fairburn Ings Nature Reserve, or have a flutter at Doncaster, Wetherby, Pontefract, Thirsk or Ripon. Try a fruit beer or perry at Sam Smith’s Brewery in Tadcaster, or be pampered at Thorpe Park Spa, with its whirlpool, sauna, steam room and extensive menu of treatments.
Stretch your legs, with local walks from Ledsham to Fairburn and refuel in The Three Horseshoes. Walk back in time at York Minster, Newby Hall Gardens or beautiful Harewood House, with dining in the gallery. Come in August and dive right in to the Leeds Festival, with big-name music acts and a buzzing atmosphere.
For nights out, Leeds is Purple-Flag-accredited, meaning it’s as safe as a Blue-Flag beach. Head into town to catch a show at the Grand Theatre or the West Yorkshire Playhouse, sink a cocktail or two at The Alchemist or The Botanist, potter the pubs of Call Lane, or sip a craft beer and guzzle a sourdough pizza at Black Swan.
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