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Why we love Leeds

A hotbed for shopping and the arts, you’ll find lots to do in Leeds. From exploring the grounds of impressive historical houses to hunting for bargains in Europe’s biggest indoor market, the Grade I listed Kirkgate Market. Rich in heritage, this energetic former mill town boasts a thriving independent food scene, international beer festivals and a dazzling array of street art, including Britain’s tallest mural, Athena Rising. 

Whether it’s tasting tours or Europe’s biggest music festivals, Leeds rocks it all. While its compact size makes it discoverable, its diversity means there’s always something to do, whether that’s burlesque to hip-hop, culture to clubbing. Sports fans are well catered for too, with cricket and rugby league at Headingley, and Leeds United Football club playing at Elland Road. And if you want to escape to nature — relax in one of Europe’s largest city parks, Roundhay Park. Or it’s just a short jaunt to the glorious Yorkshire Dales National Park.

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Leeds Art Gallery and Henry Moore Institute

Get your art on at Leeds Art Gallery and the Henry Moore Institute , two wonderful spaces in Leeds. Leeds Art Gallery shows a wide range of art work, including Antony Gormley sculptures and Victorian artwork. Then head to the Henry Moore Institute alongside, with its extensive galleries about the famous sculptor.

Leeds City Council

Kirkstall Abbey

Founded more than 800 years ago, Kirkstall Abbey is one of the best preserved Cistercian monasteries in Britain. These breathtaking and, legend has it, haunted ruins sit among award-winning parkland shouldering the the River Aire. Much of it Kirkstall Abbey remains in tact, giving you a feel for the monks who lived her for nearly 400 years. It hosts regular events and across the road you’ll find a lively, interactive museum.

Joanne Crawford

Green spaces at Roundhay Park

Take time out at the fabulous Roundhay Park in Leeds – with 700 stunning acres of parkland to explore. This huge and popular city park has extensive green spaces, woodland, lakes and gardens, golf course, tennis courts and a mini-train. It’s also home to Tropical World zoo, where you can see monkeys, crocodiles, butterflies, snakes, lizards and spiders.

Headingley Stadium tours

A tour behind Headingley’s famous stadium offers a behind-the-scenes look at one of Britain’s most famous cricket clubs. Take in panoramic views of the cricket ground from the media centre, see where players change, eat and gather, stroll around the Carnegie Pavilion and ponder over cricket memorabilia.

Things to do in Leeds

Royal armouries museum.

This is the home of Britain’s biggest collection of weapons and armour – including Henry VIII’s battle outfit.

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Victoria Gate

More than just retail heaven, this shopping district is a vision of beautiful Victorian-inspired architecture. Great style, in every direction.

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Harewood House

This spectacular home starred as Princess Mary’s residence in the Downton Abbey film – and now hosts private tours and festivals.

Leeds Indie Food

From the juiciest burgers to the best local beers, Leeds Indie Food is your one-stop guide to the finest food in this northern city.

Amy Heycock

Leeds Grand Theatre

Built in the 1800s, this intimate theatre has a truly decadent interior, and attracts stellar shows and acts to its stage.

Ant Robling

Leeds United

See a match or take a tour of Leeds United home ground Elland Road, the footballing heart of the city.

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Lake District

Wetherby Racecourse

Head to Wetherby Racecourse for a great day out, just outside of Leeds.

Headingley Cricket Ground Tour

Go behind the scenes at Headingley Cricket Ground, the home of Yorkshire County Cricket Club, with a tour of this prestigious ground.

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Get your art on at Leeds Art Gallery and the Henry Moore Institute next door, two wonderful spaces in Leeds.

The Tetley Art Gallery

The Tetley art gallery, once found at the former Tetley Brewery company building, in Leeds, is on a hunt for a new home...watch this space.

Jo Ritchie/Tetley Art Gallery

Leeds Playhouse

See a show at the dynamic Leeds Playhouse, a theatre by and for the people of the city.

Opera North

Hear some arias at a performance by Opera North, the proud opera company based in Leeds.

Prashad restaurant

Treat yourself to some of Leeds’ best Indian food at Prashad, a Bib Gourmand restaurant in Drighlington.

Prashad Restaurant

Gin Journey

Take a gin tour of Leeds, discovering all about the art of gin, as well as the city’s gin-ful past.

Madeline Penfold

Leeds Food Tours

Discover all about Leeds’ fabulous food heritage on a guided Leeds Food Tour, full of food and facts.

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Fourth Floor Bar

Head to Harvey Nichols’ Fourth Floor Bar, for the most glamorous pit-stop whilst shopping.

Fourth Floor Bar, Harvey Nichols Leeds

The Emmerdale Village Tour

Go behind the scenes of Emmerdale in the Yorkshire Dales, as you visit the set of this much-loved soap.

Tom Arber Photo / Continuum Entertainment

Wander around the ruins of Kirkstall Abbey and learn about what life would have been like as a monk in this historic Cistercian monastery.

Courtesy of Leeds Museums & Galleries

Leeds City Museum

From Ancient Rome to the natural world, Leeds City Museum is a must-visit for anyone in the city.

Dawn Kilner

Thackray Museum of Medicine

Walk through the history of medicine in the fascinating Thackray Museum of Medicine in Leeds.

Leeds Industrial Museum

Discover Leeds’ industrial past at Armley Mills, which has everything from steam engines to a 1920s cinema.

The Freedom Quarter

Head down to Leeds’ Freedom Quarter and discover a hub of LGBTQIA+ venues, from pubs and clubs to cafes.

Alamy Stock Photo

Thought Bubble

Join in with the celebration at the UK’s biggest comic art festival, Thought Bubble, in Yorkshire.

Clare Jackson / Alamy Stock Photo

Leeds Festival

Rock on for three days of live music at Leeds Festival, in Bramham Park, one of the biggest dates on the festival calendar.

Ellen Offredy

Roundhay Park

Take time out at the fabulous Roundhay Park in Leeds – with 700 stunning acres of parkland to explore.

Otley Chevin Forest Park

Indulge in some forest-bathing at Otley Chevin Forest Park, a 700-acre nature reserve near Otley, West Yorkshire.

Yoga Retreats

Take a day out of the rat race on a one-day yoga retreat with Nichi Green, near Otley, Leeds.

Shutterstock / fizkes

Victoria Quarter

Visit the beautiful Victoria Quarter, one half of Victoria Leeds upmarket shopping district.

Kirkstall Abbey Markets

Make a date for Kirkstall Abbey Markets, a weekend market in the stunning setting of the ruins of Kirkstall Abbey.

Leeds Corn Exchange

For shopping with a difference, head to Leeds Corn Exchange and its array of independent retailers.

Amy Heycock for Visit Leeds

Soon to be known as Bramley Wholefoods, aim for a zero-waste lifestyle by refilling and restocking at EcoTopia’s eco-friendly stores in Leeds.

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Get together at Green Room, a bar and terrace which is all about local talent, food and drink.

Green Room / Thirty-Six Leeds Ltd

Featured things to do

Tour the city

From heritage routes to breweries and ghost hunts, Leeds is packed with guided tours which reveal more about its people and places.

Dance the night away

Rock on for three days of live music at Leeds Festival, in Bramham Park, one of the biggest dates on the festival calendar. As one half of the famous Reading and Leeds Festivals, the two music events take place at the same time over the August bank holiday.

Carl Milner Photography

Hunt for ghosts at Halloween

Check out the haunted Abbey House Museum (an original gatehouse for a 12th-century Cistercian monastery) for ghost-hunts and supernatural activities.

Take in some festive fun

From glistening Christmas trees to spectacular shows and festive markets, Leeds comes alive during the winter.

Places to stay in Leeds

Roundhay Park offers is to go to place for music and food festivals, and provides acres of green space, lakes, gardens and a tropical bird and butterfly house. Find lots of delis and restaurants, and all just a small walk into the centre

Headingley has been the student centre, but with it comes a thriving centre of shops, vintage wear, book shops, cafes and and lots of pubs and bars. It’s a short journey to the city centre.

If you want the best of both words - Otley offers the beauty of the Wharfe Valley and the Chevin Forest Park where hiking and biking are a must, and is also a scenic and lively market town too.

Explore nearby

Small and mighty York is the medieval walled city that really packs a punch.

VisitBritain/Sam Barker

World-class football and a music scene that brought Oasis to centre stage – there’s lots to love about Manchester.

VisitBritain/Manchester Craft Beer Festival

North York Moors

Rugged yet beautiful, wild yet welcoming – the North York Moors National Park is full of surprises.

Yorkshire Dales

Proof that perfection can’t be rushed, the Yorkshire Dales was millions of years in-the-making.

VisitBritain/MattCant

Sitting on the edge of the Peak District National Park, Sheffield is a place for outdoor lovers and creatives. Find the best things to do in our guide.

Salt St for The Outdoor City

Getting to Leeds

As the largest city in West Yorkshire, the nearest main airport to Leeds is in Manchester Airport , which serves around 225 destinations globally. Direct trains from Manchester Airport to Leeds take around 90 minutes, with driving taking a little longer.

Leeds Bradford Airport is around eight miles to the northwest of Leeds city centre (a 30 minute drive). It also has connections to more than 75 European destinations, while National Express coaches provide routes into Leeds from both airports.

Trains from London to Leeds take just two and a half hours. There are direct trains to Leeds from other northern cities, including Manchester, York and Sheffield. 

Getting around

An extensive public transport network makes Leeds simple to explore and provides fantastic connections to the rest of Britain. For guidance, pop into the Visit Leeds and Art Gallery Shop, which doubles as the city’s tourist information centre.

Much of central Leeds, including the shopping areas at Trinity Leeds and Victoria Gate, is pedestrianised, making it east to explore on foot .

The Metro network services towns and villages in the surrounding area, providing reliable links to areas across West Yorkshire.

An extensive bus network connects the main places to visit in Leeds. First Bus operates more than 60 routes in the city, while Arriva and Stagecoach also provide regular services.

A daily water taxi service meanders between Granary Wharf and Leeds Dock, providing an excellent way to see the historic waterfront area.

Want to know more?

Check out Visit Leeds for insider tips and travel inspiration.

Places to visit in Leeds

Visit Leeds to find a city bursting with energy. With a thriving arts scene, rich sporting heritage, and pulsating nightlife, you’ll find a city packed with variety and excitement. Alive with the spirit of urban redevelopment and grandiose Victorian architecture, Leeds mixes the classic and contemporary like no other city, making it the perfect destination for a cultural fix, shopping spree, romantic getaway, or just a raging night out. During the sixteenth and seventeenth-century Leeds was at the forefront of the wool industry, an involvement that catalysed the city’s growth. From opera and art to festivals, cuisine, and things to keep the kids busy, this proud northern city has plenty to offer.

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Rainy Day Activities: Discover military history at The Royal Armouries

Britain’s national museum of arms and armour is home to a fascinating and unique collection, including the only existing suit of armour built for an elephant.

Location: Leeds, West Yorkshire

Splash your cash in Victoria Leeds

A haven for designer brands, Victoria Leeds is the destination for luxury shopping.

Embrace the pop-up dining trend at Trinity Kitchen

Take your pick from a mix of vibrant restaurants and street food vans all under one roof.

Explore the magnificent ruins of Kirkstall Abbey

This atmospheric 12th-century abbey is one of the most complete Cistercian monasteries in Britain, surrounded by tranquil tree-filled parkland.

Location: Leeds, Yorkshire

Unleash your inner explorer at Tropical World

Set off on a journey through the jungle, the desert and below the surface of the water to discover all of the creatures who call them home.

Taste the decadent afternoon tea at Oulton Hall

There’s nothing so quintessentially English as settling down in the drawing room for sandwiches, scones and a pot of Yorkshire tea.

Location: Oulton, Yorkshire

Meet feathered friends at Lotherton Hall Estate

Get up close and personal with rare birds, tropical mammals and wild-roaming deer at Lotherton Hall in Aberford, near Leeds.

Get Active in Chevin Forest Park

Get outdoors and blow those cobwebs away in some beautiful Yorkshire countryside.

Food, fashion and fantastic ales in Leeds

Explore Leeds city centre stopping off along the way to sample the finest local and independent breweries offerings.

Eat like a local at Kirkgate Market

This traditional covered market is one of the biggest in Europe with fresh food stalls that will get your taste buds tingling.

Shop in style in the beautiful Victoria Quarter

Marvel at this collection of beautifully restored Victorian shopping arcades in Leeds and browse the luxury shops within them.

Mosh to the biggest acts at Reading and Leeds Festivals

Head to Richfield Avenue in Leeds or Little John’s Farm in Reading for three days of unbeatable live music.

Location: Reading and Leeds

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Grand listed buildings, riverside panoramas – and a city bursting with both pop and culture. Trips to this Merseyside city start at Liverpool Pier to snap the trio of iconic buildings.

NewcastleGateshead

Criss-cross illuminated footbridges between rejuvenated quaysides, get acquainted with Tyneside history at local museums and galleries and cheer on the much-loved Magpies football team.

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18 Top-Rated Tourist Attractions in Leeds, West Yorkshire

Written by Bryan Dearsley Updated Dec 26, 2023

Author Bryan Dearsley visited Northern England in the spring of 2022 and explored Yorkshire, including the city of Leeds .

This pleasant university city on the River Aire in West Yorkshire offers great shopping and sightseeing in its historic downtown area, and has a number of interesting museums and art galleries among its attractions. Leeds also has a long-established tradition of industry, especially textiles, and its primary importance is as West Yorkshire's commercial and financial center.

The city is also the cultural hub of the area and boasts numerous fun things to do. Highlights include annual events such as the Leeds Festival in Bramham Park; the Leeds International Concert Season , a year-long celebration of music featuring more than 200 concerts; and the Leeds International Film Festival , England's second-largest festival dedicated to cinema.

The city's many attractive parks and gardens are ideal for relaxing walks. Must-visits include the 700-acre Roundhay Park , one of the country's largest city parks, and Golden Acre Park .

The surrounding Yorkshire Dales and moors are also worth exploring and offer some of the country's best hiking and biking trails. Particularly popular is the Meanwood Valley Trail , site of an annual footrace that draws participants from across Britain, along with famous Ilkley Moor.

To learn more about why Leeds is fast becoming one of the most popular places to visit in England, be sure to read through our list of the top tourist attractions in Leeds, West Yorkshire.

Civic Quarter & Leeds Civic Hall

The headrow & leeds town hall, the victoria quarter, the royal armouries museum, leeds, st. john the evangelist's church, leeds corn exchange, harewood house, harewood, leeds industrial museum at armley mills, armley, leeds art gallery, temple newsam house, thackray medical museum, leeds grand theatre & opera house, lotherton hall, aberford, abbey house and museum, kirkstall, the cathedral city of wakefield, the national coal mining museum for england, overton, harrogate: britain's floral resort.

The hub of Leeds' Civic Quarter is the pedestrian area known as City Square . It is famous for its numerous statues, including figures of the Black Prince and inventor James Watt, and is a popular public space for locals and visitors alike to spend time.

A variety of the city's most important cultural attractions are also located within the Civic Quarter. The top places to visit for a dose of culture include the excellent Leeds Art Gallery, the Henry Moore Institute, and the interesting Craft Centre and Design Gallery that features works by local and national artisans (many of them for sale).

Another important city structure is Leeds Civic Hall with its owl-decorated towers, the heraldic emblem of the city. Free tours and exhibits are held frequently.

Finally, be sure to visit Millennium Square, a focal point for theatrical performances and concerts. The square is also the location of Leeds City Museum, with its excellent departments of geology, zoology, ethnology, and archaeology.

The Headrow is a pedestrian-friendly half-mile-long avenue where many of the city's premier shopping, civic, and cultural attractions are found.

Perhaps the most notable building here is Leeds Town Hall, which served as the template for countless civic buildings across Britain and its empire. It was consecrated in 1858 by Queen Victoria. A lovely Corinthian colonnade adorns its front, dominated by a 200-foot-tall clock tower. Its ornate Victoria Hall is used frequently for concerts. Note that the building is currently undergoing a massive refurbishment and is closed to the public until 2024.

Headrow leads into Westgate, Eastgate, and Quarry Hill, which also host important cultural attractions. These include the West Yorkshire Playhouse , the biggest production theater outside London, and the Grade-II-listed Leeds City Varieties , the oldest music hall in the world.

Another theatrical landmark is the Grand Theatre . This "grand" old opera house serves as home to Opera North.

Address: The Headrow, Leeds, West Yorkshire

Official site: www.leedstownhall.co.uk

The pedestrianized Briggate area is famous for its historic shopping arcades , many of them of architectural significance. Those to explore include Grand Arcade, built in 1897 and home to a number of small boutique shops, and Thorntons Arcade , which was completed in 1878 and notable for its clock with four life-size figures.

Also worth visiting is Queens Arcade. Opened in 1889, it's home to a variety of high-end designer and novelty shops. A more modern affair, Trinity Leeds is a vast indoor shopping and entertainment complex where it's easy to spend a few hours exploring.

The Victoria Quarter is another great destination in Leeds city center for shopping enthusiasts. The jewel in the crown here is undoubtedly Queen Victoria Street . Although only arcaded in 1990, it's the largest expanse of stained glass in Europe and worth visiting if only for a stroll.

The neighboring County Arcade in the Victoria Quarter was completed in 1903 and is also fun to explore. Highlights include its magnificent marble floors, intricate stonework, and elegant iron domes.

Address: Queen Victoria St., Leeds, West Yorkshire

Official site: www.victorialeeds.co.uk

Located in the city's dock area, the Royal Armouries Museum is home to Britain's national collection of arms and armor. Boasting more than 8,500 objects on display in six impressive galleries, the museum covers some 3,000 years of armor and weaponry from across the globe.

Highlights include the Tournament Gallery, showcasing the splendor (and brutality) of medieval jousting tournaments, and this is also where you'll find the full-body armor worn by Henry VIII. Also worth seeing is the impressive Oriental Gallery with its many fine examples of arms and armor from Africa and Asia.

There's even a collection of weapons and swords used in the hit movie, The Lord of the Rings . Add live demonstrations and stunning re-enactments to the mix, and this museum is a must-see.

A café and shop are located on the premises.

Address: Armouries Drive, Leeds, West Yorkshire

Official site: www.royalarmouries.org/visit-us/leeds

The finest of Leeds' many lovely churches, and also the city's oldest, is St. John's in New Briggate. Built in 1634, its interior is notable for having two naves, as well as an original Renaissance rood screen, pulpit, and stalls.

Other religious sites worth visiting in Leeds include St. Anne's Cathedral, the Roman Catholic cathedral in Cookridge Street (built 1904), and the Georgian Church of Holy Trinity on the riverbank in Boar Lane (1727).

Also check out the Parish Church of Saint Peter-at-Leeds. Perhaps better known as Leeds Minster, this medieval church was rebuilt in 1841 and is the city's oldest parish church.

Address: 23 New Briggate, Leeds, West Yorkshire

Official site: www.visitchurches.org.uk/visit/church-listing/st-john-leeds.html

One of only three such structures surviving in the UK, the Grade I listed Leeds Corn Exchange is considered one of England's finest Victorian-era buildings. Designed by Cuthbert Brodrick and completed in 1864, the building is now home to an eclectic variety of independent boutique shops, galleries, and cafés.

The Corn Exchange is also a popular venue for everything from markets and fairs to boxing events and concerts.

Location: Call Lane, Leeds, West Yorkshire

Official site: http://leedscornexchange.co.uk/

Harewood House, seat of the Earl of Harewood, is a magnificent Georgian country house that took 30 years to build and was completed in 1771. Just eight miles north of Leeds, this spectacular home has interiors designed by Robert Adam and includes fine wall and ceiling paintings by Angelika Kauffmann and furniture by renowned English furniture maker Thomas Chippendale .

As well as an outstanding collection of porcelain, it has a large number of valuable works by the likes of Reynolds, Gainsborough, and El Greco. Outside, the grounds include a beautiful landscape designed by Capability Brown, with a 32-acre lake, a bird garden, and the remains of a 12th-century castle.

For a truly memorable stay, book into one of the estate's self-catering cottages, all within easy walking distance of the main house.

Address: Sandy Gate, Harewood, Leeds, West Yorkshire

Official site: www.harewood.org

Just two miles west of Leeds city center on Canal Road is the former Armley Mills. Once the world's largest woolen mills, this huge building is now home to the excellent Leeds Industrial Museum.

The museum presents the fascinating history of wool production in Yorkshire from the 18th century onwards, as well as exhibits concerning the manufacturing of textiles and clothing, printing, engineering, and locomotives.

While there, spend a little time exploring the nearby Leeds and Liverpool Canal, which links these two important industrial cities. Stretching 127 miles and even crossing the Pennines, this remarkable feat of engineering encompasses some 91 locks on its main line. The Thwaite Mill , a carefully restored watermill in nearby Stourton , is also worth visiting.

Address: Canal Road, Armley, Leeds, West Yorkshire

Official site: https://museumsandgalleries.leeds.gov.uk/leeds-industrial-museum/

Set in Victoria Square near the old Town Hall, a visit to Leeds Art Gallery is a must for art lovers. Its superb collection of works by British artists include 750 paintings by J.S. Cotman (1782-1842), as well as works by Constable and Gainsborough.

Other highlights include works by Italian and French masters such as Courbet, Renoir, and Signac. The neighboring Henry Moore Institute features sculpture galleries containing works by the artist and his contemporaries Jacob Epstein and Barbara Hepworth.

Official site: https://museumsandgalleries.leeds.gov.uk/leeds-art-gallery/

Temple Newsam House, a magnificent 40-room Tudor-Jacobean mansion, is a must-see when in Leeds. Set in a sprawling 900-acre park on the city's outskirts, it's famous as the birthplace of Lord Darnley, the husband of Mary Queen of Scots.

Interior highlights include a variety of Old Master paintings, as well as furniture by Thomas Chippendale and collections of Leeds creamware and silver. Exterior highlights include the beautifully manicured grounds with their marvelous rose bushes and rhododendrons, as well as one of the largest working rare breeds farms in Europe.

A café serving afternoon tea and other offerings is located on-site.

Address: Temple Newsam Road, Leeds, West Yorkshire

Official site: https://museumsandgalleries.leeds.gov.uk/temple-newsam/

The interesting and recently renovated Thackray Medical Museum is well worth checking out. Located next to St. James's University Hospital, this fascinating museum has a collection of 20,000 medical artifacts, and displays the development of medicine through the ages.

Displays include an authentic reproduction of a slum area of Leeds during Victorian times, including the sights, sounds, and even smells that would have permeated such neighborhoods. Other exhibits deal with areas of healthcare and surgery, as well as childbirth. A café and shop are located on the premises.

Address: 141 Beckett Street, Harehills, Leeds, West Yorkshire

Official site: https://thackraymuseum.co.uk

The most important of three historic venues owned and operated by the city of Leeds, the Grand Theatre was built in 1878 and can host up to 1,500 patrons. Centrally located in the city's Briggate district, this attractive red brick building is a focal point for theatre-goers and music lovers thanks to its eclectic program of shows.

In addition to featuring the latest West End theater productions and musicals, pop groups and musicians make it a stop on their cross-country touring schedules. It's also home to Opera North, one of the country's leading operatic companies, which is renown for featuring world premieres of new operas as well as the classics.

Fun workshops and behind-the-scenes tours are also available.

Address: 46 New Briggate, Leeds, West Yorkshire

Official site: https://leedsheritagetheatres.com

Edwardian era Lotherton Hall was built before WWI for the Gascoigne family, avid collectors of antiquities and art. Particularly good are the Oriental Gallery, which has items dating back to the 19th century, and the Nightingale Gallery displaying the work of local artists.

The house is surrounded by a formal Edwardian garden and a bird garden that's home to over 200 species. There are also a number of superb walking trails on-site, as well as an adventure playground for the kids. A picnic area and café are also available for visitors to use.

Location: Off Collier Lane, Aberford, Leeds, West Yorkshire

Official site: https://museumsandgalleries.leeds.gov.uk/lotherton/

Located about four miles west of Leeds in Aire Valley, Abbey House Museum in Kirkstall is in a magnificent Cistercian house built in 1152. The picturesque remains include a roofless church with a narrow choir and a ruined tower, an almost completely preserved chapterhouse, as well as a refectory, kitchen, and various other buildings.

The gatehouse is now part of the Abbey House Museum with its reproduction houses, shops, and workshops illustrating life in Yorkshire through the centuries. If visiting near Christmas, check the attraction's website for details of special events and programs for the kids.

Address: Abbey Walk, Abbey Rd, Kirkstall, Leeds, West Yorkshire

Official site: https://museumsandgalleries.leeds.gov.uk/abbey-house-museum/

The cathedral city of Wakefield, an easy 30-minute drive south of Leeds, contains an interesting open-air sculpture gallery and is the birthplace of English author George Gissing (1857-1903). The Wakefield Theatre hosts performing arts events, as well as a city museum.

Other notable attractions include the ruins of Sandal Castle, Wakefield Cathedral, the and Wakefield Art Gallery. Also worth visiting is Nostell Priory , built on the site of a medieval priory in the 18th century. The house contains a collection of Chippendale furniture, paintings, and Chinese wallpapers.

Another popular destination that's popular for tourists is the National Coal Mining Museum for England. Located at the former Caphouse Colliery in Overton, just a short drive from Wakefield, this first-rate attraction showcases the often hard life of the miners at one of the country's oldest coal mines, as it dates as far back as the 1770s.

Highlights include guided underground tours and a visitor center with exhibits relating to the colliery's long history. For the kids, be sure to catch the fun ride on one of the "paddy" trains used to haul workers around the vast site.

Address: Caphouse Colliery, New Road, Overton, West Yorshire

Official site: www.ncm.org.uk

Harrogate is a pretty spa town that owes its fame to the medicinal springs discovered here in the 16th century. Today, it's primarily a holiday resort known for its parks and flowers , earning it the title of Britain's Floral Resort.

One of its most popular attractions is RHS Garden Harlow Carr . In addition to its diverse garden types, there's a museum of gardening, a model village, and guided tours of the 68-acre site. Harrogate also enjoys a reputation for great shopping on account of its elegant boutiques and antique shops.

For culture vultures, the year-round Harrogate International Festivals consist of a series of excellent festivals. Considered to be among the best such events in the UK, they feature everything from opera to drama performances, as well as cabaret, street theater, and literary events.

Address: 32 Cheltenham Parade, Harrogate, North Yorkshire

Official site: www.harrogateinternationalfestivals.com

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The 15 Best Things to do in Leeds, UK

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Leeds has a rough sort of beauty to it. Located on the banks of the River Aire in northern England , red brick warehouses and crumbling Victorian factories still dot the Yorkshire city’s skyline. Leeds is a fascinating destination with an independent streak that runs to its core. At the Corn Exchange, you can shop for vintage clothes and hand-roasted coffee, while the Leeds Grand Theatre, Tropical World, and Roundhay Park are timeless sights to visit. 

The city’s industrial heritage is starkly juxtaposed against the surrounding nature, making Leeds the perfect base for outdoor activities. You can cruise along the Leeds and Liverpool Canal, tackle the Yorkshire Three Peaks in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, or sit back in comfort and enjoy blissful scenes as you ride the scenic Settle & Carlisle train over the Ribblehead Viaduct. 

With so many things to see and do, you might not know where to begin. That’s why we’ve compiled our list of the absolute best things to do in Leeds for you. Try these fun and unique Leeds bucket list recommendations, and there’s no doubt you’ll have an incredible time exploring this gorgeous English city! 

Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase or booking through one of our links we may earn a small commission (don’t worry, it’s at no extra cost to you).

15 Fun and Unique Things to do in Leeds, England

1. see medieval jousting at the royal armouries museum.

One of the best places to visit in Leeds is the Royal Armouries Museum . This fascinating museum overlooks Leeds Docks and is part of the wider Royal Armouries institution that can claim to be the oldest museum in the United Kingdom.

Indeed, before the Royal Armouries turned their hand to preserving history, they were concerned with keeping the armies of the Kings of England equipped with the best weaponry. The institution evolved in the medieval era and was originally headquartered in the Tower of London, where the first weapons were put on display in a type of early museum in the 15th century. 

The Royal Armouries Museum in Leeds is more modern than this, having only opened in 1996. Step through the doors, though, and you’ll be transported through the ages as you delve across millennia of history. From the earliest hunter-gatherers to modern military equipment, you’ll learn all about the long history of human warfare, weapons, and armor. 

There are some 4,500 exhibits spread across multiple floors, some of which have some seriously impressive claims to fame. You’ll find the largest animal armor in the world, built for an Indian war elephant in the 16th century, alongside Henry VIII’s elaborate personal armor and even the sci-fi weapons used in the “Alien” movies. 

Best of all, the Royal Armouries has its own jousting arena alongside the dock, where they regularly host exciting Medieval reenactments!

2. Hang Out in Millennium Square 

Millennium Square is the most popular urban space in Leeds, and it’s a conveniently central place to start any sightseeing tour of the city. Found between Calverley Street and Great George Street, Millennium Square is home to architectural delights like the Leeds Civic Hall, a grand, neoclassical building built almost a century ago. 

The square itself was massively upgraded in the year 2000 to mark the millennium, and the space now regularly hosts public events, including markets, fairs, and televised sporting events (including important tennis, football, and rugby matches). 

There are bars and pubs on one side of Millennium Square, Mandela Gardens on another, and the Leeds City Museum (dating back to 1819 and home to everything from taxidermied tigers to Anglo-Saxon gold) on yet another side. From Millennium Square, you’re perfectly placed to easily stroll through the rest of Leeds city center!

3. See the Leeds Tiger at the Leeds City Museum 

First-time visitors to Leeds are generally struck by the mass of Victorian red brick buildings, warehouses, and old factories that speak of the city’s industrial past. Indeed, you’d be forgiven for thinking that Leeds’ history only extends to the 19th century, when it grew into the expansive urban area you see today during the boom days of the Industrial Revolution.

Visit the Leeds City Museum in Millennium Square, though, and you’ll soon discover that the local history stretches back far further than you’d imagine. You’ll start in the natural history gallery, where the Life on Earth exhibition transports you to a time when animals roamed the Yorkshire Dales. 

You’ll see the taxidermied remains of local animals, as well as the curious remains of more exotic animals, including the Leeds Tiger, which was captured in India and brought back to England by a Victorian collector. The Collectors Cabinet holds more of these unusual Victorian collections from around the world, offering a unique insight into the eccentricity of 19th-century Leeds.

The Leeds Story exhibition explores the history of the city, from its ancient roots through to the modern era, while the World View gallery explores Asian history and culture, a continent away from Yorkshire. Finally, the Ancient Worlds gallery is home to a 3,000-year-old Egyptian mummy named Nesyamun, whose voice box scientists famously recreated in an effort to hear the mummy speak!

4. Visit the Crumbling Ruins of Kirkstall Abbey

A 15-minute drive or a leisurely one-hour walk from the city center brings you to Kirkstall Abbey , one of the best sights in Leeds. 

Overlooking the banks of the River Aire, this once grand abbey was built by Cistercian monks in the 12th century. One of the wealthiest religious orders of their day, the Cistercians constructed one of the finest abbeys in England. 

But Kirkstall Abbey met its demise some three centuries later when a certain King Henry VIII needed a divorce. The infamous king took the drastic measure of separating England from the religious laws of Rome, and in the process of adopting Protestantism, dissolved the Catholic monasteries. 

The Cistercian monks were kicked out, and the abbey was left to fall to ruin as its wealth and land were redistributed to Henry VIII’s pals in Yorkshire. Over the next centuries, Kirkstall Abbey became a wild place, overgrown and crumbling but romantic in its own way, and by the 19th century, it had found a new lease of life as painters like J.M.W. Turner were drawn in by its unusual beauty. 

Today, you can explore Kirkstall Abbey yourself. There’s a small visitor’s center at the entrance, where you can learn about monastic life and the dissolution of the monasteries before walking through the ruins and the surrounding gardens. 

5. Shop at the Corn Exchange 

Leeds has a fantastic independent spirit, and nowhere epitomizes this more than the Corn Exchange . 

Completed in 1863, step through into the grand interior of the Corn Exchange, and you’ll love the sweeping view of the shops below from the balcony. The building was completed at the height of Britain’s agricultural revolution, and the grandest columns, materials, and designs were utilized by the best Leeds architects of the day.

Originally, the Corn Exchange was just that, a marketplace where corn, and other agricultural produce, could be sold and deals brokered en masse by farmers and landowners. Today, the Corn Exchange has been taken over by family-run businesses and independent shops, where you can shop for vintage clothes, peruse small art galleries, get tattooed, and fuel up on great coffee. 

6. See a Show at the Leeds Grand Theatre 

A night at the theater is one of the top things to do in Leeds. The city’s most iconic venue is the Leeds Grand Theatre , which has been entertaining the crowds since it first opened to grand applause in 1878. 

The Grade II-listed building was designed in the red brick style of the Victorian era, while the Gothic interior has changed little over the years. There’s only seating for 1,500 people, but you can often get last-minute deals on weekdays or matinee tickets if you haven’t booked in advance. 

The Leeds Grand Theatre is one of the most popular venues for touring comedians, while the big West End shows often visit from London, as do the Broadway shows on occasion. 

7. Escape the City at Roundhay Park

Covering an impressive expanse of land numbering some 700 acres, Roundhay Park is not just the largest green space in Leeds but one of the largest city parks in Europe.

Located on the northeastern edge of the city, if you need a breath of fresh air, there’s no better place to be. The land was originally gifted by William the Conqueror in the 11th century to the de Lacy family for their part in the invasion of England, and it was used as a private hunting ground and estate for hundreds of years. 

In the late 19th century, the area was finally acquired by the city, which made the park public after a massive landscaping project. Today, you can explore Roundhay Park at your leisure, including the flower gardens, the lakes, Hill 60 (named for a hill in France that was a battlefield during the First World War), the Mansion House, and the old Folly (a replica medieval castle built in the 1800s).

8. Venture into the Rainforests of Tropical World

Roundhay Park is also home to Tropical World , which is easily one of our favorite things to do in Leeds. Tropical World is home to one of the largest collections of tropical plants in the United Kingdom. The only place with more is Kew Gardens in London, from which Tropical World has taken much inspiration.

Now a sprawling complex of gardens and greenhouses, Tropical World started life back in 1911 as just a solitary glass conservatory. The small collection of exotic plants steadily increased, and in the late 20th century, a huge expansion project transformed the greenhouses into Tropical World, which has since become one of the most popular Leeds sightseeing attractions.

You’ll start your journey into the tropics in the butterfly house, where colorful species of butterflies fill the greenhouse. Reptiles, including small crocodiles and terrapins, fill the waterways as you move from greenhouse to greenhouse, exploring the different tropical zones that have been created here. 

Move into the carefully controlled rainforest zone, and you’ll have been transported across continents, as parrots and parquets fill the treetop canopies above you. The level of detail is impressive, and as you admire tumbling waterfalls and watch out for ants and other insects, you’ll soon forget about the post-industrial landscapes of Leeds waiting outside. 

9. Explore the Thackray Museum of Medicine

Housed in a magnificent red brick building that was originally built as a poorhouse by the Victorians, the Thackray Museum of Medicine is the sort of hard-hitting attraction that will make you thankful for living in the 21st century! 

The museum itself is named for Charles Thackray, a Leeds chemist who started collecting medical items of historic importance in the early 20th century. The red brick building was turned into a hospital during the First World War, and many years later, Thackray’s son expanded on his father’s collection, and the Thackray Museum of Medicine was born in 1997 after the hospital was closed down.

The museum’s humble private origins are hard to imagine now, given there are some 47,000 medical exhibits held within the collection. This includes everything from Roman scalpels to modern first aid kits, alongside curious finds like Adolf Hitler’s blood transfusion equipment. 

True to the building’s poorhouse origins, the museum focuses heavily on telling the often-horrifying story of Leeds’ slums in the Victorian era. The city grew rapidly, during the Industrial Revolution leaving many tens of thousands of unfortunate families living in squalor. 

You’ll walk through a recreation of the slums themselves, learning how a lack of medical care and sanitation led to regular outbreaks of diseases like cholera. As we said, you’ll be thankful for the advances that medicine has made, even within the last century! 

10. Visit a Grand Country Estate at Harewood House 

On the edge of the Yorkshire Dales, but only a 20-minute drive north of the city center, you can visit one of the grandest country estates in Leeds.

Harewood House was built for the rich Lascelles family in the 18th century. One of the largest stately homes of the era, the house was designed by architects John Carr and Robert Adam in the Palladian style of the day. The exquisite gardens, which are still immaculately kept today, were landscaped by Capability Brown, who was the most sought-after gardener of his time. 

Start your visit in those same gardens as you stroll past carefully placed lakes and water features into the unique Bird Garden (the surprising home of penguins and flamingos) and past old follies and vegetable farms.

You can walk through Harewood House itself, admiring the stately rooms and lavish furnishings found across the maze of floors and corridors. Take a tour, and you’ll also learn about the history of the house itself, including the darker past of the Lascelles family. They built the house on the profits of the slave trade, using wealth made on West Indian plantations to cement their place in the aristocracy of England. 

11. Rock Out at the Leeds Festival

Every year since 1999 (with a brief break during COVID-19), the Leeds Festival has been held over the August bank holiday weekend. 

For three days in a row, some of the best and biggest acts in the world descend on a field outside Leeds for a long weekend of loud music and debauchery. Past headliners have included everyone from Foo Fighters to Rage Against the Machine, and it’s always a sell-out event. You’ll camp out in a field, probably enduring the rain, as you party in a muddy field in Yorkshire – what more could you want?

The Leeds Festival is one of the UK’s biggest festivals, and it’s the partner of the Reading Festival, which takes place on the same bank holiday weekend in the south of England. The same bands play both festivals, just on alternating days, with northerners, of course, arguing that the sets at the Leeds Festival are always better than the Reading Festival!

12. Watch Leeds United at Elland Road

If you’re big into sports, then you’re in luck because Leeds is home to one of England’s most historic football (soccer) clubs, even if they aren’t winning much right now!

For sports lovers, watching a game at Elland Road , the home ground of Leeds United, is one of the most fun things to do in Leeds. The club traces its lineage back to 1904, when it was founded as Leeds City, and since then, they’ve had periods of ups and downs. 

The highs include winning multiple League Championships, the FA Cup, and League Cup, while throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, Leeds United were a staple of the Premier League, England’s top division.

But the fall from grace was hard, and Leeds United have since found themselves bouncing between the Premier League and the Championship, as they suffer relegation and win promotion. This is real English football, and the fans who turn up every weekend to watch their team play are some of the most passionate in the world! 

13. Explore the Leeds and Liverpool Canal 

The Leeds and Liverpool Canal stretches for 127 miles across the mountainous terrain of the Pennines. Connecting Leeds and Liverpool, the canal was an epic work of engineering that took 46 years to complete, with work starting in 1770 and only finishing in 1816. 

The canal is a serious piece of history, being the longest canal in the country to connect two individual cities. Although its commercial use has long since been negated by modern forms of transport, the canal remains in perfect working order, with as many as 91 different locks to traverse along the route.

Given the hilly terrain, some of the locks – like the Bingley Five Rise Locks – are absolutely spectacular. In Leeds, you can hire a canal boat and cruise along the waterways – you could even make it all the way to Liverpool – or if you don’t fancy captaining a boat yourself, you can join two-hour guided cruises along the canal.

Alternatively, you can take a stroll down the towpaths alongside the canal, with some excellent walking routes leading from the Leeds Docks. 

14. Hike in Yorkshire Dales National Park

Leeds is perfectly situated within easy reach of the Yorkshire Dales National Park, a spectacular area of wild beauty to the north of the city. The Yorkshire Dales is an area of seriously upland scenery that is part of the Pennines, a long ridge of rock, hills, and mountains that stretches across northern England.

That means it’s perfect for hillwalking, fell running, hiking, mountain biking, and all other manner of outdoor pursuits you love. Great long-distance walks include the Dales Way and the Trans Pennine Way, while the Pennine Bridleway offers excellent terrain for off-road biking. The ultimate challenge is the Yorkshire Three Peaks, where you tackle the three highest peaks in the national park in as short a time as possible. 

The Yorkshire Dales is packed with quaint villages, natural sights, and tourist attractions, including Malham, Pateley Bridge, the Wensleydale Creamery, and countless waterfalls. You can reach many destinations by hiring a car or by joining a day tour from Leeds. 

15. Ride the Settle & Carlisle Line

If it’s a rainy day on the Yorkshire Dales, you might prefer a scenic railway ride to a day of hiking, in which case you’ll love the Settle & Carlisle Line . Boldly claiming to be the most scenic railway in England, sit back and enjoy the views as the Yorkshire Dales whiz past on your way from Leeds north to Carlisle. 

From Leeds, the train line takes you north through classic Yorkshire towns like Shipley, Skipton, and Keighley before joining the Settle & Carlisle Line at Settle Junction, a charming station that’s straight out of the Railway Children.

The journey continues to Ribblehead Station, where you can see the extraordinary engineering work of the Ribblehead Viaduct, before arriving at Dent Station in the Yorkshire Dales, the highest railway station in England. The line ends in Carlisle, a scenic three hours after you start in Leeds. 

There you have it! The 15 best things to do in Leeds. What’s your favorite thing to do in Leeds?

Planning a trip to England? Check out our favorite books and travel guides!

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Richard is an award-winning travel writer based in Southwest England who’s addicted to traveling off the beaten track. He’s traveled to 75 countries and counting in search of intriguing stories, unusual destinations, and cultural curiosities. Richard loves traveling the long way round over land and sea, and you’ll find him visiting quirky micronations and breakaway territories as often as he’s found lounging on a beach (which is a lot). When he’s not writing for BBC Travel, National Geographic, or Lonely Planet, you can find Richard writing for the Wandering Wheatleys or updating his off-beat travel blog, Travel Tramp.

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Just an hour south of the southern Dales and one of the fastest-growing cities in the UK, Leeds is the glitzy embodiment of rediscovered northern self-confidence. A decade and a half of redevelopment has transformed the city centre from a near-derelict mill town into a vision of 21st-century urban chic, with architecturally daring malls woven into the fabric of the city centre, a revitalised Victorian mill district and an innovative independent dining and drinking scene.

Attractions

Must-see attractions.

Royal Armouries

Leeds' most interesting museum was originally built in 1996 to house armour and weapons from the Tower of London, but subsequently expanded to cover 3000…

Thornton's Arcade

Though not the grandest, Thornton’s Arcade was the first Victorian shopping arcade to be built in Leeds and remains one of the most interesting. Its sky…

Kirkstall Abbey

Leeds' most impressive medieval structure is beautiful Kirkstall Abbey, founded in 1152 by Cistercian monks from Fountains Abbey in North Yorkshire. These…

Leeds Industrial Museum

One of the world's largest textile mills has been transformed into a museum telling the story of Leeds' industrial past, both glorious and ignominious…

Leeds Art Gallery

This major gallery is packed with 19th- and 20th-century British heavyweights – Turner, Constable, Stanley Spencer, Wyndham Lewis et al – along with…

Tetley Brewery's defunct 1930s offices have been converted into a contemporary-arts venue with a restaurant and pub on the ground floor, spilling out onto…

Henry Moore Institute

Housed in a converted Victorian warehouse in the city centre, this gallery showcases the work of 20th-century sculptors, but not, despite the name,…

Abbey House Museum

The Abbey House Museum, once the Great Gate House to Kirkstall Abbey, contains meticulously reconstructed shops and houses that evoke Victorian Leeds,…

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The ultimate guide to Leeds

Brexit may have ruined Leeds’ chances of being officially dubbed European Capital of Culture in 2023, but there are plenty of reasons why Yorkshire’s largest city deserves that title and, of course, a visit. The city attracts bands and DJs from around the world, and has enough music venues for every night of the month, whatever your calling. It hosts food festivals, a thriving craft beer scene, and has vintage shops to rival Shoreditch. Amidst grand Victorian architecture and gritty post-industrial streets, this often-overlooked Northern town has found its feet, emerging as a hub of creativity.

THE MUSIC SCENE

Leeds has a rich musical history fostering goth, punk and indie scenes in the now defunct venues of The Cockpit, Brunswick Terrace, Queens Hall and low-budget The Duchess of York, where Nirvana played early on in their career. As evidence of the massive regeneration of the city, that last one is now a Hugo Boss store, but there are still plenty of places that nurture talent, old and new.

Opened in 1913 as a working men’s club for the community, the Brudenell Social Club was saved from bankruptcy in the 1990s and transformed into one of Leeds’ most-loved venues. It retains its working men’s club interiors – carpeted floors and leather stools – but now hosts big-name acts (Kaiser Chiefs, Franz Ferdinand and Kate Nash have all played here) alongside the more obscure. The clientele is a delightful mix of locals who have been visiting for more than 50 years perched beside the students who dominate the Hyde Park area of the city, plus anyone else who fancies a cheap pint. Nearby, the three-year-old Hyde Park Book Club is more Gen Z with craft beer and weekend brunches served up in a space that was once a popular fancy-dress shop, on busy Headingley Lane. It puts on live music and DJ sets most nights, and hosts spoken-word poetry and discussion groups centred around philosophy and politics.

In the Northern Quarter, Belgrave Music Hall and Canteen (pictured above) is the epitome of hipster cool. But its eclectic furnishings, rooftop with beach huts and deckchairs, pop-up food stalls and craft ale-focused bar are all sideshows to the 300-capacity events space that hosts everyone from New York hip hop legends to local jazz , pop, synth and rock acts. For something a little lower key, Outlaws Yacht Club has all kinds of DJs playing on a vintage 1970s sound system.

Brudenell Social Club 33 Queen's Road, Leeds LS6 1NY Hyde Park Book Club 27-29 Headingley Lane, Leeds LS6 1BL Belgrave Music Hall and Canteen 1 Cross Belgrave Street, Leeds LS2 8JP Outlaws Yacht Club 38 New York Street, Leeds LS2 7DY

A trip to Leeds isn’t complete without hitting the town. Warehouse parties at Canal Mills and Mint Warehouse bring in party-scene big names, while more intimate gigs are played at Wire . Or check out beats by collectives such as the Cosmic Slop soundsystem, who raise funds with their monthly events in the Grade II-listed gallery space of Hope House in aid of MAP (Music & Arts Production) Charity.

Beaver Works 36 Whitehouse Street, Leeds LS10 1AD Canal Mills Brandon Street, Leeds LS12 2EB Mint Warehouse Aquatite House, Water Lane, Leeds LS11 9UD Wire 2-8 Call Lane, Leeds LS1 6DN Cosmic Slop Hope House, Hope Road, Leeds LS9 7DU

THINGS TO DO AND SEE IN LEEDS

FOR ARTY TYPES

One of the latest additions to the Leeds art scene is The Tetley (pictured above) , a contemporary art gallery housed in an Art Deco former brewery . More established spaces include the Henry Moore Institute , founded by the artist and his family in 1977 to showcase one of Europe’s largest collections of sculpture, and The Leeds Art Gallery (pictured below) next door. Stop by for 20th-century British art and cake in the gallery’s Tiled Hall, an amazing former reading room that has impressive vaulted ceilings covered in mosaics and turquoise-tiled walls.

Artists have also painted impressive murals on buildings around the city. Athena Rising stands at more than 150 feet and is the UK’s tallest, while Graeme Willson’s Cornucopia depicts a classical Roman goddess and Leeds history on the side of a fish and chip shop near the Corn Exchange. Hidden in basements and former industrial buildings are plenty of lesser-known galleries too. If you’re after something a little more DIY, check out Left Bank Leeds, Basement Arts Project and Sunny Bank Mills , or experience a live art event at CLAY .

The Tetley Hunslet Road, Leeds LS10 1JQ The Henry Moore Institute The Headrow, Leeds LS1 3AH Leeds Art Gallery The Headrow, Leeds LS1 3AA Left Bank Leeds Cardigan Road, Leeds LS6 1LJ Basement Arts Project 28 Back Burton Terrace, Leeds LS11 5JH Sunnybank Mills Town Street, Farsley, Pudsey LS28 5UJ Centre for Live Art Yorkshire Regent Street, Leeds LS2 7QA

FOR FILM BUFFS

Buy a tiny paper ticket from the red and white booth at the Hyde Park Picturehouse , the only gaslit cinema still operating in the UK . It’s terrazzo foyer floor and faux-classical columns will take you back to another era. It shows everything from arthouse and independent movies to big new releases and reruns of classic films around the holidays and since 1987 the cinema has hosted the Leeds International Film Festival.

Address: 73 Brudenell Road, Leeds, LS6 1JD Telephone: +44 113 275 2045 Website: hydeparkpicturehouse.co.uk

FOR CULTURED CREATURES

For 50 years, the aptly named Northern Ballet (it’s the only company in the North of England) has been committed to bringing dance to communities that would otherwise not have access to it, offering cheap tickets to inventive ballets that have gained international acclaim. See outstanding choreography and technical prowess in performances at the Leeds Grand Theatre.

Address: Leeds Grand Theatre, 46 New Briggate, Leeds LS1 6NZ Telephone: +44 113 220 8000 Website: northernballet.com

FOR SPIRITUAL KINDS

Some have transformed into nightclubs, others have fallen into disrepair but all over Leeds spires pop up above the former industrial town’s back-to-back houses. Walk past the impressive 200-year-old St George's Church and the Leeds Cathedral , or take a wander through Kirkstall Abbey , a ruined Cistercian monastery north-west of the city centre set in beautiful parkland on the banks of the River Aire.

Address: Kirkstall Abbey, Abbey Rd, Leeds LS5 3EH Telephone: +44 113 378 4079 Website: museumsandgalleries.leeds.gov.uk

SHOPPING IN LEEDS

Victorian architect Cuthbert Brodrick’s influences are all around the city. He’s best known for the Leeds Town Hall, and the landmark domed Corn Exchange (pictured above) . The latter is now home to independent shops and food stalls that include the Plant Point , for a millenial-thrilling selection of botanicals, or if you’re inspired by earlier eras, visit West Yorkshire Cameras, Released Records , and All Blues Co .

There’s plenty more for vintage lovers around the city centre too, with Blue Rinse, Pop Boutique (pictured above) and Retro Boutique selling reasonably priced, carefully curated clothing and antiques.

For upmarket chains, wander through the Gothic arches of Thornton's Arcade *(pictured above)*, the first of Leeds' eight commercial arcades. Make sure to look up at the church-like windows and dragons at the base of the blue and red iron trusses, which support a glass roof that looks like a row of ornate horseshoes.

The Corn Exchange Call Lane, Leeds, LS1 7BR Blue Rinse 9 - 11 Call Lane, Leeds,, LS1 7DH Pop Boutique 12-16 Central Road, Leeds LS1 6DE Retro Boutique 8-10 Headingley Lane, Leeds LS6 2AS Thornton’s Arcade 30 Lands Lane, Leeds LS1 6LB

EATING AND DRINKING IN LEEDS

THE BEST FOOD MARKET

Gone are the days when Michael Marks, a Polish refugee who opened a market stall in the city, would recount his slogan 'Don't ask the price, it's a penny.’ His store, Marks & Spencer, is now a staple name in homes across England, while Kirkgate Market (pictured above) lives on as one of the largest covered markets in Europe . Today though, Leeds is fostering a new kind of food scene with festivals , new restaurant openings and bars , proving the Northern town has more to offer when it comes to food and drink .

Address: Leeds Kirkgate Market, Vicar Lane, Leeds City Centre LS2 7HY Telephone: +44 113 378 1950 Website: leeds.gov.uk

THE BEST COFFEE SHOPS IN LEEDS

The ever-growing community of independent coffee shops and artisan roasters here include Laynes Espresso (pictured above) near the train station, North Star Coffee by the docks, House of Koko in Chapel Allerton, plus La Bottega Milanese and Mrs Atha’s , both on quiet backstreets off the main shopping drag. With exposed brick, wooden floors, and an eclectic mix of furniture and crockery, as well as a mouth-watering selection of cakes and snacks, Mrs Atha’s is the perfect spot for breakfast and a sugar fix too.

Laynes Espresso 16 New Station Street, Leeds, LS1 5DL North Star Coffee Roasters 33, Leeds Dock, The Blvd, Leeds LS10 1PZ House of Koko 62 Harrogate Rd, Leeds LS7 4LA La Bottega Milanese 2 Bond Court LS1 2JZ and The Headrow, LS1 8TL Mrs Atha’s Central Rd, Leeds LS1 6DE

THE BEST RESTAURANTS IN LEEDS

The Ox Club (pictured above) is the new kid on the block and has elevated Leeds’ food scene by producing award-winning contemporary British fare that uses seasonal Yorkshire produce. Neighbourhood classics include Salvo’s (pictured below) , a buzzing trattoria run by the Dammone family, who have served Italian and Sicilian favourites to queues of Leeds locals since 1976. There’s also The Reliance , which cooks up masterful yet hearty creations in a rustic setting. The Arts Café makes great tasting food from seasonal ingredients and local produce in a room where the walls are adorned with work by up-and-coming artists (the space also puts on six weekly exhibitions ).

On the corner of a cobbled street behind the Corn Exchange, Caravanserai looks like a traditional Persian caravan down to its wooden wheels and serves up homemade breads, mezze and smoky barbecue meats. Find perfect wood-fired pizza at Pizza Fella and the best sandwich you’ll ever try at Café 164 .

There’s the low-key Friends of Ham for hearty Spanish tapas too, while more glossy Angelica’s (pictured above) dishes out modern food on the sixth floor of Leeds’ Trinity shopping centre in a space that has incredible views over the city.

Ox Club Headrow House, 19a The Headrow, Leeds, LS1 6PU Salvo’s 115 Otley Road, Leeds LS6 3PX The Reliance 76-78 North Street, Leeds LS2 7PN Arts Cafe 42 Call Lane, Leeds LS1 6DT Caravanserai 1 Crown Street, LS2 7DA Pizza Fella 114-116 Vicar Lane, Leeds LS2 7NL Cafe 164 Munro House, Duke Street, Leeds LS9 8AG Friends of Ham 4-8 New Station Street, Leeds LS1 5DL Angelica’s Level 6, Trinity, 70 Boar Lane, Leeds LS1 6HW

THE BEST FOOD STALLS AND FESTIVALS

Leeds Indie Food *(pictured above)*organises supper clubs, workshops, eat-along film screenings and plenty more one-off events around the city. Plus, a three-day mini festival called School Diner at Chapel Allerton Primary School, including the likes of British Street Food Award winners Doh’hut, among others.

The Falafel Guys make their bestselling hummus, falafel and tahini wraps fresh every day from a food truck in the town centre. Dough Boys (pictured above) continue to satisfy cravings (drunken and not) at the Belgrave Music Hall, while Trinity Kitchen has a rotating roster of vendors trading alongside permanent stalls.

Leeds Indie Food Various locations The Falafel Guys Briggate, Leeds LS1 6HF Belgrave Music Hall & Canteen Cross Belgrave St, Leeds LS2 8JP Trinity Kitchen Trinity Leeds, Albion Street, Leeds, LS1 5AT

THE BEST BARS IN LEEDS

Leeds’ craft beer scene is thriving and best experienced at local favourite North Bar or Bundobust (pictured above) , where you can pair your beer with a selection of modern Indian street food. For something more traditional, there’s Whitelock's Ale House , a former marketman's pub that’s perfect for an ale on a cold day — it’s the oldest in the city, founded in 1715, and still retains an impressive old wooden bar and stained glass windows. Trendier hangouts include The Brunswick and Headrow House , or wander down Call Lane at the weekend for a real taste of Leeds fun.

North Bar 24 New Briggate, Leeds LS1 6NU Bundobust 6 Mill Hill, Leeds LS1 5DQ Whitelock's Ale House Turk's Head Yard, Leeds LS1 6HB The Brunswick 82 North St, Leeds LS2 7PN Headrow House 19a The Headrow, Leeds, LS1 6PU

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Scroll down to see more photographs of things to do in Leeds...

Pop Boutique

Corn Exchange

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Northern Ballet

• 1 Districts
• 2.1 Tourist information
• 3.1 By plane
• 3.2 By train
• 3.5 By boat
• 4.1 On foot
• 4.3 By taxi
• 4.4 By rail
• 4.5 By boat
• 5.1.1 Brewery Wharf
• 5.1.2 Civic Quarter
• 5.1.3 Central Shopping District
• 5.1.4 Exchange Quarter
• 5.1.5 Financial District
• 5.2 Other attractions
• 5.3 Future attractions
• 5.4.1 In fine weather
• 5.4.2 In bad weather
• 8.2 Books, music, video
• 12 Stay safe

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Leeds is the largest city in the county of West Yorkshire and the third largest city in Britain , though its urban area size falls behind that of Manchester . Once a major industrial centre, the city today is better known for being the largest UK financial centre outside London, and for its impressive shopping, nightlife, universities and sports facilities. Leeds also has a growing cultural reputation, being home to many museums, restaurants and theatres, and a mixture of Georgian, Victorian, 20th and 21st century architecture.

Leeds (derived from the Celtic area Leodis) was voted the UK's favourite city in Condé Nast's Readers' Traveller Awards 2003. It was a market town that became an industrial powerhouse and grew and developed into a service-based city economy with an attractive, smart centre.

Roman Leeds was an important strategic fort, ford and small settlement on the York - Chester road. Recorded in the Domesday book of 1086, it became a thriving market town in the Middle Ages, gaining its town charter from the King in 1207. The medieval city was based around Briggate, Kirkgate, Swinegate and The Calls. (The ending "-gate" came from the old Norse for 'street'.) It was a trading centre in the West Riding of Yorkshire for cloth and wool; from Bradford, Halifax and Huddersfield to the port of Hull, east along the river Aire and the 1699 Aire & Calder Navigation canal. Whilst the town grew rapidly (population over 30,000 in the eighteenth century, when the gracious Georgian West End was built), it was for a long time economically overshadowed by nearby York.

The industrial revolution brought about massive change as it became a huge manufacturing centre of wool and textiles and a major trading centre (with over half the country's export passing through for a period). Leeds became known as the city of a thousand trades and by the middle of the nineteenth century the population had passed 200,000. Bolstered by the 1816 Leeds-Liverpool Canal and the Leeds-Selby railway in 1835 (the Middleton Railway was the world's first commercial railway, 1758 Railway Act, from the Middleton colliery to coal-staithes (sidings) at Meadow Lane just south of Leeds Bridge), the city continued to grow and prosper rapidly, with grandiose architectural manifestations of the Victorian city's wealth built in abundance, and expanding affluent suburbs to the north. Leeds University was created around the 1880s, bringing an intellectual dimension, and Leeds was served by one of the world's most extensive tram systems (sadly later replaced by buses). A garden in Roundhay, Leeds was the location of the world's first moving images, filmed in 1888 by Frenchman Louis le Prince (who later disappeared in mysterious circumstances). Leeds was granted city status in 1893.

By the 20th century, Leeds's population was approaching 500,000. Whilst Leeds suffered far less than many other large UK cities from the WWII blitz, it was affected by the mass industrial decline of the country in the post-war period, and became characterised by unemployment and huge council estates. Versatility enabled it to survive and it began to prosper in the 1980s, when renovation of the centre and waterfront, and demolition of some of the worst estates began. By the 1990s the city was reborn with wealth based on service industries and commerce, the financial and legal centres making it the most important city in the UK in these areas outside London. With the West Yorkshire Playhouse, Royal Armouries, restoration of the Victoria Quarter and Corn Exchange, the clean up of major historical buildings, the new Harvey Nichols store and new bars, shops and restaurants, all in the mid-1990s, the city was truly on the move. The 2011 Census shows Leeds with a population of just over 751,000.

Today, Leeds is still one of the most cosmopolitan, fast-growing, innovative and prosperous cities in the UK with developments springing up by the week and new bars, boutiques, clubs and restaurants seemingly more often, the two universities adding to the vibrancy, and international eateries and shops.

Tourist information

Visit Leeds

LBA doesn't have a motorway or direct rail link so the journey through traffic can be slow and anxious. Bus 757 runs frequently between LBA and Leeds bus station (35 mins); other buses run to Bradford, Otley, Harrogate, Ilkley, and Keighley. The closest station is Horsforth, approximately 1 mile away from the terminal. Taxis are plentiful.

By car, the terminal front drop-off area charges £3 for 30 min, so use the area a little further away (signed) which is free for one hour. Car parks for LBA are:

• Manchester Airport (MAN) is usually the best option for long-haul flights in this region. Direct trains from the airport run to Leeds hourly (90 min) daytime, otherwise change at Manchester Piccadilly.

Leeds is one of the major hubs of the British railway network, with direct trains from London King's Cross (two per hour taking 2 hr 15 min by LNER ), Wakefield , Huddersfield , Manchester Piccadilly, Victoria and Airport (two per hour, 80 min), Liverpool , York , Scarborough , Durham , Newcastle , Hull , Bradford , Skipton , Ilkley , Harrogate , Morecambe , Carlisle via the scenic Ribbleshead route, Blackburn , Preston , Blackpool , Sheffield , Nottingham , Derby , Birmingham , Bristol and the southwest, Edinburgh and Glasgow .

53.795 -1.547 2 Leeds Railway Station (called Leeds City locally) is central, by Wellington St and Boar Lane, next to Queens Hotel in City Square. Access to all platforms is gated, but there is a very large retail and dining concourse with ticket kiosks and machines, free toilets and lots of seating. Pick-up and drop-off are available from the Wellington entrance, with taxi hire available at the New Station Street entrance.

Leeds is possibly the best connected UK city by road, lying in the centre of the country, halfway between London and Edinburgh and halfway between Liverpool (west coast) and Hull (east coast). The M1 motorway runs from London via Milton Keynes, Leicester, Nottingham, and Sheffield, and passes about 2 miles east of Leeds, to join the A1(M) at Wetherby to the north east of the city. The A1(M) comes down from Edinburgh, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Durham, and North Yorkshire. The M62 trans-Pennine motorway, which runs from Liverpool via Manchester to Hull, passes about 3 miles to the south of Leeds. The M621 motorway runs between the M1 and M62 via the south of the city centre. Park & Ride schemes are in operation from Elland Road (M621) and Temple Green (M1 North). A new site at Stourton (M1 South) was under construction in 2020. For much of the journey into Leeds, buses run on a guided busway beside (or down the middle of) the main road and are given priority over cars. (See National Park and Ride Directory .) Enterprise Car Club , a national car 'club' (i.e. car hire organisation which charges from £60 annual membership fee) has a branch in Leeds, and offers pay-by-the-hour car hire across the city. Cars are accessible via a smart card and PIN.

National Express has direct coaches to Leeds from London Victoria roughly hourly, taking five hours. Other direct routes are Manchester (hourly), Liverpool, Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Newcastle and Edinburgh. Megabus has direct buses from London Victoria every couple of hours. Other direct routes are Manchester, Liverpool and Newcastle.

53.797 -1.536 3 Leeds City Bus Station is located in the east of the City Centre on York Street, a mile from the railway station. The western concourse is National Express's long-distance coach hub, while the east side has regular buses out of the city to the region including the Airport, Bradford, Wakefield, Harrogate, Ripon and York. City buses stop on the adjacent streets and don't pull in here. The station is open 24 hours: there's Greggs, but better eating choices outside, e.g., in the market hall adjacent.

Ferries sail overnight from Rotterdam (Netherlands) to Kingston upon Hull . Hull is an hour by train or car from Leeds, and the ferry port is 3 miles east of Hull city centre: buses run from there to the railway station.

If you're just visiting the city centre, you might as well walk, as much of it is surprisingly compact with most of the major attractions and shops being within walking distance of one another. Leeds has aspirations to have one of the largest traffic-free city centres in Europe and as of 2020 is gradually pedestrianising more and more streets. To orientate yourself, free maps (quite simple but good for basic orientation) are available at the tourist information and a number of visitor attractions. There are some street maps dotted around the city centre, in guide books, street atlases, etc. Getting around central Leeds is fairly easy.

Public transport within Leeds is good - most major bus routes within the city are every 10 minutes or so. Information about busses can be obtained either from the Corn Exchange Bus Point , where the First Travel Centre is staffed M-F 9AM-5:30PM, and Sa 9AM-4:30PM, or from the Leeds City Bus Station whose Information Help Point has the same opening hours.

Metro (West Yorkshire Passenger Transport Authority) provides local bus and train information on its website, and has "Find your next bus" on its website.

For visitors wishing to explore Leeds city centre CityBus (Route no.5, operated by First) - loops around much of the city centre every 6–7 minutes between 6:30AM and 7:30PM; one journey costs £1, or you can use a bus pass. If using this service at busy times of day it's best to catch the bus at either the Bus Station or Rail Station; if a bus is full, it will not stop to take on more passengers and you could be waiting in excess of an hour. This bus is no longer free.

First runs most of the bus services within Leeds. If you are making more than a couple of short bus trips, the best option is to buy a "FirstDay" day ticket for £4.30 (cheaper on mobile) , which allows unlimited travel on First Bus routes within Leeds or £4.90 (cheaper on mobile) for all First Bus routes within West Yorkshire.

Useful bus routes for visitors include the following:

• 1 - Holt Park (North West Leeds) - Headingley - Universities - City centre - Beeston (south Leeds)
• 2 - Roundhay Park - Moortown - Chapel Allerton - City Centre - Middleton (south Leeds)
• 3/3A - White Rose Shopping Centre (South Leeds) - City Centre - Chapel Allerton - Gledhow
• 4 - Whinmoor - Seacroft Shopping Centre - St James's University Hospital - City Centre - West Leeds - Pudsey.
• 12 & 13/13A - Middleton (south Leeds - City Centre - Harehills - Oakwood - Roundhay Park (12)/Gledhow (13/13A)
• 14 Leeds Bus Station - Leeds Train Station - Armley - Bramley - Stanningley - Pudsey
• 16/16A - Seacroft Shopping Centre - City Centre - Armley - Bramley - Rodley - Pudsey Bus Station
• 18/18A - Ireland Wood (north west Leeds) - Headingley (cricket ground) - City Centre - East Leeds - Selby Road - Garforth
• 28 - Adel - Headingley - Universities - City Centre - Clarence Dock
• 33/33A - City Centre - Kirkstall - Horsforth - Rawdon - Yeadon - Guiseley - Otley
• 40 Seacroft Shopping Centre - Cross Gates - City Centre
• 42 - Old Farnley - Wortley - City Centre - Burmantofts - St James's University Hospital - Fearnville
• 49 & 50/50A - East Leeds - St James' University Hopital - City Centre - Burley Road - Bramley (49) - Horsforth (50/50A)
• 51/55 Morley (south of Leeds) - Elland Road (Leeds United football ground) - City Centre - Meanwood - Moor Allerton Shopping Centre
• 56 - Whinmoor - East Leeds - City Centre - Tinshill (north west Leeds)
• 7 - City Centre - Scott Hall Road - Park & Ride - Alwoodley (Primley Park)
• 72/X6 Leeds Bus Station - Leeds Headrow - Armley - Bramley - Stanningley - Thornbury - Bradford
• X84 Leeds Bus Staiton- Headingley- Otley- Ilkley- Skipton
• 27 - City Centre - Headingley - West Park - Horsforth - Rawdon - Yeadon - Guiseley

Yorkshire Coastliner — from York and the Yorkshire coast.

36 bus [ dead link ] every 10 minutes to North Leeds, Harrogate and Ripon including Friday and Saturday nights until 3:15AM.

Dalesbus to Yorkshire Dales National Park on Sunday only

874 Wakefield-Leeds- Ilkley- Grassington-Buckden

875 Wakefield-Leeds- Ilkley- Grassington-Buckden-Hawes (summer only).

The black and white taxis can be flagged down, but you must phone first for the others.

In the city centre, try Amber Taxis (advance booking only, +44 113 231-1366): you can get around the city centre for £3-7.

In south Leeds, try Local Cars (advance booking only, +44 113 252-8258): a journey for less than a mile is £2.70.

There is a limited suburban train service which serves some tourist destinations such as Headingley Stadium, but plans over the years for a local metro or tram system have repeatedly hit the buffers.

There is a shuttle boat between Granary Wharf (for Leeds City Station), Brewery Wharf and Clarence Dock (for the Royal Armouries Museum), operated by Leeds City Cruisers.

City centre

Although not considered a 'traditional' tourist destination, Leeds has plenty to occupy the visitor. As well as the main sights, museums, galleries, parks etc., wandering around the buzzing city centre to take in the atmosphere and admire the fantastic blend of architectural styles from the past few hundred years is a pleasure in itself. Within the city centre, the main districts are the civic quarter, central shopping district, exchange quarter and financial district.

• 53.79991 -1.551132 6 Oxford Place Chapel , Oxford Place . Lovely 19th-century red-brick baroque church.  

Brewery Wharf

South across the river from The Call the area around Leeds Dock has some interesting development of cafés, restaurants, shops and apartments as wells as the Royal Armouries Museum and Salem Chapel .

Civic Quarter

Home to the Town Hall, the fantastic Art Gallery, Henry Moore Institute and Millennium Square, this grand corner of the city is where many of the main tourist draws are to be found. The Light with its shops, restaurants, bars, hotel, cinema etc. in a beautifully converted historic building is a major pull, but venture along the Headrow and experience some of the best cultural attractions on offer in the city. The Art Gallery has great rotating exhibitions and the best collection of 20th-century British art outside London. Adjoining it are the Henry Moore Institute and the Central Lending Library with its beautiful Victorian interior. Across the road is the Town Hall (see above), a breathtaking demonstration of civic pride.

On Great George St is a small selection of shops, the 19th-century entrance (with a lovely colonial-style entrance hallway and small gallery space up the stairs) of the Leeds General Infirmary, and the restored Electric Press which is now home to the Carriageworks Theatre and several bars and restaurants, providing a semi-al fresco eating environment for all weather conditions. Next door is the impressive and well-used public space of Millennium Square (see above) with its attractive Mandela Gardens (opened by Mandela himself, now a freeman of the city, they are a lovely spot especially in summer) abutting the Electric Press building. The square is crowned with the Portland Stone neo-classical Civic Hall and the City Museum . Down on Cookridge St is the city's small but unique Arts and Crafts St Anne's Cathedral .

Central Shopping District

The very centre of Leeds is a temple to consumerism. Bounded by the 'Public Transport Box', a rough half mile square between The Headrow, Vicar Lane, Boar Lane and Park Row gives Leeds one of the most compact, busy and diverse pedestrian shopping districts in the UK where the highest concentration of the city centre's stores are to be found.

The principal shopping street is the broad and bustling Briggate , where many flagship stores such as Harvey Nichols and House of Fraser are to be found alongside high-end fashion (e.g. Louis Vuitton) and high street favourites (Topshop, Zara, H&M). Briggate's attractive and eclectic architecture spans three centuries, and the grand shop fronts only add to the streets appeal.

Either side of the top end of Briggate are the city's famous arcades , splendidly palatial Victorian roofed-over shopping streets home to some of the city's most exclusive and interesting shops. The famous Victoria Quarter (Victoria St, County Arcade and Cross Arcade) has some of the most expensive clothes in Leeds. Queen's and Thornton's arcades are a little more affordable with more independent stores. Down from the arcades, several medieval yards (or "loins") run off almost hidden from between shopfronts on Briggate. Whilst some are little more than shop-backs and some are now closed off, some exude genuine historic atmosphere and a few are home to attractive pubs and bars, including The Angel Inn, The Ship, The Bay Horse, Queen's Court and 300-year-old Whitelocks' .

Beyond Briggate, there are several other prominent shopping streets, including gorgeously symmetrical King Edward Street with its matching Victorian Burmantoft terracotta buildings. Commercial Street, Kirkgate, Lands Lane and Albion St are other principal streets in the area, continuing the mix of shops, cafés, lovely architecture . There are also several indoor shopping centres, and a central focal point is tiny but busy Central Square at the base of Lands Lane. Albion Place is a quieter street of elegant Georgian buildings (mainly offices) including the exclusive Leeds Club and the city's central private members library, running between the square and Albion St. Swan Street is a quiet and pretty little street between Briggate and Lands Lane with a few attractive little shops, cafés and bars and a laid-back vibe, as well as the internationally famous City Varieties theatre and music-hall, once home to Charlie Chaplin.

Exchange Quarter

Centred on the massive dome of the Corn Exchange , the Exchange Quarter is the centre of Leeds' bohemian life, with one-off boutiques, funky cafés and piercing parlours filling its pretty cobbled streets. It is becoming increasingly chic, however, with a plethora of upscale bars and stylish restaurants, particularly on Call Lane .

The Corn Exchange dominates the area, sitting squatly at the junction of several major roads. This grand Victorian building is one of the finest in the city, and was a functioning corn market for several decades, but was almost unused for much of the twentieth century, until its restoration to its present form in the 1980s. It now houses a myriad of little boutiques, a few cafés and market stalls. The goth and emo teenagers that hang around outside frequent many of the shops such as Grin and Exit, but there are also a range of fashion and artisan stores to please all, and the beautiful architecture (the shops fit into the retained 19th-century store-fronts, and the domed roof is spectacular from the interior) can be enjoyed by everyone.

Three sides of the Corn Exchange are bounded by semi-pedestrian cobbled streets lined by a hotch potch of attractive Victorian buildings home to shops and restaurants from Blue Rinse (see below) to Pizza Express, housed in the beautiful Third White Cloth Hall , sadly sliced in half by the railway in the mid-nineteenth century, but retaining its lovely façade and clock-tower. Along the railway, the continental feel continues with bars and cafés that spill on to the pavement. Beautiful Assembly Street , a hub of nightlife, is lined with elegant and imposing 18th-century warehouses and has been repaved, and in the summer is a relaxing place to sip a coffee or cocktail and admire the buildings and atmosphere. Nearby Crown Street buildings are a fine example of modern architecture at its finest, sympathetic to the surrounding environment but adding a dash of vibrancy with bright use of colour above its restaurants and bars.

Call Lane , the area's main drag, is a hive of activity in the evenings, with several of the city's best and most stylish bars, all vying for attention. In the day-time however it is much quieter, with a few vintage and alternative clothes stores at the Kirkgate end, and musical instrument shops at the Calls end. There is plenty of enjoyment to be had from wondering around the pretty and historic medieval yards that run between Call Lane and Lower Briggate (at night these too come alive and are full of revelers).

Kirkgate is a fairly downmarket shopping street with a few off-beat stores. However plans are afoot to refurbish the historic town-houses and bring life back into the street as a centre for independent shops, with the renovation of the dilapidated First White Cloth Hall along similar (if smaller) lines to the Corn Exchange. The east end of Kirkgate and New York Street also increasingly have a number of bars and clubs, including the celebrated Northern Light; there are also several new apartment buildings springing up. The end of Kirkgate is market by Leeds Parish Church, a grand (if not enormous) neo-gothic structure home to one of the country's most revered children's choirs. To the west, Central Road links Kirkgate to Duncan Street, and is home to some attractive Flemish-style buildings, a few off-beat shops and the acclaimed Little Tokyo restaurant and Leeds institution the HiFi Club . Duncan Street has a number of small shops.

The Calls was where riverside life restarted in Leeds, with its renovation from a derelict nowhere to the city's most desirable real estate in the 1980s. The apartments lining the waterfront may not be as exclusive or as rare today, but it is still an attractive and expensive area, home to some of Leeds' longest running high-end establishments including 42 The Calls hotel, Pool Court and the Calls Grill. Some of the waterfront and streets around here are surprisingly yet to be fully renovated, but it's unlikely to be long before developers get their claws into the remaining warehouses, railway arches and mill-cottages. Leeds Civic Trust's heritage centre and left-wing arts centre The Common Place fill the gap between the Calls and the railway line.

Financial District

Whilst the Financial District does not have the obvious draws of the Civic Quarter, it is nonetheless an interesting area that deserves at least a little of your time. Roughly bounded by the Headrow and Westgate to the North, the A58 motorway to the West, the River Aire to the South and Park Row to the East, this is the most expensive business real estate in the city. Many large companies have their offices here as do innumerable lawyers, estate agents.

Park Square is probably the number one attraction of the area. Situated just south-west of the Town Hall, this large and handsome Georgian Square has lovely formal gardens that fill up with workers at lunchtime in the warmer months. Whilst most of the square is bounded by rows of 18th century redbrick townhouses that made the square one of the city's most fashionable addresses 200 years ago, the South West corner is home to a little-known architectural highlight of Leeds, a converted warehouse (now offices) built in the 19th century as a replication of a Moorish Palace, complete with turrets and Islamic-style ornate design. The streets to the south of Park Square are a mixture of Georgian townhouses and more modern office buildings sitting cheek-by-jowl. Whilst not hugely diverting, there are several interesting buildings in this area. Wellington Street, a busy thoroughfare which marks the bottom of the Georgian area, has several restaurants and bars as well as being characterised by more modern business development.

Between East Parade and Park Row, two busy main routes through the area, are a series of parallel streets that are home to some of the city's top restaurants and bars, most famously Greek Street . There is a rich patchwork of architecture spanning the past two centuries in this small area, with fine Gothic buildings and sleek modern towers. Park Row itself boasts outstanding buildings such as the Leeds Permanent building, blending seamlessly into modern glass building-fronts.

The south-east corner of the Financial District is City Square , one of the most important hubs of city life. Cleaned up and repaved, the square is still home to bronze nymphs holding gas lights and the famous statue of the Black Prince. The old post office is now the swanky Restaurant Bar & Grill and Loch Fyne seafood restaurant. A rarely beautiful 1990s office block sits at No1 City Square, and the south side is taken up by the Art Deco façade of grand old dame of the Leeds Railway hotel trade, The Queens Hotel (LNER).

Other attractions

Future attractions.

N.B. under construction or planned for the future:

Possible itineraries

In fine weather.

You'll almost certainly be in the city centre, so why not take in some of the magnificent Victorian architecture on a walking tour?

Start at the train station and head into City Square where you will see the old Post Office and imposing Queens Hotel .

Go up the right of the Old Post Office (Infirmary St) and cross over the road onto Saint Paul's Street.

Take the second street on the right and you will come across the pretty Park Square gardens. Continue along Park Square East until you reach The Headrow, from where you will be able to see the Town Hall .

Turn right along the Headrow and you will also pass the City Library (free to enter) and Art Gallery (also free), you may also want to try a cup of tea in the Tiled Hall Cafe , between the Art Gallery and Library.

Turn left up Cookridge Street, pass the Leeds Cathedral and cross over Great George St. You will now have reached Millennium Square , the Civic Hall and the City Museum .

If you turn back towards the Cathedral and take an immediate left after the Cathedral on to St Anne's St. you will come to a small square and the entrance to ' The Light . Inside The Light (open most hours) take the escalators, exiting at the far end on to Albion Street.

A right turn will bring you back to The Headrow. Turn left and you will pass Dortmund Square and the former Allders Department store (now Sainsburys). On the right turn down Briggate, one of the city's main streets. Take a look up some of the arcades on either side of Briggate (you are now in the main shopping quarter), for which Leeds is famous.

On the left you will come to the Victoria Quarter . If this is open take a walk through and exit at the far end. If closed, walk a little further and turn left on to King Edward St.

You are now on Vicar Lane and a right turn will take you past Leeds City Market on the left. Walk a little further and you will see the huge dome of the former Corn Exchange on the left - take a look inside for some quirky individual shops or maybe pop downstairs for a cup of tea at Anthony's.

You can now extend the walk a little along the riverside, or follow Duncan St and Boar Lane back to the train station.

To extend the walk, go around the Corn Exchange along a cobbled street and go under the bridge. Turn left on to The Calls. After a short while you will see a fountain with a huge ball, turn right on to this street (also The Calls). On the right there is a pedestrian bridge - cross the river here and you are in Brewery Wharf . Once over the bridge you need to go left along the river following signs for the Royal Armouries. Eventually you will come to Clarence Dock which has shops and restaurants plus the Royal Armories Museum (free entry). To get back to the station go back the way you came to the Corn Exchange, then follow Duncan Street and Boar Lane.

In bad weather

There's plenty to do to spend a couple of hours. The City Museum, Art Gallery, Henry Moore Institute, Markets, Library and Royal Armories are all free, indoors and walkable in the city centre. Many of the city centre shops are undercover due to being in arcades or shopping centres. The following route tours many of the shops without getting too wet: the Merrion Centre, St Johns Centre, the Core, Queens Arcade, Victoria Quarter then the expansive Trinity Leeds with M&S and next. Out of the city centre, Tropical World costs £3.30, is indoors and very warm in Roundhay, 3 miles north of the city centre.

There are four theatres in central Leeds providing a range of entertainment including opera, amateur dramatic and contemporary performance art.

Leeds is a great place to see up-and-coming live music talent, and has seen the formation of successful bands such as Corinne Bailey Rae, Kaiser Chiefs and Sunshine Underground. The city is home to many live performances from big-name stars, mostly at outdoor concerts. Millennium Square in the city centre regularly has gigs with a 7,000 capacity. Leeds has an indoor concert arena with around 14,000 seats. Concerts are also held at Roundhay Park,Temple Newsam and Harewood House . Also check out musical events at the Leeds Irish Centre , The Wardrobe and Leads University and Leeds Metropolitan University.

There are plenty of leisure centres, gyms and swimming pools across the city, though unfortunately there won't be a public swimming pool in the city centre until the University one is completed. Major city centre fitness/leisure centres are deluxe Esporta, LA fitness and the ubiquitous Virgin Active. Some hotels have great leisure facilities or agreements with local centres for free access for guests. The international standard John Charles Centre for Sport is in South Leeds with facilities for indoor athletics particularly jumping disciplines. Headingley Carnegie Stadium in North West Leeds is home to Yorkshire County Cricket Club , Rugby League (Leeds Rhinos) and Rugby Union (Leeds Tykes) . Elland Road in South Leeds is home to Leeds United Football Club . Between January and March the Ice Cube outdoor ice skating ring is set up in Millennium Square.

Whilst hardly tropical, Leeds has an unusually mild and sunny climate for northern England, protected from the worst and wettest weather by the Pennine Hills to the west... this gives more than ample opportunity to explore the fantastic parks of one of Europe's greenest cities (Leeds has the most green space in its city limits of any European city other than Vienna).

• Watch cricket at Yorkshire Cricket Ground in Headingley. This is the usual ground of Yorkshire County Cricket Club, one of the 18 "First Class Counties", the top tier of English cricket. County matches normally last 3-4 days. The stadium also frequently hosts international or "Test Matches", lasting up to five days. The stadium is about 2 miles northeast of the centre. YCCC also play at other grounds across Yorkshire.
• Watch football at Leeds United, who were relegated in 2023 and now play soccer in the Championship, the second tier. Their stadium (capacity 38,000) is Elland Road LS11 0ES in South Leeds.
• Leeds Lights ( Christmas Illuminations ). The UK's biggest display, are an annual display from Nov-Jan comprising big show lights and the subtle and beautiful across the city, and are even longer than the legendary Blackpool Illuminations.  
• Leeds holds two annual film festivals: the increasingly prestigious Leeds International Film Festival with its huge menu of different films and Leeds Young People's Film Festival.
• Leeds Festival . Northern twin of the famous Reading festival. 3 days of live bands and stars from around the world play to 80,000 people every summer bank holiday weekend. You can camp over, or attend just one day. Tendency to be a bit riotous.  
• Leeds International Pianoforte Competition , Leeds Town Hall . Every 3 years (2018) . One of the world's most prestigious piano contests, held every 3 years in the magnificent Victorian Town Hall, this event attracts the world's best piano players. Next due to be held 2018.  
• Party in the Park , Temple Newsam . Every year, Temple Newsam plays host to the UK's original Party in the Park pop extravaganza featuring big name chart stars of the minute.  
• Opera in the Park , Temple Newsam . A massively popular outdoor festival of opera and songs from the shows.  
• Mint Festival is a two-day music and dance event on Newsam Green Farm east of the city. The next is 16-17 Sept 2023.

Leeds is one of the UK and Europe's foremost university cities, with a student population of over 100,000 (more than 10% of the population!) concentrated on several higher educational facilities including the two main universities. This gives the city a young feel and lively buzz, and many bars, clubs and restaurants are geared towards students particularly in Headingley and North West Leeds, although if this isn't your scene the city has plenty to offer away from student life.

• 53.80659 -1.55503 1 University of Leeds . 30,000 students. One of the most important and respected academic institutions in the UK, based around the city centre campus; also a major centre for research. One of the country's original 'red brick' universities. ( updated Jan 2022 )
• 53.80335 -1.54807 2 Leeds Beckett University ( formerly Leeds Metropolitan University ). 50,000 full and part-time students. More modern and larger with two main campuses, at Headingley and in the Civic Quarter. Rapidly expanding and improving, with major redevelopment planned in the Civic Quarter. ( updated Jan 2022 )
• 53.84824 -1.64526 3 Leeds Trinity University . One of the UK's newest universities, known as Trinity & All Saints college until 2012, this smaller institution in the suburb of Horsforth prides itself on maintaining a more close-knit, community feel than its larger counterparts. ( updated Jan 2022 )
• 53.80877 -1.55158 4 Leeds Arts University ( formerly Leeds College of Art ). Only receiving its university accreditation in 2017, this institution caters for students wishing to pursue arts degrees in a less academic environment than its more established counterparts. ( updated Jan 2022 )

There are a large number of city centre shops   : modern shopping centres, the lovely arcades and busy streets - principally Briggate, a wide and attractive pedestrian street with all the high street favourites (from time to time there are markets and other events, and there are usually street performances of some kind). Much of the central shopping area is pleasantly pedestrianised, making retail therapy even easier. Leeds has myriad options for shopping including the beautiful Victorian-era shopping arcades, offering anything from the reasonably priced to the expensive items. In November and December, Millennium Square is turned into a Christmas wonderland of stalls, eateries and fairground-rides for Christkindelmarkt - the city's German Christmas market. There are also several outdoor markets held across the city more regularly, including occasional French markets on Briggate. Plans are also afoot for a massive extension of the main shopping district. City Centre Shopping Centres include all:

• Thornton's Arcade and Queen's Arcade , city centre ( opposite Victoria Quarter ). Opposite the Victoria Quarter offer a range of interesting (if mainly fairly pricey) shops including some great boutiques and one-off places.  
• Corn Exchange , city centre . A stunning domed interior and a range of shops to please both label-lovers and teenagers, as well as stalls and cafés. There are occasional concerts, exhibitions, fetes and the Christmas decorations are lovely.  

• Market , Kirkgate, city centre . The biggest covered market and market on one site in Europe. Fascinating even just for the atmosphere of a traditional British market. Largest indoor market in Europe and also is a beautiful Victorian building and a landmark in Leeds it also has an outdoor market which sells everything from food to clothes to electronics and accessories. Fresh seafood is recommended.  
• Granary Wharf ( literally under the railway station ). By the canal, has a selection of interesting boutiques, restaurants, exhibition space, a small concert venue, street performers and more in a unique subterranean setting. There is also a regular market. The waterfront area is undergoing redevelopment but the range of shops on offer is set to only get bigger.  

The districts of Chapel Allerton , Headingley and Roundhay also offer a smaller (but worthwhile) range of boutiques and other shops. Crossgates in East Leeds has a medium-sized shopping centre and many highstreet shops and cafés, and Horsforth in the North West offers a range of shops and eateries.

Of course, as with almost all of the UK today, supermarkets, M&S Simply Food and other chains dominate the food-shop market, but there are an increasing number of quality independent delicatessens, bakeries and other little food shops across the city. Many out-of-centre areas retain their local shops (though this cannot be said for everywhere) and the city centre has an impressive range on offer, including:

• Chinese . There are Chinese food shops around Vicar Lane and the Templar Street Chinatown Arcade - including a well-stocked East Asian supermarket on Vicar Lane. The best restaurants around are Tong Palace on Vicar Lane, and Red Chili on Great George Street.  
• Harvey Nichols Foodmarket , Briggate, city centre . Small, squashed between Fourth Floor Restaurant and Yo Sushi, but it has lots of expensive goodies for that extra special something.  
• Out of this World , city centre . Excellent, well stocked, fair-trade organic mini-market offering all the food you could want, but tastier, healthier, more ethically responsible and, admittedly, more expensive.  
• Pickles & Potter . Sandwich shop par excellence, this little place just off Lands Lane gets mouths watering. The chocolate brownies are genuinely the best you will ever have. The roast beef sandwich is also highly recommended. Some of the most expensive Pork Pies ever encountered!  
• Salvo's Salumeria , Headingley . Range of fine authentic Italian produce.  
• Dock Street Market , Dock Street, city centre . Exclusive but excellent deli-cum-mini market.  
• Kirkgate Market , Kirkgate, city centre . Kirkgate market (see also above) has a massive range of traditional food stalls - including "Butcher Row" featuring numerous traditional Yorkshire butchers all next door to one another, well-stocked and good value fishmongers, fruit & veg stalls, and other food outlets.  

The lively area of Harehills (bus no 12, 13, 49 or 50) in East Leeds has a bad reputation locally for crime and poverty, and whilst it is maybe best not to flash expensive items or visit the area after dark, it is worth visiting for its excellent range of food shops, cafés and restaurants mainly from Eastern Europe and Kurdistan. A true cultural melting pot, the area has everything from Jamaican grill-houses to Indian restaurants, Persian tea-shops to Eastern European supermarkets, and if you want to experience authentic international food or simply see another side of the city, it is an interesting place to go - and prices are far lower than in many other areas. There are many shawarma restaurants, in particular.

Books, music, video

Leeds has all the major chains such as HMV, Waterstones, WHSmith, etc. and also a variety of smaller independent shops including Crash Records on The Headrow and Jumbo Records in the St. John's Centre, which hosts fairly regular instore performances (there's also lots of second hand places, including a massive, well-stocked Oxfam Books & Music in Headingley).

There are many restaurants in central Leeds that everyone can find something to their taste and budget. There are all the usual chains (many of which have several branches in the city) and a huge variety of one-off places, including many award-winners. Headingley , Chapel Allerton , Roundhay and various other districts outside the centre also have a range of quality eateries (whilst a few places in these areas are mentioned below, fuller selections can be found on their respective guides).

Café culture is thriving in Leeds, with a great number of places for a lunch or lighter meal, and there are also many fine curry houses in the city, due to the large South Asian population.

Leeds has a successful annual food and drink festival, held at the end of August, with many free events bookable in advance.

Leeds' two large universities mean there is a vibrant, diverse and thumping nightlife scene including many clubs as well as a huge range of fine drinking establishments from traditional pubs to ultra chic concept bars. It is estimated that there are over 180 city centre bars and pubs, and around 29 nightclubs with late licenses. Railway arches are increasingly popular homes for bars and clubs across the city centre. Leeds City Guide is a good source of information, as is the comprehensive (and excellent) listings magazine the Leeds Guide. Leeds was voted Number one city for clubbing [ dead link ] . All areas (indeed, most streets) of central Leeds offer something in the way of nightlife, but the main areas are:

• Call Lane in the Exchange Quarter (one of the city's main nightlife districts), offering a range of bars (which many would argue are the best in the city) from chic to bohemian. The area around the Calls and the Parish Church has overspill from Call Lane and some great waterfront bars and restaurants.
• The 'yards' off Briggate are home to both traditional pubs and modern bars and clubs.
• Boar Lane is for the most part made up of standard chain bars and more downmarket drinking establishments, but a few buck the trend.
• Architecturally lovely Assembly Street has a select number of swanky bars, clubs and restaurants.
• Greek Street is expensive, but in between the high-end exclusivity are tackier bars attracting a less desirable crowd at weekends.
• New York Street is becoming increasingly popular.
• The Northern Quarter, centred on New Briggate and spreading north (and down Grand Arcade) is home to several older Leeds institutions but is now up-and-coming with many hot new venues.
• The Civic Quarter has everything: flashy bars in the Electric Press, traditional pubs, and loud, trendy bars and clubs above Millennium Square
• The financial district has a number of dispersed, chic watering holes. Park Row continues along the same lines as Greek Street
• Brewery Wharf on the south bank is growing as a drinking destination
• Lower Briggate is the centre of the gay community, and a variety of establishments in the area reflect this, though most are welcoming (and many are popular with) the straights.

Out of the city centre, the districts of Headingley and Chapel Allerton are extremely popular for bars and restaurants. Exclusive Street Lane in Roundhay is also becoming increasingly popular. (See their respective guides for details on specific drinking spots in these areas.)

Leeds Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) [ dead link ] offer free pub guides from their website. What follows is a selection of some of Leeds' highlights, but it is by no means definitive or all-inclusive.

Leeds' thriving gay village (the city's first annual Pride festival was launched in 2006) has a number of venues, including the ever-popular old stalwart Queen's Court, Lower Briggate housed in a fine 17th-century building, among notable others including Fibre, The Bridge Inn, Blayds Bar, The New Penny, The Viaduct and Religion to name a few.

Leeds was voted Best UK City for Clubbing, certainly not for nothing! People flock to the city from all parts of the country for a bit of the action. It is common to meet clubbers from London on a night out. The city centre is packed to bursting with bars and clubs, ranging from cutting edge chic to indie and alternative to cheesy tunes for the drunken masses to small select places for people who really like their music (house is still very much in vogue in Leeds, but whatever your musical taste is, you are guaranteed to find something).

There are several gay nights (and fully gay venues) in clubs on and around Lower Briggate, including Mission, Fibre and Queen's Court.

The West Indian Centre on Chapeltown Road has a reputation for great fun nights of a less-mainstream kind, including ever-popular monthly Subdub. Whilst the venue itself is friendly and safe (or as safe as can be expected from a club), Chapeltown has a bad reputation, and to avoid trouble, go in fairly large groups and don't wonder around outside. It is best to take a taxi or at least a bus. Don't walks the two miles from the centre as it is very difficult to find the place, and it is near rough estates.

Leventhorpe Vineyard is near Woodlesford in East Leeds .

Leeds is a major business centre, so if the business hotel chains are within your budget, you'll have plenty of choice, especially weekends and off-peak. City centre offerings include Ibis, Jury's Inn, Marriott, Hilton, Novotel, Crowne Plaza, and Holiday Inn Express. You won't go wrong with any of these; check the standard booking websites or the hotels direct for rates & availability. Mid to top end, if your parents are coming to watch you graduate, point them at the Malmaison or the Queens, a vast Art Deco megalith right over the railway station. There's more at the city's edge by the motorway junction, if you have your own car.

Leeds frankly doesn't do budget & back-packer: the city's large youth hostel has closed permanently. There are only two hostels left in the city, the Art Hostel and Russell Scott Backpackers. In the university holidays, uni accommodation may be available, if it's not booked out to a conference. At the other end of the budget, Leeds doesn't do splurgy upmarket hotels: these are away out in the countryside, too far out to be listed here. There are, however, several 4-star hotels in the city.

Leeds is known as a friendly city, but as with any other city, the usual tips about exercising a degree of common caution apply: leave no valuables unattended, avoid going to badly lit/shady/unknown places by yourself or walk around alone at night etc.

Leeds residents might have a healthy sense of humour but think twice before making harsh criticisms of their city which they are proud of.

There are some notorious areas of Leeds at night with seedy reputations, such as the unrejuvenated areas of Chapeltown , Holbeck and Mabgate. Whilst by and large these places are safe by day, it is best to proceed with caution after dark.

Avoid displaying any memorabilia or clothing of Manchester United (the main rival of local football club Leeds United), as these worn at the wrong place could make you a target of violence, especially on match days.

If you do encounter any trouble, the emergency services (police, ambulance, fire) number is the same as for the rest of the country: 999, or the new European wide emergency number: 112. To contact the police in a non emergency, dial 101.

If you do get ill in Leeds, there are NHS and private medical practices. The Light complex houses a NHS walk-in centre. Leeds is home to two of Europe's largest hospitals   : Leeds General Infirmary (in the Civic Quarter) and rapidly expanding St James's University Hospital (a couple of miles east of the City Centre and just south of Harehills), and many smaller hospital and PCTs across the wider city area. As with the rest of the UK, tap water is safe to drink, and you are unlikely to come across any major health risks .

The main tourist information office for the city is in Leeds Art Gallery on the Headrow, but there are various other information points across the city (e.g. Central Lending Library, The Headrow). For foreign visitors Leeds has a range of consulates , including: German , 1 Whatehall Road, City Centre, and Greek, 8 Street Lane, Roundhay.

There are 12 Changing Places toilet facilities within 5 miles (8 km) of Leeds city centre, equipped with hoists, height adjustable changing benches and other facilities to enable people with multiple and profound disabilities to be changed and so enabling tourists with these needs to visit Leeds attractions in safety and dignity and stay as long as they wish. Sites include the Central Library Tiled Cafe, Chevin Forest Park, West Yorkshire Playhouse, Headingley HEART, Armley Leisure Centre, Morley Leisure Centre, White Rose Shopping Centre and Temple Newsom.

Leeds is a major transport hub, so many outlying attractions can be done as day trips . Several are major centres in their own right and worth a longer visit - see their separate pages. Train is a good option for most, though rural spots may need a car or bike-on-train.

To the north:

• Harrogate — elegant, upmarket Victorian spa town, ringed by parks (including the extensive Valley Gardens). The taste of the original spa water is not soon forgotten. Frequent trains from Leeds, some continuing to Knaresborough , a small medieval market town where the ruins of a castle sit dramatically above the Nidd gorge. For Ripon use the express bus (Route 36).
• Saltaire , near Bradford but you reach it via the Skipton train, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site , an industrial village built by magnate Titus Salt. Within it is the Hockney gallery. These trains call next at Keighley, where the branch line to Haworth and the Bronte Country is often steam-hauled.
• End of the commuter line is Skipton , with its imposing castle, market town centre and canal walks. Some trains continue to Gargrave (where the canal climbs over the Pennines by a flight of locks), thence to Settle, Carnforth, Morecambe and Carlisle. You probably need your own car to delve deeper into Yorkshire Dales National Park . Other places of interest include Bolton Abbey, Ingleborough, Pen y Ghent, Grassington and Beamsley Beacon. See also North York Moors National Park .
• Studley Royal Park and Fountains Abbey — you probably need your own car for this UNESCO World Heritage Site .

To the east:

• York is one of the few walled cities in Britain, with excellent museums, the cathedral, and views from the walls walk. 30 min by frequent train.
• Kingston Upon Hull or Hull for short, a 700-year-old port. Many museums in the cobbled old town, but the stand-out attraction is the walk-through aquarium, The Deep . Also in this area, see Beverley and Castle Howard. It is an hour away by train.
• On the Yorkshire coast , the main towns are Scarborough, Filey and Bridlington (these have frequent trains) plus Whitby for Goths, vampires and potted crab.

To the south:

• In the centre of Wakefield see the Hepworth Gallery. Train, or bus 110 from Leeds every ten minutes. Further out so you need a connecting bus from Wakefield are Yorkshire Sculpture Park and the National Coal Mining Museum.
• Sheffield has multiple industrial heritage attractions and the North's largest theatre district. The wider South Yorkshire area hosts the Magna Science Adventure Centre and is the gateway to exploring the Peak District.

To the west:

• Bradford has the National Media Museum (formerly the National Museum of Film and Photography). Frequent train, or an hour by bus.
• Ilkley is a small spa town with Ilkley Moor brooding above. The Cow and Calf are notable climbable rock formations. Frequent commuter trains. For Otley, use the express bus (X84).
• Halifax has Eureka! The Museum For Children . Other scenic nearby towns, often used as locations for film & TV, include Huddersfield, Hebden Bridge, Todmorden and Holmfirth.
• And then there's the giant Manchester , less than an hour away.

Further afield:

Other major centres in the north of England, within 2 or 3 hours travel, include Lincoln , Liverpool , Chester , the Lake District , Durham and Newcastle upon Tyne . Another hour or so gets you to Edinburgh and Glasgow .

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Home » Travel Guides » United Kingdom » England » 25 Best Things to Do in Leeds (England)

25 Best Things to Do in Leeds (England)

Leeds is situated within Yorkshire, in England . Considered to be one of the gems of the north, it has an array of Victorian buildings and modern architecture, providing the perfect contrast that most travellers don’t get the chance to see in one place. Attracting millions of tourists and students every year it’s not shocking that many people find themselves wanting to travel to Leeds while they’re in the north of England.

You’ll get the opportunity in this list of the best things to do in Leeds to see just how many fun things there are for you to experience, and just how much of a family friendly city it is. Many of the attractions focus their attentions to also catering to a younger audience, making it perfect for both solo travellers and families alike.

1. Roundhay Park

Within the cities of England, it’s often hard to find beautiful green locations, although they are plentiful outside of the cities. At just three miles north of Leeds City Centre you can find a whole 700 acres of rolling parkland, two clear lakes and woodland as far as the eye can see. Alongside the natural beauty of nature there are several formal gardens, and two playgrounds to keep your travelling children entertained. So to escape the busy style of the city while you travel, you can easily catch one of the buses that runs regularly from Leeds City Centre and have yourselves a beautiful family outing.

2. Tropical World

Fitting in perfectly with our list is Tropical World, which is actually situated in Roundhay Park. This is fantastic for you, not only is it a popular attraction but it will also offer you some shelter from the weather should it turn bad. There is a small admission fee of £5 for adults, or £2.50 for children, but it’s more than worth it for what you’ll be seeing. Step inside the building to see a butterfly house that houses up to forty different varieties of butterflies from around the world. Go from the rainforest to the Australian outback before venturing across the desert. Not only will you get your money’s worth just based on that, there are also a number of rare birds, reptiles and bats. But the star of the show involves the cheekiest family you’ll meet in Leeds, the meerkats!

3. Murgatroyds

No matter where you go in the world chances are you’ll meet people who naturally think of fish and chips when they think of English people. It’s a stereotype that we can happily live up to, and a tradition that you should certainly dive into head first while you travel here. Murgatroyds is quite possibly the best fish and chip restaurant in England, with a reputation that means you could be queueing for a little while if you don’t make a reservation. Although it is a little more expensive than a normal fish and chip shop, with a haddock fillet and chips costing £9.95, it’s more than worth it for the fresh quality of food that you’re provided with. For people who may be travelling you who don’t like fish and chips, they also serve things like chicken breasts, lasagne and cheese and tomato pizza. So there’s something that will satisfy your taste buds.

4. The Royal Armouries

Do you like history? If so, The Royal Armouries in Leeds is the place for you. With 8,500 objects across six themed galleries, there is certainly a lot to be seen in the free admission attraction. You can see pieces that are focused on hunting, peace, war, tournaments, self-defence and even oriental pieces. The collection was deliberately created for visitors to view, and its origins lie all the way back in the middle ages. The rest of The Royal Armouries items lay in The Tower of London. Something within the national museum of arms and armour will captivate your attention and your imagination.

5. Trinity Shopping Centre

It wouldn’t be an English city without a shopping centre that you should definitely visit while you’re on your trip. For many people who live in Leeds, and many tourists who visit, the Trinity Shopping Centre leaves an impression on them. It houses retail, dining and leisure options, as well as providing entertainment. But if you find yourself in Leeds over the Winter you’ll get to see the beautiful Christmas decorations that seem to appear overnight, with Christmas trees and lights that make it appear to be a wonderland. So treat yourself to something new, or go grab a bite to eat at the Chicago Rib Shack, you’ll enjoy yourselves under the roof of the Trinity Shopping Centre.

6. Leeds Corn Exchange

Unlike most modern day shopping centres, this one is situated in one of the finest Victorian buildings standing in the north of England. Proving itself to be an architectural masterpiece and one of the cultural icons that makes Leeds the city that it is today. If you prefer independent retail enterprises to large chain shops, this is where you belong. With everything from independent music shops to some beautiful hand crafted jewellery shops you’ll get to satisfy your curiosity getting lost in there. Hunt through Twit-Woo Vintage, sit and have a coffee in Vanilla one of sit and eat in Humpit, one of the first hummus and pita bars in Leeds.

7. Jackrabbits Pottery

If you’re parents, you’ll surely know just how hard it can be to keep your children entertained when they’re in a café. Luckily Jackrabbits provides the perfect one step solution to that, they’re a pottery café. So you can sit and eat cake and sandwiches while choosing from a wide range of pottery items to paint. Now they do vary in price, ranging from £1 to £30, and there’s a £5 fee per painter, but that fee doesn’t change if you paint more than one item. Let your imagination run wild while painting anything from mugs to animals. The only thing with this is that you should make sure you visit at the start of your trip, as each item takes 7 days to glaze, so you have to leave it in the café for a week!

8. Grand Theatre

If theatres are more your cup of tea, which is a very typical expression you’ll hear throughout Leeds, then you should pay a visit to the Grand Theatre. It was built with a rather comedic intent, as a backlash to the tradition of lowering the tone of entertainment with the sort of comedy presented in your typical pub-based establishment. It did the job perfectly, and with architecture coming from a variety of influences, from gothic to Romanesque, it’s a sight to behold for many travellers. Have a look at what’s on, usually it can be anything from stand- up comedy to ballet, or even family shows.

9. The Alchemist

Have you ever noticed how fun it is to watch a mixologist create something that looks as though they must be secret alchemists? That’s what The Alchemist is all about, situated on the second floor of Trinity Shopping Centre you can witness stunning views of Leeds City Centre at night, or you could even go drink coffee during the day. The drinks that they describe as molecular madness include names like Mad Hatter’s Tea Party and White Chocolate and Raspberry Martini. But they also have simple handcrafted cocktails, with a rustic appeal to them, such as a Surprise Strawberry Daiquiri and a Strawberry Cup. Their fantastic service will leave you wanting to watch them mix more and more drinks.

10. Thackray Medical Museum

Now be warned dear travellers that some exhibits, although suitable for children, may be distressing for exceptionally young children. But in true Yorkshire style the staff are friendly and will help you with any questions you may have about which exhibits to avoid if you are travelling with younger children. Residents and tourists alike travel to the museum on a regular basis, as it provides entertainment and knowledge. You can learn about the grimy streets of Leeds back in the 1800s, or you can learn about how scientific breakthroughs affect our lives. For younger visitors they have the Life Zone, providing a fun and interactive learning environment where they can work their way through the body. Looking at their teeth and learning just how high they can jump will provide them with a wave of entertainment.

11. Kirkstall Abbey

If you want to experience the type of history that can capture your imagination with just how far back it dates, then Kirkstall Abbey is the perfect place for you. It’s one of the most complete medieval Cistercian abbeys in Britain today. It also offers a picnic area, and play area for children, but don’t panic if you forget to bring something to eat. There’s a café on site too. Most people prefer to venture to the abbey in summer, when the weather is pleasant as it’s situated along the side of the River Aire. You can find plenty of planned walking routes along its banks, or if you check in advance, you may even be able to witness one of the live Shakespeare plays in the ruins during the Summer!

12. City Varieties Music Hall

What would you say if you were told you could walk on the same boards as people as brilliant as Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton and Harry Houdini? Well, you can. The City Varieties Music Hall has existed across three centuries, surviving virtually unchanged. Considering that most Victorian structures have long since passed into history you won’t get many opportunities to see a hall as beautiful as this. Most famous for its pantomimes, it provides a little, quirky space that most travellers enjoy. But one of the things most people notice is that you have plenty of leg room in the building, don’t fear tall travellers!

13. Abbey House Museum

Are you looking for a day out that suits all of the family? As this attraction was once short-listed for the Museum Family Friendly Award you can expect just that from it. It contains crafted sets, made to look like the enchanting streets, shops and houses that you would have seen during the Victorian era. You can interact with all of the actors in traditional Victorian costumes, or even sneak into a recreated model of a Victorian drinking house if you’re in need of a little rest. Children will love the displays that show you some of the toys that were common during the 19th century, although they may start questioning what they did for fun given the toys modern day children have access to!

14. Leeds Kirkgate Market

Seeing Leeds Kirkgate Market for the first time is quite a unique experience. When people think of markets they often don’t think of them on quite this scale, and it’s the scale of the market that attracts thousands of travellers each month. You can find hundreds of stalls that contain everything from good quality, fresh food to jewellery, electronics to fishmongers. What makes it a nice experience is that each person selling their product actually knows about their product, with many doing it for decades. But the structure of the building will fascinate you, with its Victorian era glass roof really standing out to you. Spend an hour or so there while travelling through the centre of Leeds, you won’t regret it.

15. Middleton Railway

Do you want a relaxing day where you get to see the city and the countryside? Middleton Railway could be the place for you, after being in operation for over two centuries it is among the oldest working railways in the world. For children, it’s best to visit in the Winter when they run a very special Santa service, allowing the children to meet him while they’re on the train, which many of them seem to love. Experiencing the English countryside during the Winter, when snow usually coats the fields, tends to bring out the happiness of a lot of young children. This attraction is certainly not to be missed.

16. Town Hall Tavern

Classic pub food is one of the many things that English people love, and if you haven’t had traditional Yorkshire pub food then you just might be missing out. Make a stop off at the Town Hall Tavern, one of the best rated taverns in Yorkshire to experience this for yourself. With a variety of options, all using food sourced from local suppliers you’ll be able to get a real feel for what home cooked Yorkshire food actually consists of. So take yourself in, you don’t need a reservation, and take the time to relax and enjoy a family friendly meal in a cosy pub.

17. Harewood House

Are you looking to view an estate house with both a history and a twist? That’s exactly what Harewood House has to offer to you, while constantly striving to stay relevant it also manages to keep a firm grip on the past, with some of the finest art collections in England. The short trip out of the city centre shouldn’t put you off, buses run directly to and from Leeds City Centre every 15 minutes, and you’ll even get the chance to see penguins, flamingos and parrots. The house is famed for its renowned Bird Garden. Take the time to relax, strolling through the formal gardens, see the beauty of the art, culture and heritage in the building. Or watch your children run around in what must be one of the biggest playgrounds in Yorkshire.

18. Victoria Quarter

As a tourist you’ll notice that Leeds seems to have a perfect mixture of the old and the new, with modern day buildings and traditional architecture. If you go through the city centre to the Victoria Quarter you’ll get to see this mixture for what it truly is, from the outside the Victoria Quarter looks quite modern. But as soon as you turn your detective eyes to it you’ll see that it’s far from that, as a Victorian arcade once you’re inside you’ll want a camera for the beautiful medley of steel and marble that decorates the Quarter. A typical Victorian glass ceiling lets light flood in from above. Even if you don’t intend on shopping, you should make sure you look around this beautiful building.

19. My Thai Leeds

Sometimes it can be hard to find eating establishments that you want to try while you’re abroad. You don’t always know what to expect, or whether you can trust an establishment while looking at it. My Thai Leeds is one of the most intimate restaurants you could go to, seating around 25 people. You’ll be given a warm welcome and offered traditional Thai food, but it is best to place a reservation before going. In Leeds it’s hard to find authentic Thai cuisine, but you’ll find exactly that here, in a delicious way that may leave you eating more than you intended to!

20. Leeds City Museum

We all love museums that charge nothing to enter them, don’t we? This one is fantastic for adults with a childlike side and children, focusing on a younger audience. They actually have a Toddler Town within the museum, where children can have fun and perform craft activities, or they can go up to the Life on Earth Gallery and have a go at digging for fossils. Chances are, you’ll want to dig for fossils just as much as they will, so who knows what you might find in Leeds City Museum?

21. Hyde Park Picture House

During WWI not very many new buildings came to life. Which is what makes the Hyde Park Picture House such a unique visit for many people, it was built and opened in 1914. While the newspapers focused on the war, a small advert announced it’s opening, calling it “The Cosiest in Leeds”, it still aims to live up to that today. With many of its original features, including an ornate balcony, classic red chairs and the original gas lighting. It also has rare, fully operational 35mm projectors. Go watch a classic film, or something from the award winning cinema scene around the world. If you want to experience it, but are travelling with people younger than the shown films would be suitable for, they show family films every Saturday at 12pm!

22. Teppanyaki

Do you like Japanese food? If the answer is yes, you need to go and experience Teppanyaki. One of the best Japanese restaurants in Leeds, you get to experience an atmosphere similar to one you will have experienced if you have ever eaten in Japan. Watch as your skilled chefs cook your food in front of your own eyes to the best of standards, feel your jaw drop as they juggle and flip your food, throwing a dash of fire into the mixture. It’s advisable to make a reservation, as this highly successful restaurant is sought after by many people. A lot of people try to avoid Japanese restaurants if they’re quite fussy, but Teppanyaki offer to cater for everyone from the fussy to the adventurous. You won’t have a bad experience there.

23. Angelica

Imagine, you’re sat up at the top of the Trinity Centre in a room surrounded by glass windows at night, with a cocktail in your hand and a beautiful panoramic view of the whole city. That’s what you’ll find in Angelica. Mixing modern day architecture and a pewter bar with a bright and airy design they act as one of the best cocktail destinations in Leeds. With their skilled mixologists working the bar, and their chefs working away behind the scenes you can sit back, relax and enjoy the view of the city lights.

25 Best Things to Do in Leeds (England):

• Roundhay Park
• Tropical World
• Murgatroyds
• The Royal Armouries
• Trinity Shopping Centre
• Leeds Corn Exchange
• Jackrabbits Pottery
• Grand Theatre
• The Alchemist
• Thackray Medical Museum
• Kirkstall Abbey
• City Varieties Music Hall
• Abbey House Museum
• Leeds Kirkgate Market
• Middleton Railway
• Town Hall Tavern
• Harewood House
• Victoria Quarter
• My Thai Leeds
• Leeds City Museum
• Hyde Park Picture House

Awesome Things To Do In Leeds (+ Authentic 1,2 & 3 Day Itinerary)

Leeds never seems to make it onto lists of must-see cities for visitors to the UK. London , Bath, Oxford, Y ork, and Edinburgh always get a mention, but travellers and list-makers often overlook Leeds, the city known to the Victorians as “The City of A Thousand Trades”. But I love this city, and I think you will too if you have the right information and an itinerary packed with the best things to do in Leeds.

I’ve lived and worked in and around Leeds for years and hope you find this guide packed with cool things to do in Leeds. Read on to discover how to spend a perfect 1, 2, or 3 days  in Leeds – West Yorkshire’s cultural, commercial, and financial heart.

Related Posts

• The Most Beautiful Towns in Yorkshire
• What to Pack for a Trip to Yorkshire
• Awesome Things To Do In Leeds | An Authentic Local’s Guide

Grey Globetrotters Travel Blog contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. See my  disclaimer  for more information.

Your Ultimate Guide to The Best Things to Do in Leeds

I’ve used a star system to “rank” the most interesting things to do in Leeds. I hope this makes it easy for you to choose what to do:

*** You really should see this! ** You’ll probably love this! * Nice to see, if you have time!

• The Civic Quarter
• The Corn Exchange
• The Victoria Quarter
• The Royal Armouries Museum
• Armley Mills
• Temple Newsam
• Kirkstall Abbey
• Waterfront and Canals
• Parks, Gardens and Dales

Leeds Civic Quarter ***

Start from the pedestrianised  City Square , directly opposite the central train station and the Queen’s hotel. The square features notable Victorian statues including  Edward, the Black Prince  astride a massive horse, plus local luminaries of the day – inventor  James Watt , chemist, and theologian  Joseph Priestley , and leading cloth merchant  John Harrison . 

The most controversial statues in Leeds are those of sculptor  Alfred Drury . The eight near-naked bronze lamp-bearers or “ Drury Dames ” scandalised the city when they were first unveiled in 1899. 

A short walk up Park Row takes you to  Victoria Square  and the spectacular  Town Hall , which was consecrated in 1858 by Queen Victoria. The Town Hall features a beautiful Corinthian colonnade frontage and a soaring 200-foot-tall clock tower, typical of Victorian architecture. 

Inside the Town Hall, the ornate  Victoria Hall  is a busy venue for concerts.

Just around the corner is  Leeds Civic Hall , topped with towers decorated by golden owls, the heraldic emblem of the city. See if you can find all three of them!

Next, immerse yourself in the splendour of  Leeds Art Gallery  and enjoy paintings by British artists including Cotman, Constable, and Gainsborough, then take in works from Italian and French masters Courbet, Renoir, and Signac. Don’t forget  The Henry Moore Sculpture Galleries , which contain his works, plus sculptures by Jacob Epstein and Barbara Hepworth. 

Pro Tip:  Stop for refreshments in the awe-inspiring  Tiled Hall Café . Not only are the cakes homemade and the coffee delicious, but the barrel-vaulted tiled ceiling is utterly gorgeous (a real Instagram favourite spot in Leeds). 

Leeds Corn Exchange ***

Grade I listed, the Corn Exchange  is one of England’s most elegant Victorian-era buildings. Constructed between 1861 and 1863, following the repeal of the Corn Laws in 1846,  Leeds Corn Exchange  was an important civic building. Once a grain trading centre of national importance, with more than 160 corn merchants trading from the building, Leeds Corn Exchange thrived until the late 1950s, when trade declined dramatically. 

Today, the building is a thriving retail hub filled with independent designer-makers, specialist retailers, and foodie outlets under the breath-taking domed roof.

Stop awhile to browse for original, modern finds, local crafts, vintage inspiration, and delicious food and drink. Special mention to  HumPit  for the best vegan food in Leeds !

Address:  Call Lane, LS1 7BR

The Victoria Quarter ***

The Victoria Quarter is Leeds’ upmarket shopping haven.  Victoria Gate  was named the world’s best shopping centre at the MIPIM Awards in 2017 . With its  flagship John Lewis store , it’s a must-see place in Leeds, and not just for the high-quality shops and boutiques! Don’t forget to look up to check out the stunning geometric ceiling.

County Arcades and Cross Arcades 

These two Victorian streets are the largest, most elaborate shopping arcades in Leeds. Begun in 1900, this sumptuous warren of shops replaced old medieval yards, Georgian shambles, and slaughterhouses. 

In the 1990s, a glass roof supported by cast-iron arches was added. Today,  County Arcade is one of the most beautiful parts of the city , with intricate marble tiled floors, intricate stonework, immaculate shops, and the most jaw-dropping ceilings. 

Leeds City Markets, Briggate and The Headrow *** 

The Headrow is the place to go to find many of Leeds’ top attractions.  The pedestrianised Briggate area ( Leeds original medieval market street ) is also famous for its Victorian shopping arcades, many of them of architectural significance. 

Explore the  Grand Arcade  (constructed in 1897) which houses many boutique shops, and take time to see Thorntons Arcade too, with its clock with four life-size figures. Queens Arcade opened in 1889 and is home to high-end designer and novelty shops. 

Royal Armouries Museum ***

The  Royal Armouries Museum  is an absolute must-see, with arms and armour from across the world and through time. The extensive collection is spread over five floors of stunning displays.

Look out for the stunning six-storey Hall of Steel , the medieval armour , Far Eastern collection , and the display of modern armour too.

Address:  Armouries Drive, LS10 1LT  

Leeds Industrial Museum at Armley Mills ***

Leeds Industrial Museum, located just two miles west of Leeds city centre has transformed the former Armley Mills building (once the world’s largest woollen mills). Learn how wool was produced in Yorkshire from the 18th century onwards, and about the desperate conditions for the mill-workers. Discover more about Armley Mills here .

Address : Canal Road, LS12 2QF

Temple Newsam ***

Temple Newsam  is a glorious 40-room Tudor-Jacobean mansion, set in a sprawling 900-acre park on the North-Eastern outskirts of Leeds. You’ll find Old Master paintings, furniture by Thomas Chippendale, and collections of Leeds creamware and silver at Temple Newsam. 

The meticulously manicured grounds are a real treat, with masses of rose bushes and rhododendrons. Look out too for the working rare breeds farm – it’s one of the largest in Europe. 

Address:  Temple Newsam Road, LS15 0AE

Kirkstall Abbey, Abbey House and Museum ***

Three miles northwest of central Leeds, you’ll find  Abbey House Museum  in the gatehouse of the ruined 12th-century Cistercian monastery, Kirkstall Abbey. Abbey House Museum includes reproduction houses, shops, and workshops showcasing life in Yorkshire through the centuries.

The picturesque remains of Kirkstall Abbey, which inspired the works of JMW Turner (Britain’s most celebrated artist) include a sizeable roofless church and a ruined tower. You’ll also see the part-preserved chapterhouse, refectory, kitchen, and other buildings. While it’s free to visit both the Abbey and its extensive grounds, there’s a modest admission charge for the museum. 

Fun Fact:  In the 18th and 19th centuries, before the construction of the A65 road to Ilkley, the road connecting Leeds and Ilkley ran straight through the nave of Kirkstall Abbey! That’s why so much of the interior stonework is blackened.

Address : Abbey Walk, Kirkstall, LS5 3EH

Leeds Waterfront and Canals**

Leeds was once the thriving nerve-centre for coal transport from the mines of West Yorkshire. Store yards and warehouses lined the Leeds Dock on the Aire and Calder Navigation . At the same time, canal barges travelled across the Pennines along the Leeds and Liverpool Canal to Liverpool and the North Sea, until the demise of coal mining in the UK.

After falling into a state of dereliction, Leeds Waterfront has been generated into a thriving, vibrant place to live, work and visit. It’s a pleasant place to stroll, visit waterside cafés and bars, Leeds Art Gallery , The Tetley , Granary Wharf , and Brewery Wharf . The Waterfront is also home to the Royal Armouries Museum .

Parks, Gardens and Dales ***

For a city spawned in the Industrial Revolution, Leeds is surprisingly green. The best parks north of the city are the 700-acre  Roundhay Park  (one of Europe’s largest city parks) and  Golden Acre Park . Both parks offer beautiful lakeside and woodland walks. 

In the south and west of the city, discover the 630-acres of  Middleton Park , the most extensive ancient woodland left in West Yorkshire, or  Gotts Park  with its Grade II listed water fountains.  Woodhouse Moor Park , the second most popular urban park in Leeds, is just one mile from the city centre. 

If you’re feeling energetic, the  Leeds Country Way  is a 62-mile circular footpath around Leeds. It’s never farther than seven miles from the city centre, is mostly rural, and has fabulous views of the city. All of the start/finish points are accessible by public transport. 

Further afield, the beautiful  Yorkshire Dales  beg you to lace up your hiking boots, try out some of the UK’s best biking trails, or treat yourself to a cosy pub lunch.

Best Places to Eat In Leeds

The city has a vast supply of top-notch restaurants to choose from – here are just a few favourites: 

The Ivy ***

The ultimate “posh-nosh” destination in Leeds. If fine dining, coupled with stunning decor and oodles of class is what you’re after, The Ivy is the place to see and be seen. Book well in advance, as it’s a highly sought-after eaterie. PS The loos are incredible!!

Address:  Vicar Ln, LS1 6BB 

Fazenda ***

If you’re hungry and you’re a meat-eater, make a beeline for Fazenda to get unlimited Brazilian barbecued meats carved straight onto your plate! Eat as much as you like from the six cuts of steaks, try the incredible pork collar and load up from the far-from-ordinary salad bar. 

Fazenda is fabulous and very reasonably priced, but it’s not for vegetarians or vegans! The location at Granary Wharf is pretty unique too.

Address : Waterman’s Place, 3 Wharf Approach, Granary Wharf, LS1 4GL

Bundobust ***

One of the most popular eateries in Leeds, with excellent vegan options. Imagine a craft beer bar that serves fabulous Indian street food! Expect small snacks, entrees, appetisers, soups, and a casual atmosphere. Bundobust is always buzzing, and the food is outstanding.

Address : 6 Mill Hill, LS1 5DQ 

Pizza Fella ***

This is probably the most authentic Italian eating experience in Leeds. The pizzaiolos craft simple Neapolitan-style pizzas from the most delicious dough, made from just four ingredients – Caputo flour, salt, yeast, and water. Once you’ve ordered, watch the chef prove, hand-stretch, and cook your pizza right in front of you. Pizza Fella treats you to pizza how it should be! It’s also delicious, and it’s ridiculously cheap!

Address : 114-116 Vicar Lane, LS2 7NL. 

Best Things to Do in Leeds at Night

Leeds has some of the best pubs and bars in the UK! In the city, try the Head of Steam , the Lamb and Flag, or The Palace , chill out at Browns or go for something more sophisticated at the Harvey Nichols 4th Floor Bar. For the best cocktails, try the Alchemist, the Botanist, or the very stylish Maven . If you love live music, the Belgrave Music Hall and Bar is slightly bonkers but fabulous.

As Yorkshire’s capital of culture, Leeds has plenty of cultural attractions to tempt you. The most well-known are:

• The West Yorkshire Playhouse – the UK’s biggest production theatre outside London
• The Grade-II-listed Leeds City Varieties – the oldest music hall in the world
• Leeds Grand Theatre – an opera house that serves as home to Opera North.
• Hyde Park Picture House – a Grade II listed independent cinema with unique gaslights and Edwardian plasterwork.

Best Time to Visit Leeds

Whatever the season, always expect rain, as Leeds “enjoys” typical Northern English weather. It’s usually warmest from May to September, when temperatures typically range from 10-21 centigrade. It can get warmer, but don’t bank on it!

Springtime   is beautiful in Leeds  and the surrounding West Yorkshire country. It’s the best time to visit beautiful bluebell woods, parks bursting with spring flowers, and fields full of fluffy lambs.

Yorkshire  summers (June to August) are warm and fresh , rather than hot and summertime is an enjoyable time to explore Leeds.  Yorkshire winters, however, can be brutal , so you’ll need to wrap up well. 

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: What to pack for your trip to Yorkshire . 

Festivals and Events in Leeds

Here’s a quick roundup of the main festivals in and around Leeds to help you decide when to visit.

• April:  Harrogate Spring Flower Show 
• May:  Leeds Half Marathon 
• June  and  July:   The Otley Walking Festival, Opera in the Park, The Great Yorkshire Show and the Crime Writing Festival
• August:  Leeds Festival at Bramham Park 
• September : Leeds International Beer Festival  ( Craft beer and street food)
• October:  The Leeds International Film Festival and Leeds Shakespeare Schools Festival 
• November:  the nights become turns multi-coloured as the city puts on Light Nights and tens of thousands gather at Roundhay Park for traditional “Bonfire Night” fireworks. 
• December:  German Christmas Market in Millennium Square and Christmas at Harewood House 

As a cultural hub, Leeds also hosts the year-long International Concert Season  

Other Quirky and Interesting Things to Do in Leeds

• Thackray Medical Museum
• The Dark Arches
• Central Library
• Cathedral, Minster and Ancient Churches
• The Time Ball Buildings

Thackray Medical Museum ***

The Thackray Medical Museum  has a fascinating collection of around 20,000 medical artefacts showcasing the development of medicine through the ages. As soon as you enter the museum, be prepared for the sights, sounds, and smells of Leeds in the 1800s!! “Blood, Pus and Pain” is where you’ll see lots of surgical instruments and the history of anaesthetics, antiseptics, and penicillin, as well as operating tables and iron lungs. 

Don’t miss the displays of wartime medicine, dentistry, and childbirth through the ages. 

Address : 141 Beckett St, LS9 7LN

Buses 16, 42, 49, 50, and 50A all stop outside the museum. 

The Dark Arches **

No, this isn’t something from a Lord of the Rings movie or a Harry Potter tale! The Dark Arches is a series of subterranean tunnels running beneath Leeds Central train station, where the River Aire flows. Illuminated in bright neon lights, the Dark Arches is also the route from the station to the hip, Granary Wharf area of the city.

Visit after sunset to capture the lights at their best, then stop to watch and listen to the roiling, churning river thundering through the dark tunnels before emerging into the light beyond the station. 

Address : Dark Neville Street, LS1 4BR  

Leeds Central Library ***

A splendid Grade II listed building, dating to 1884 worthy of a visit to see the fabulous staircase, decorated with tiles, ironwork, and carved animals. It’s an Instagram favourite and is truly lovely. While this is a good library, the real reason to visit is to see the impressive building itself. Make sure to do pop next door to the Tiled Hall, for cakes and a pot of tea!

Fun fact : The building has a portcullis!

Address:  Calverley Street, LS1 3AB

Cathedral, Minster and Ancient Churches **

St. John’s Church in New Briggate (built 1632-1634), is the finest of Leeds’ lovely churches. Visit to see the two naves, the original Renaissance rood screen, pulpit, and stalls. 

There are some interesting hermaphrodite figures in the roof trusses! See if you can find them!

Address:   23 New Briggate, LS2 8JA

Take a moment to visit St. Anne’s Roman Catholic Cathedral (built 1904); the riverside Church of Holy Trinity in Boar Lane (1727); and the large Parish Church of Saint Peter-at-Leeds, known as t he Minster . 

The Minster was originally a medieval church, rebuilt in 1841, making it Leeds’s oldest parish church. Visit to listen to the splendid choir and fine set of bells – the world’s first ring of 13 bells 

Address : 2-6 Kirkgate, LS2 7DJ

The Leeds Owl Trail *

As the Leeds coat of arms includes owls, the owl has become the talisman of the city. The Leeds Owl Trail features 25 decorative owls spread across the city, ready to b discovered. Remember to look up!

The Leeds Owl Trail is a unique concept that’s brilliant for Leeds. It enables both visitors and residents from all backgrounds to explore and experience our beautiful city Tom Riordan. Chief Executive Leeds City Council

Download the free Owl Trail map here

The Time-Ball Buildings *

Find the early 19th century Grade II listed “Time-Ball Buildings” at the bottom end of Briggate. Look out for the elaborate clock from 1865 featuring Old Father Time and the gilded time ball mechanism which was once linked to Greenwich and dropped at exactly 1 pm each day. 

Address:  24, 25, and 26 Briggate

Things to Do in Leeds – Itineraries for 1, 2, or 3 Days

This itinerary draws from my experiences living and working in and around Leeds, of downtime enjoying the city and of time spent introducing family and friends to this great city. 

One Day Itinerary (The Essential Things to Do in Leeds in 24 hours)

If you’ve just one day to spare to explore Leeds, the absolute must-see attractions are the Civic Quarter, the Corn Exchange, the Victoria Quarter, and the Royal Armouries Museum. You should be able to manage all of these by early afternoon.

There are lots of places to stop for a bite of lunch along the way – I recommend the food court in the City Markets or trying one of the independent eateries in the Corn Exchange. After lunch, consider visiting Temple Newsam, Kirkstall Abbey, or Armley Mills, or take a leisurely walk around the Waterfront area, before dinner.

Two Day Itinerary (More Things to Do In Leeds – Quirky Bits and Tours)

If you have two days in Leeds, keep to the city centre for the second day, and focus on the less well-known and more quirky sights. There are also some excellent tours I highly recommend looking at – one of which is free! 

Leeds has a rapidly growing reputation as a real food-lovers destination. The city is a melting pot of different global cuisines, packed to the ginnels with the freshest ingredients. 

Leeds Foodies Tour *** 

Meet outside the train station at 11:30 am for a  4 to 5-hour Leeds Foodies tour  that takes you on a food adventure. You’ll eat and drink at six independent eateries, including a pub that’s more than 300 years old. 

While learning about the venues visited, the dishes they create, and where they source their ingredients, you’ll  discover   the history of food and drink in Leeds and Yorkshire . I highly recommend this Leeds Foodies Tour : it’s a seriously tasty, entertaining way to spend an afternoon. Great if you’re travelling solo! 

Leeds Brewery Tour and Beer Tasting ***

Leeds has a well-deserved reputation for producing quality craft beer. For fun touring and tasting with fellow beer lovers,  the  Yorkshire Brewery and Beer Tasting Tour  is hard to beat . Meet other craft beer lovers and get to know some of the big names and rising stars of the county’s craft brewing scene.

Lasts around half a day, and is all-inclusive, you won’t have to worry about a thing on your tour (just make sure you have a hearty brunch before joining!!)

Leeds Kirkgate Market Heritage Tour *** 

Kirkgate Market has a long history – this free tour shares the history of the market from its ancient beginning to the modern-day. You’ll  visit a hundred-year-old barber’s shop , tucked away beneath the modern market, plus you get to  visit the site of the first-ever Marks & Spencer store in the world !

Visiting the first-floor balcony to photograph the market from above is the highlight of the tour. (This area is no access to the general public, so the tour is the only way to get this view) I loved this tour and can’t recommend it highly enough! Book in advance on  EventBrite.co.uk  (search for Leeds Heritage Tours).

Emmerdale Tours **

Fans of British TV soap “Emmerdale” (set in West Yorkshire and made in Leeds), can choose from two tours: 

The Emmerdale Studio Experience **  

Step into the drama and discover behind-the-scenes secrets at  The Emmerdale Studio Experience . See working and replica sets, discover industry secrets and get an insider look into how the cast and crew create the storylines in Yorkshire’s favourite soap. Then, head over to ITV Television Centre, to see more Emmerdale working sets!

Yorkshire Dales Emmerdale Locations Bus Tour * 

Explore the famous filming locations of Emmerdale in the Yorkshire Dales, including the pretty market town of Esholt and the village of Otley. 

Three Day Itinerary (Things to Do in Leeds – Beyond the City)

After two full days of exploring, you’ll probably want to escape the city for a while. On day 3, it’s time to get out of the city centre and explore the magnificent Yorkshire Dales. 

Harewood House ***

Harewood House  is a magnificent English country house that took 30 years to build (completed in 1771). Halfway between Leeds and Harrogate , Harewood House has Robert Adam interiors, beautiful Angelika Kauffmann wall and ceiling paintings, and furniture by renowned English furniture maker Thomas Chippendale. More recently, you might recognise Harewood from the “Downton Abbey” movie! 

Outside, the Capability Brown-designed grounds include a 32-acre lake, a bird garden, and the remains of a 12th-century castle. 

Address:  Sandy Gate, Harewood, LS17 9LE

Related Post: A Complete Guide to Visiting Harewood House

The National Coal Mining Museum ***

The location for the impressive  National Coal Mining Museum  is the former Caphouse Colliery . Learn how dangerous life was for miners at one of the country’s oldest coal mines (dating to the 1770s). The visitor centre has fascinating exhibits relating to the colliery’s long history. There’s also extensive information about how miners and their families lived. 

The highlight of any visit is the 80 minutes guided underground tour. You’ll descend 140 metres down a pit shaft in a lift, to experience pit conditions first-hand. As the granddaughter of a coal miner, I found this trip both fascinating and sobering.  In fact, it’s one of my favourite things to do in Leeds.

Address:  Caphouse Colliery, New Road, near Overton, Wakefield WF4 4RH. 

Harrogate: Britain’s Premier Northern Spa ***

Harrogate is an elegant spa town in North Yorkshire. The town became popular with British and European Royalty, thanks to the “medicinal” springs discovered in the 16th century. Many of the late Georgian and Victorian buildings remain today, making Harrogate an attractive town to visit. 

Popular attractions include the RHS Gardens at Harlow Carr, Valley Gardens, the Royal Pump Room, and the extensive Turkish Baths . There’s also a chance for great shopping in the elegant boutiques and antique shops. Last, but not least, no trip to Harrogate is complete without a trip to the spectacular “Betty’s Tea Rooms” for afternoon tea for a “fat rascal”.

YOU MAY ALSO ENJOY: The Best Things to do in Harrogate

Where to stay in Leeds

Compared to average UK prices, hotels in Leeds offer outstanding value. Most visitors stay near the city centre. Here are my recommendations for  where to stay in Leeds if you’re a first-time visitor.

Budget Places to Stay in Leeds

For budget travellers , there are plenty of 4-star hotels with rooms for less than £50 per night. I recommend  Cosmopolitan  if you enjoy a traditional feel and want to be central. Alternatively,  Roomzzz ApartHotel  offers excellent studio apartments and is only a 15-minute walk from the city centre. 

Cosmopolitan Hotel: 2 Lower Briggate, LS1 4AE

Roomzzz ApartHotel: 2 Burley Rd, LS3 1JB

Mid-Budget Hotels in Leeds

The Art-Deco  Queens Hotel  offers mid-range value, and a superb location overlooking City Square. You can access the train station direct from the hotel, and the hotel is within easy walking distance of many top bars and restaurants. 

Luxury Leeds Hotels

The Dakota is THE Premier hotel in Leeds and the best place for a luxury boutique hotel experience at a very reasonable price.

Address: 8 Russell St, LS1 5RN

If you prefer the convenience and privacy of luxury apartments, look at Quebec Luxury Apartments or The Chambers Serviced Apartments . Both are within easy walking distance of the top city centre attractions and entertainment hotspots.

Quebec Luxury Apartments : The Old Post Office, 3 Infirmary St, LS1 2HT

Chambers Serviced Apartments : 30 Park Place, LS1 2SP

Where to Stay Near Leeds

If you prefer to stay in the glorious Yorkshire Dales instead of the city, choose the beautiful Victorian spa town of Harrogate or the old coaching town of Wetherby .

Both have an incredible food scene and plenty of trendy, friendly bars. Factor in about 40 minutes of travel time, but it’s well worth it!

How to Get to Leeds

Getting to the city from Leeds Bradford Airport is straightforward. The easiest method is to  pre-book a car to Leeds city centre. At approx. £49 per car, it’s reasonably priced and so much nicer than waiting in a long queue for a taxi or bus. 

You can also get taxis from the queue at the arrivals hall or catch the regular “Flying Tiger” bus service (number 747) to Leeds central bus station. The journey takes between 41 minutes and an hour, depending on traffic.

How to travel around Leeds

Leeds is a safe, walkable city, with most of the top attractions located within a small, central area.

The city enjoys cheap, reliable buses, and excellent train connections to the rest of the UK. Alternatively, pick up a taxi from the train/bus station, and there are plenty of Uber drivers in the area. Forget the car and rely on public transport!

You May Also Like: Taxi Safety Tips for Solo Female Travellers

Where to Next in Yorkshire?

I hope you’ve enjoyed this extensive post introducing you to the best things to do in Leeds. If you’ve got four or more days to spend in the city, why not consider a day trip to explore more of Yorkshire? Here are some ideas to inspire you:

• If you’re looking for the most Instagrammable places in Leeds, this detailed guide will provide inspiration and locations that might surprise you. 
• This guide to  a weekend in York has everything you need to know for a trip to York, including what to do, where to go, and where to eat and stay.
• Knowing what to do in a new city after dark is an essential part of travel planning. See this guide to what to do in York after dark  for lots of tips. 
• We’ve also got you covered for advice on day trips from York. See our  guide to visiting Harewood House , one of the UK’s most elegant stately homes, and the location for the “Downton Abbey” movie. 
• We love to mix travel with literature. See our guide to  visiting Haworth, the home of the Bronte sisters , to understand why you should visit this beautiful, historic Yorkshire village as soon as you can.

In Conclusion

As always, if you have any questions or comments about this post, or you’d like more tips about visiting Yorkshire in general, pop them in the comments below, and we’ll get back to you!

Pin for Later – The Best Things to Do in Leeds

Have you been to Leeds? What did you think was the best thing to do or see? Did you stay in the city or venture into the countryside too? Have I missed anything from this guide that you would like to see? As always, I love to get your feedback and comments x

Coralie Thornton, the owner and author of Grey Globetrotters, has been a traveller for more than four decades. Her passion for adventure has led her through over 40 countries, seeking cultural experiences, delicious foods, and hidden gems. Today, she helps others experience the UK, Europe, Egypt and China, with meticulously crafted travel itineraries and affordable luxury travel guides.

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You can choose to view and print your timetable in standard or large print pdf format. Or you can personalise the timetable to display your start and end point and to show only the services for a specific time of day.

Results 1 - 10 of 103 found in West Yorkshire

1: Beeston - West Park Via Leeds City Centre 1B: Beeston - Leeds Becketts Campus (LeedsCity) Via Leeds City Centre

• View Monday to Friday timetable for route 1/1B Valid from 02/09/2024 until further notice Download PDF version of timetable for route 1/1B
• View Saturday timetable for route 1/1B Valid from 07/09/2024 until further notice Download PDF version of timetable for route 1/1B
• View Sunday timetable for route 1/1B Valid from 01/09/2024 until further notice Download PDF version of timetable for route 1/1B

N1: Leeds - West Park

• View Monday to Friday timetable for route N1 Valid from 02/09/2024 until further notice Download PDF version of timetable for route N1
• View Saturday timetable for route N1 Valid from 07/09/2024 until further notice Download PDF version of timetable for route N1

PR1: Elland Road Park & Ride - Leeds Circular

• View Monday to Friday timetable for route PR1 Valid from 02/09/2024 until further notice Download PDF version of timetable for route PR1

X1: Halifax - Huddersfield

• View Monday to Friday timetable for route X1 Valid from 02/09/2024 until further notice Download PDF version of timetable for route X1
• View Saturday timetable for route X1 Valid from 07/09/2024 until further notice Download PDF version of timetable for route X1
• View Sunday timetable for route X1 Valid from 01/09/2024 until further notice Download PDF version of timetable for route X1

2: Middleton Thorpe Lane - Roundhay Park 3A: White Rose Centre - Gledhow 3: White Rose Centre - Brackenwood

• View Monday to Friday timetable for route 2/3A/3 Valid from 02/09/2024 until further notice Download PDF version of timetable for route 2/3A/3
• View Saturday timetable for route 2/3A/3 Valid from 07/09/2024 until further notice Download PDF version of timetable for route 2/3A/3
• View Sunday timetable for route 2/3A/3 Valid from 01/09/2024 until further notice Download PDF version of timetable for route 2/3A/3

PR2: Temple Green Park & Ride - Leeds Circular

• View Monday to Friday timetable for route PR2 Valid from 02/09/2024 until further notice Download PDF version of timetable for route PR2

PR3: Stourton Park & Ride - Leeds Circular (Park & Ride) Via Leeds City Centre

• View Monday to Friday timetable for route PR3 Valid from 02/09/2024 until further notice Download PDF version of timetable for route PR3
• View Saturday timetable for route PR3 Valid from 07/09/2024 until further notice Download PDF version of timetable for route PR3

4: Pudsey - Seacroft Via Highfield Green - Leeds 4F: Pudsey - Seacroft Via Fartown - Leeds

• View Monday to Friday timetable for route 4/4F Valid from 02/09/2024 until further notice Download PDF version of timetable for route 4/4F
• View Saturday timetable for route 4/4F Valid from 07/09/2024 until further notice Download PDF version of timetable for route 4/4F
• View Sunday timetable for route 4/4F Valid from 01/09/2024 until further notice Download PDF version of timetable for route 4/4F

5A: Leeds - Halton Moor Circular Via Portland Way 5: Leeds - Halton Moor Circular Via Leeds City Loop

• View Monday to Friday timetable for route 5A/5 Valid from 02/09/2024 until further notice Download PDF version of timetable for route 5A/5
• View Saturday timetable for route 5A/5 Valid from 07/09/2024 until further notice Download PDF version of timetable for route 5A/5
• View Sunday timetable for route 5A/5 Valid from 01/09/2024 until further notice Download PDF version of timetable for route 5A/5

6: Leeds - Holt Park 8: Leeds - Holt Park

• View Monday to Friday timetable for route 6/8 Valid from 02/09/2024 until further notice Download PDF version of timetable for route 6/8
• View Saturday timetable for route 6/8 Valid from 07/09/2024 until further notice Download PDF version of timetable for route 6/8
• View Sunday timetable for route 6/8 Valid from 01/09/2024 until further notice Download PDF version of timetable for route 6/8

Travel Alerts

42 | lower wortley road.

Lower Wortley Road will be closed at all times for works from 16th September until 27th September .

42 services towards Old Farnley will be diverted via Dixon Lane and Greenside Road before resuming the route on Lower Wortley Road.

City-bound services will be unaffected .

No temporary stop will be in place. 

Service 49, 50, 50a - Easterly Road resurfacing (PHASE 2)

Due to resurfacing works taking place on Easterly Road, 12th -17th September 19:00 – 23:59 (road open Saturday and Sunday) 

services will be diverted as follows: 

Towards Monkswood/Seacroft;

From Easterly Rd McDonalds, Oakwood Lane, Foundry Lane, South Parkway, Kentmere Ave (Black Shops), then: 

Service 50/50A to resume route from North Parkway. 

Service 49 cross North Parkway, Kentmere Avenue resuming route from top of Boggart Hill Drive. 

Towards City; Services unaffected, normal route in place 

Service 38, 39 - Meanwood resurfacing

Services are diverted due to Meanwood resurfacing between 23rd - 28th September, 19:00 – 06:30

Towards Moor Allerton;

Meanwood Road, Stainbeck Road, Stainbeck Lane (Sainsbury’s Local) then: 

38 service to continue across to Parkside Road to resume route 39 service operate via Stonegate Road to resume route

Towards City; 

From junction of Parkside and Stonegate, Stainbeck Lanem Stainbeck Road and Meanwood Road resuming route.

5A/91- Osmondthorpe Lane

Osmondthorpe Lane Bridge closure 

Each Saturday and Sunday from September until December. 

22:00 - 06:00. 

Towards Halton Moor via York Road, right Selby Road, right Irwin App (after Lidl), right Temple Newsam Road, Selby Road, left Halton Moor Avenue, follow to Neville Parade. 

Towards City/Pudsey via Neville Road, (Barry's shop), right Halton Moor Avenue, left Selby Road, left York Road to normal route. 

Service 9a - Sharp Lane

Sharp Lane is closed due to bridge repairs  16/09/24 – 23/09/24 20:00 – 06:00

Diversions are as follows: 

Towards Seacroft;

Middleton Asda, St Georges Rd, Middleton Ln, Thorpe Lower Ln and resuming route from Halfway House Pub.

Towards White Rose;

From Leadwell Ln (Halfway House), Thorpe Lower Ln, Middleton Ln, St Georges Rd and resuming route from Middleton Asda.

Offer Holder Days

Congratulations on your offer to study with us. We hope you choose the University of Leeds as your firm choice. 

Your choice of university is an important decision, and we’re here to help you find all the information you need to make that decision a little bit easier.

To help you decide, you’ll be invited to an Offer Holder Day, where you can learn more about your course and chat to academic staff and students.

Our Offer Holder Days are more in-depth than an Open Day, allowing you to learn more about the range of opportunities available here at Leeds, and the welcoming and supportive team that’ll help you every step of the way.

Throughout the day we encourage you to ask any questions you may have and explore the spaces and facilities you will use as a student at the University of Leeds. 

There will also be opportunities to visit some of our accommodation and join a student-led tour of our campus to discover why Leeds is a great place to live and learn.

How to book your place

If you have received an offer to study with us, you’ll receive an invite to an Offer Holder Day in the post and via email, which will include more information about when the events will take place, what to expect from the day, and how you can book your place.

Travel bursary

There is a travel bursary available to those attending an Offer Holder Day worth up to £100 per eligible applicant. 

For more information, including eligibility criteria, visit the  travel bursary page . 

Find out more about parking and how to travel to Leeds .

• Media library

Consultation launches to improve active travel around Crossgates

16 Sep 2024

Connecting Leeds Highways

Local residents, schools and businesses are being asked to feedback on proposals to improve walking and cycling routes around the Crossgates area. 

Plans aim to create safer and healthier streets and make it more convenient to walk, wheel* and cycle shorter journeys to school, local shops and the centre of Crossgates. 

Government funding of £1.9m has been awarded to develop and deliver the scheme which focuses on Barwick Road, areas of Swarcliffe and Manston, and the Poole Estate.  

Previous feedback highlighted that it can be difficult to cross the road at busy junctions and that existing cycle routes aren’t well connected or signed. Plans aim to address this by making it easier to cross the road, better connecting existing cycle routes, and making the area safer for all road users.  

Proposals include: 

• Two-way segregated cycle track along Barwick Road, connecting to existing cycle links 
• New signalised crossings for pedestrians and cycle users over Seacroft roundabout  
• Wider footways along Barwick Road 
• Safer and more accessible pedestrian crossings throughout the area, including a new zebra crossing between Austhorpe Road and Manston Park 
• Tree planting along Barwick Road and the opportunity for a pocket park along Farm Road 
• Changes to vehicle access to and from Swardale Green – residents will be presented with three options to choose from

The proposed cycle track along Barwick Road will connect to the existing City Connect route, which runs from the city centre towards Seacroft, aiming to improve cycle links in the area. 

The scheme includes some changes to on-street parking along Barwick Road to help make space for footway widening and a new two-way cycle track. 

Councillor Jonathan Pryor, Leeds City Council’s executive member for economy, transport and sustainable development, said:  

“There are a lot of local schools in the area, and we want to make doing the school run, or visits to local shops and amenities safer for everyone. By improving walking and cycling links and making it safer and easier to cross the road, we’re aiming to increase the number of people that choose to travel in greener and healthier ways whilst making the area more accessible. I would encourage anyone in the area to have their say to make sure their voice is heard in the consultation.” 

The scheme is being developed by Leeds City Council in partnership with the West Yorkshire Combined Authority. 

Deputy chair of the West Yorkshire Combined Authority Transport Committee Councillor Peter Carlill said:   

 “We want to build a better-connected West Yorkshire by making it easier to walk, wheel and cycle in our communities.   

"I'd encourage people to have their say, so we can make it easier for people to use more active modes of transport in this part of Leeds." 

Residents, businesses and visitors to the area are encouraged to have their say before the consultation closes. People can have their say in the 10-minute survey here , or by attending a drop-in event . 

To request paper copies of the proposals and the survey please contact 0113 336 8868 or email  [email protected] . 

*Wheeling includes using wheelchairs, mobility scooters, walking aids and travelling with a pram or pushchair.    

For media enquiries contact:

Leeds City Council Communications team [email protected]

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Trump Plans to Keep Campaigning as Scheduled

Donald J. Trump’s travel schedule will not change in the aftermath of an apparent shooting attempt on Sunday, with trips this week planned to Michigan, New York and elsewhere.

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By Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan

Former President Donald J. Trump is making no changes to his campaign schedule this week after the apparent second attempt on his life in two months, according to a person with knowledge of the plans.

Mr. Trump plans to travel to Flint, Mich., on Tuesday for a town-hall-style event with his former press secretary, Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders of Arkansas, the person said. He will then travel to New York on Wednesday for a rally at the Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, and then attend an event with a pro-Israel group on Thursday in Washington, D.C.

Mr. Trump’s campaign is proceeding apace after an incident on Sunday that the F.B.I. described as an apparent second attempt on the former president’s life.

The suspected gunman, Ryan Wesley Routh, a 58-year-old pro-Ukraine political activist, positioned himself roughly 300 to 500 yards from where Mr. Trump was playing golf at his course in West Palm Beach, Fla., the authorities said. Secret Service officials saw the man and fired at him, prompting him to flee, officials said. He was eventually caught and arrested.

Mr. Trump is not eager to make drastic changes to his life and his schedule as a result of the assassination attempts. Immediately after the first assassination attempt against him in July at an outdoor rally in Butler, Pa., he told his team that he wanted to go straight to Milwaukee for the Republican National Convention and that he wished for the convention to go ahead as planned. He also wants to make a show of his return to Butler for a rally planned for October.

For Mr. Trump, one open question is whether his regular golf schedule will need to change. After the first assassination attempt in July, the Secret Service tried to cut down on outdoor events, but Mr. Trump insisted on continuing them.

It’s unclear what advice the Secret Service has given him about his golfing, though the agency is used to protecting presidents and former presidents who, like Mr. Trump, are enthusiastic golfers.

A Trump spokesman didn’t respond to an email seeking comment.

Maggie Haberman is a senior political correspondent reporting on the 2024 presidential campaign, down ballot races across the country and the investigations into former President Donald J. Trump. More about Maggie Haberman

Jonathan Swan is a political reporter covering the 2024 presidential election and Donald Trump’s campaign. More about Jonathan Swan

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