01/04/2024
Harrogate is a great base to explore Yorkshire - here are some great ideas.
If you're planning time in the Yorkshire Dales with children (or without...) here are a months' worth of suggestions (30 ideas) for places to visit whether you love history, nature, or some gentle adventure. Let me know if there are extra places you'd add?
- - Be King of a Yorkshire Dales Castle - -
We all love castles, especially if they have a dungeon, a moat, a maze or a stick-your-bottom-out-of-the-window toilet!
* Pretend to be King Richard III at Middleham Castle
* Imagine being a Norman invader at Richmond Castle and look out for the prisoners of conscience's graffiti.
* Take gruesome delight in the dungeons at Bolton Castle, explore the maze, watch archery displays, spot the wild boar and climb to the top of the tower for stunning views.
* Look out for the Long Drop Be king of the castle at SKIPTON CASTLE
* Just outside the Dales between Ripon and Harrogate, you'll find the stunningly beautiful Markenfield Hall, a perfect medieval manor house complete with moat.
* Ripley Castle between Pateley Bridge and Harrogate even has a hidden priest hole, as well as extensive gardens and some impressive armour.
- - Get closer to nature and enjoy being outdoors --
* Fish for your supper at Kilnsey Park Kilnsey Park. There's also a nature trail, animals to see and great cafe
* Have an adventure at How Stean Gorge where you can discover the thrills of the Via Ferrata and then reward your bravery in the glass-bottomed cafe!
* Younger children love to spot fairy houses and enjoy Studfold Adventure Trail
* Solve riddles, marvel at the madness, and laugh at The Forbidden Corner - Official near Middleham - a wonderful attraction that's almost impossible to describe (book in advance).
* Meet (and sometimes feed) the animals Hesketh Farm Park
* Call into the small but perfectly formed Keld Resource Centre to learn more about the surrounding countryside.
* Scramble, climb and play hide and seek at NT Brimham Rocks, where there are all kinds of curious rock formations and shapes.
* Marvel at some of our fantastic waterfalls, maybe follow the Ingleton Waterfalls Trail
* Enjoy the excitement of a short trip on a heritage railway, maybe even steam-powered: choose from Settle Carlisle Railway CRP, Embsay & Bolton Abbey Steam Railway, Wensleydale Railway
- - Be a time traveller - -
* Go back in time at the Dales Countryside Museum and see what makes the Yorkshire Dales special.
* Marvel at some of the quirky exhibits and historical curiosities on display at Nidderdale Museum, Richmondshire Museum, Grassington Museum, and Craven Museum.
* Follow in the footsteps of the monks at Jervaulx Abbey or Fountains Abbey & Studley Royal, National Trust
* Explore the miles of paths, stepping stones and trails on Bolton Abbey Estate
* Tell tales! Enjoy the ancient art of storyteller - see what's on at Settle Stories
* Take a fascinating backstage tour of Georgian Theatre Royal, Richmond, North Yorkshire, to find out how people lived and were entertained in Georgian times. Step on the historic stage and try on costumes.
- - Go underground --
Explore a secret underground world at Ingleborough Cave, White Scar Cave and Stump Cross Caverns looking out for stalactites, stalagmites, hidden tunnels and caverns.
What are your favourite things to do in the Yorkshire Dales? Which places and activities have I forgotten to mention?
Image by Guy Carpenter
