A Fresh Perspective on Travel Every Day
Yorkshire is well-known throughout the United Kingdom for its exquisite tea, enduring charm, and scenic English farmhouses nestled among picturesque villages. There are numerous motivations to allocate time to explore Yorkshire, with perhaps none as alluring as its undulating hills.
On the final day in Yorkshire, the sun finally adorned us with its presence, warming the beautiful countryside as it rose, although surprisingly slowly for this season!
Yorkshire – or God’s Own County as locals like to call it – has long inspired writers, painters, and film-location scouts. This industrial powerhouse has played a significant role in shaping modern Britain. With dramatic landscapes, stunning heritage sites, vibrant urban areas, and world-renowned walking trails, it remains one of Britain’s most appealing destinations today.
Yorkshirein northernEnglandhas become a vibrant hub for craft distilleries. While most are specializing in gin, you’ll also find rum, vodka, and even whisky soon to grace your glass. The region is rich in natural ingredients—think sea kelp, wildflower honey, local lavender, and sloe berries—and the spirits produced here offer a true taste of the land. In celebration of World Gin Day (8 June), here’s a curated list of the finest places to enjoy local spirits in Yorkshire.
There’s no better time to plan an escape to Yorkshire than summer. The days are long, the green hills and dales shimmer in the sun like emeralds, and there are festivals galore. This is the season when locals spend lazy afternoons in beer gardens, when bucket-and-spade sellers do a roaring trade at the seaside, and when hikers and bikers can enjoy long-distance trails with the sun on their backs.
In Yorkshire, as in most other places, spring begins in March. Days get longer, and although snow sometimes falls as late as April, you’ll see plenty of Yorkshire folk getting their legs out as soon as the mercury pushes 16°C. It’s the season synonymous with flower blooms on the moors, lambing in the dales, and rhubarb crumble on pub menus. Magnificent country estates pull out all the stops for Easter and St George’s Day, while quaint towns welcome droves of visitors for growing national events.
The humble Yorkshire pudding may be its greatest culinary claim to fame, but England’s largest county is becoming increasingly sophisticated and experimental in the kitchen. Yorkshire’s award-winning produce is grown amid the dales and plucked from the North Sea to supply fiercely local delis and Michelin-acclaimed gastropubs and restaurants. Food markets are sprouting like mushrooms in fertile soil. Wash it all down with a bevy of craft beers or home-grown wines, and you’ve got the recipe for the UK’s best food break.
In a regeneration area of old factories and warehouses, relics of Leeds’ 19th-century industrial might, a hooded monk looks down upon a makeshift beer garden from the top of a Grade II-listed mill. Inside, the scent of hops and malts laces the air. This is Northern Monk, one of dozens of craft breweries bringing new life to a Yorkshire beer tradition that dates back centuries.
Yorkshire is rich with architectural marvels that reflect its illustrious history. From colonnaded stately homes frozen in time to medieval castles that dominate quaint market towns, there’s an array of sites to explore. Here’s our curated selection of the best architectural highlights in Yorkshire.
On a stormy night, the schoonerDemeteris blown into Whitby harbour. An immense black dog jumps ashore and disappears into the darkness. On board, lashed to the helm, is the corpse of the captain, clutching a crucifix. This scene, depicting Dracula’s arrival in England, established this pretty Yorkshire seaside town’s reputation as a gothic icon.
Perched in the North of England, in the heart of Yorkshire; Leeds is an incredible city to visit. Now, I know it might not be the first city you’ll think about when visiting England, especially if visiting from outside the UK. However, it shouldn’t be missed for a day trip whilst exploring Yorkshire. In fact, there are so many of the best things to do in Leeds that it’s even great for a weekend trip.