Long weekend in Yorkshire

[Spillanelle]

We have a family wedding in Yorkshire in August. We’re in the South West so it’s a long trip for us so im thinking it would be good to stay for a few extra days and make the most of it.

Any recommendations for nice places to stay or things to do? I don’t know the area well at all.

Just to add, I’ll be 7 months pregnant and we’ll have our 2 year old with us.

Yorkshire Dales - beautiful.
If you’re a NT member Brimham Rocks is always popular with the kids, and it’s outside etc.

Arncliffe crag too - easily accessible group of rocks to climb.

Agree with a lot of these but most are outdoorsy walking days out, which might not suit the OP. Maybe you could park yourself in the hotel spa and have DH take the 2 YO out to feed the ducks?

There's also Nostell Priory another NT place and Newmillerdam which is a lake that you can walk round, birds, woods, that sort of thing. Again, walking, but there's a gnome trail that might amuse a 2 YO.

There's also the science and media museum in Bradford or Eureka in Halifax.

The 2 year old would enjoy Eureka. I'm not sure about the media museum

The zone in Huddersfield is excellent and I second Doncaster wildlife park. We live local so been a few times. There are also some lovely reservoirs for walks. Pudsey Park has some lovely things for kids and adults.

Harewood is lovely.

Eureka is good, as is the sculpture park, both fairly close by. Wakefield itself is an outer ring of hell.

If it were me I’d travel on and stay in the Dales. Much nicer.

Have a look at play stay explore cheap breaks I. Yorkshire. Really good value with nice hotels.

Eureka and Cannon Hall Farm - Cannon Hall is the only on the telly on channel 5. We went today (to the parkland obvs cos Covid)

Thanks for all the recommendations, that’s massively helpful. I’ll work through the list and try to pick out our favourite ones, sounds like it might be good to move away from Wakefield for a few days too so will probably find ourselves a nice Airbnb to head onto after the wedding. I love the idea of spending a few days in the Yorkshire dales, looks absolutely beautiful there.

We're near York, good things for two year olds - Lotherton hall & Cannon Hall like others have mentioned, but Murton Park farming museum and living history place is really great (think Viking village, Roman fort, a huge playground, cafe and toy tractors); round the corner from there is Beetle Bank farm where you can hold a guinea pig or rabbit.

York itself is lovely tbh, at two they might like the railway museum; Rowntree Park or the Homestead playground are great and here's a massive vote for the Pig and Pastry on Bishy road. In town when you're knackered the York art gallery has a lovely cafe too and the place is child friendly. Oh Museum gardens are nice to wander around too.

Further south Sundown adventure place is quite tired but good fun although it's lots of rides (all v toddler friendly) so being pregnant you might not enjoy that one...

Forest Holidays in Keldy?
www.forestholidays.co.uk/locations/yorkshire/keldy/

Not cheap but you can use Clubcard vouchers towards the cost

The Yorkshire Dales are beautiful.

The Forbidden Corner is good but you need to pre-book.

Billy Bobs is cool for small children.

There are more castles than you can shake a stick at!

Lovely Dales villages
Thornton-le-Dale
Muker
Hawes
Grassington
Skipton
Ripley

Lovely Coastal towns
Robin Hood's Bay
Whitby
Sandsend
Saltburn

Definitely recommend The Forbidden Corner, but as a pp says, you have to prebook.

You could probably spend a week a year in different parts of Yorkshire for the rest if your life next decade and you wouldn't run out of things to see and do.

A walk around Pugneys lake, steam train and ice cream then up to Sandal Castle.
Hepworth Museum, take a look at Chantry Chapel opposite.
Yorkshire Sculpture Park with a drive by Emley Moor mast to take in its height.
Yorkshire Mining Museum.
Wakefield Park, large city centre park with ducks, geese, train, tennis, ice cream vans etc.

@BarbaraofSeville

You could probably spend a week a year in different parts of Yorkshire for the rest if your life next decade and you wouldn't run out of things to see and do.

Indeed. I am so glad I chose to leave London to live in God's own county

Fairburn Ings, Nostell Priory and Anglers country park are great walks if that’s your sort of thing.

Yorkshire Sculpture Park, national coal mining museum, Harewood house and cannon hall farm are nice days out.

We went to pugneys country park and sandal castle yesterday, it’s lovely there. Love the Hepworth art gallery, hopefully it’s open again by then.

Depends on the weather tbh.
Cannon hall park, Yorkshire sculpture park, nostell priory aren’t too far from Wakefield. Eureka is in Halifax so not that far either. @AndIquote had some good local suggestions.
Forbidden corner is a long way north probably at least an hour or more away if you’re only there a few days.

@Schonerlebnis

Depends on the weather tbh. Cannon hall park, Yorkshire sculpture park, nostell priory aren’t too far from Wakefield. Eureka is in Halifax so not that far either. *@AndIquote* had some good local suggestions. Forbidden corner is a long way north probably at least an hour or more away if you’re only there a few days.

OP said they might relocate to the Dales for a few days after the wedding.

If the weather is good you'll have a great time in the Dales. Recommend Bolton Abbey, farm park nearby, village of Burnsall and Billy Bob's as all being located in the nearest part of the Dales, all these attractions being close together and child friendly.