Cheap days out in West Yorkshire

[FranklinDog]

Looking for some inspiration!

My DH has worked 7 days a week for the past 18 months and me & dd (10) have got stuck in a bit of a rut of not going anywhere/doing much outside of our very local area on the weekends.

We used to do more as a family and I feel like she's missing out. I want to get into the habit of visiting some fun/new places just the two of us. I don't have a lot of spare cash but we are on a train line and have access to a car. I am autistic so can find new places tricky sometimes but If we can easily get there by train or car (and it's easy to park) then it's usually fine.

We live on the outskirts of Bradford. There's barely anywhere in West Yorkshire we have visited so just assume we haven't been anywhere!

Can anyone recommend some nice parks, walks, interesting places to visit or things to do which are good on a budget?

@FranklinDog hopefully some inspiration 😊

leeds-list.com/yorkshire/free-things-to-do-in-yorkshire/

Salts mill
Leeds city museum is free
Temple newsham
Lotherton hall (good bird garden)
Brimham rocks
Bouldering walls
Tropical world
Yorkshire sculpture park

Ilkley Moor
Otley Chevin
Yorkshire sculpture park
I think Art Fund have an offer on for a 3 month pass for £15...worth a look for half price/ free entry to places.

Eureka museum in Halifax, if it's still there.

We’re West too and regularly visit Yorkshire sculpture park, Wentbridge garden centre, Leeds Museum, The Hepworth Gallary.

If its not too far...

Doncaster Dome. Ice skating and a pool with slides etc.
There's also ice skating in Sheffield

My hometown is in West Yorkshire.

Eureka in Halifax
Roundhay Park in Leeds which is also by Tropical World
Coal Mining Museum in Wakefield
Shibden Park in Halifax
Kirkstall Abbey in Leeds
Temple Newsam in Leeds
Standedge Tunnel in Huddersfield
Greenhead Park in Huddersfield

I love a coffee, browse in the shops and a people watch in hebden bridge!
Roberts Park and Salts Mill in Saltaire Lovely park and there is a gallery in Salts Mill.

Saltaire - Salts Mill, Roberts Park, take the tram up to Shipley Glen, walk through the woods to find the ruins of Titus Salts mansion
Halifax - the Piece Hall is fab for a wander, Manor Heath Park too
Bingley - Myrtle Park, St Ives, the canal & 5 rise locks
Keighley - East Riddlesden Hall, Cliffe Castle
Ilkley - Riverside Park, the Lido in summer, Ilkley moor has loads to explore- you can hunt down the rock art and the waterfalls
Skipton - the castle, castle woods and try the cake ole

Try this website for walks in the area with kids - https://www.thereluctantexplorers.com/
And this one for general days out https://yorkshiretots.com/

Lister park and Saltaire/Salts Mill and Roberts park are lovely inside of Bradford (I also used to love taking my little to the mirror pool in Bradford centre outside the media museum). Haworth is nice for a visit too.
When we lived in Bradford we either got he train to Ilkley or Skipton for walks, both are lovely - and if you go to Ilkley you can go to Betty's, it's smaller than the one in York so it's never as busy!

Further out is Eureka which we find a bit too busy to do everything but for younger kids is good.
York - railway museum which is free! And York is always nice to walk around - there's some harry potter shops down the Shambles.
The Armouries in Leeds is free and you can get the boat at the docks too.

On a budget I would work my way around the council run museums and parks.
Cliffe Castle in Keighley
St Ives in Bingley
Bankfield Museum
Royal Armouries
Leeds City Museum
Use the train to Saltaire for Roberts park and Salts Mill

In sunny bank mills in Farsley there is a scrap shop that most children would love to explore. You can drive and park for free in the large car park or get the train to New Pudsey Station and walk 10 minutes down.

Keighley and Worth Valley railway. If you don't want to spend on train tickets, you can get platform tickets for £1 each and spend some time watching the steam trains.

Woodbank Garden Centre in Harden is brilliant - they have a Victorian old penny arcade (you can change your money for 20p=1d) giant tortoises, a parrot and guinea pigs.

ETA: it's a good one to combine with St Ives Estate as recommended by pp as it's nearby.

Shibden park is really good, boating lake, really good playground, cafe, little train and Shibden Hall. It's on the Bradford side of Halifax so should be easy to get to.

Cannon Hall Farm near Barnsley
Yorkshire sculpture park near Wakefield.

Cliffs Castle Museum in Keighley is a bit of a hidden gem if you like proper museums full of old stuff Victorians liked. Cartwright Hall at Lister Park has a gallery.

The Keighley and Worth Valley railway is good, catch it Keighley to Haworth and have a look around there (you can also get a pint of beer on some of the trains) Not sure how much tickets are now though.

As others have said, Saltaire is always good, I could poke around the mill all day but there’s the park too.

East Riddlesden Hall in Keighley- NT property but has outdoor stuff too.

Thanks everyone, some great ideas here. I've made a list on Google maps so we can work our way through them.

We actually live in Saltaire village (hence why we stay local quite a lot) but agree it's the best place to visit!

The coal mining museum near Huddersfield is quite good. (Sounds dull, but wasn't!)

I came here to say this too! Had many happy visits there when my DC were small.

Thackeray Museum of Medicine in Leeds - haven’t been myself but really good apparently
What about doing the Owl Trail - download map and spend a day wandering around the centre finding all the different owl images across Leeds?

Oakwell Hall, Birstall, Shibden Hall and Piece Hall Halifax. Salts Mill. Great days out!

The art gallery in cartwright hall is excellent, as is the cafe in there.
We are spoiled for choice of walks near Saltaire. Harden waterfalls for instance are beautiful and it's a great place to walk.
The council has guided walks you can print out. They are detailed and varied.

Another council-run museum in Bradford is the Industrial Museum in Eccleshill - fab.

I've lived in Saltaire too - you're very lucky! Great spot and really easy to get the train out and about from.
Walks along the canal, I think there's a sculpture trail near you too now?
I think most of the places I would suggest have been mentioned - but also Skipton Castle. Lovely walks and cafes in Grassington and Linton (not far to drive). Bolton Abbey.
But further but well worth a visit - look up the Forbidden Corner. Go before your DD gets too old.

Are you on Facebook Yorkshire Tot to Teens is full of good ideas for entertaining kids in Yorkshire and is active with people suggesting and asking things.

If you go on their YT2T website there are sections for days out that are free, by area etc.