North East
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A food tour of Jet2 destinations
On a recent sunny Saturday afternoon I was invited on a walking tour of Leeds by Jet2holidays to sample delicious food through some of the fantastic Jet2 destinations you can fly to from Leeds Bradford Airport. The meeting point was outside the Queens Hotel as being close to the city’s railway station was an ideal…
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The Five Rise Locks celebrates its 250th anniversary
The locks at Bingley in West Yorkshire are considered one of the greatest feats of canal engineering of their day and are Grade I listed, in the same category as York Minster and Buckingham Palace. They sit on the Leeds to Liverpool canal, once one of England’s most important transport routes. The Bingley Five Rise…
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The Seaburn Inn, Seaburn, Tyne and Wear
Hotel Review Location: The Seaburn Inn is situated in the seaside resort of Seaburn, close to Sunderland in the north east of England. For motorists, the area is accessible by taking the A1231 junction from the A1 and for those guests arriving by train Seaburn Station is served by Tyne and Wear Metro. Arrival and check-in:…
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The Black Swan Hotel, Helmsley
Overview: The Black Swan Hotel is a characterful inn dating back to the 15th century with an Elizabethan building on one end, a Tudor one on the other and a Georgian House sandwiched in between. Location: The hotel is located in the centre of the attractive town of Helmsley within the North York Moors…
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The Harrogate Inn – Hotel Review
Hotel Review Harrogate is a spa town in North Yorkshire noted for its beautiful parks, gardens, elegant buildings, Turkish baths, high class shops and tearooms. I recently had the pleasure of visiting the town and staying at the beautiful Harrogate Inn. Overview: The Harrogate Inn is a historic, centrally located hotel formerly known as the…
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The Tempest Arms, Elslack, Skipton
Hotel Review The Tempest Arms is a newly refurbished 17th century country inn nestled in beautiful countryside on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales boasting a restaurant, 21 bedrooms and suites. Location: The inn is located in the small village of Elslack within a 15 minute drive of the picturesque market town of Skipton, North…
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Harrogate – Travel Guide
Harrogate: Harrogate is a spa town in North Yorkshire noted for its beautiful parks and gardens, elegant buildings, Turkish baths, high class shops and tearooms. During the Victorian era the town became very popular as a spa town thanks to the curative properties of its high sulphur content mineral springs. Harrogate attracted the great and…
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Stump Cross Caverns and Parcevall Hall Gardens
The morning began with overcast skies but as we’d planned to tour some caves it didn’t matter too much. After a tasty breakfast of smashed avocado and poached eggs on sourdough and my usual two cups of coffee, I was raring to go. Leaving our base at the Tempest Arms in Elslack it was just…
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A ride on the Embsay Steam Railway, North Yorkshire
After enjoying a delicious breakfast at the Tempest Arms in Elslack we set off for a ride on the Embsay Steam Railway. Embsay is a picturesque village located just a five minute drive from Skipton with the station lying on the edge of the village and having its own free car park. The heritage railway…
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Exploring Skipton, North Yorkshire
Skipton is often referred to as the ‘Gateway to the Dales’ due to its close proximity to the Yorkshire Dales National Park. With its historic castle, bustling market and picturesque canal basin, the town is a lovely place to visit and we were excited to be spending a short break exploring the area. We arrived…
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Falcon Manor, Settle, North Yorkshire
Hotel Review Falcon Manor is a beautiful country house hotel dating from 1841 that was constructed for Reverend Swale with money provided by his two grandmothers to befit his status in the local community. Originally known as Ingfield Hall after the field in which it was built, this grand Tudor mansion has changed ownership several times.…
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The Fleece, Addingham, West Yorkshire
Restaurant Review The Fleece pub and restaurant is located in the village of Addingham which lies between Ilkley and Silsden in West Yorkshire. The pub stands in a handsome Yorkshire stone building and even in winter its large outdoor terrace looked inviting with its covered canopy illuminated with fairy lights. On entering the door there’s…
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The Feversham Arms, Helmsley, North Yorkshire
Location: The Feversham Arms Hotel is one of the north of England’s most luxurious country house hotels and is a perfect place to come and unwind. The hotel is located on the edge of the attractive town of Helmsley within the North York Moors National Park and being just off the A170, it is a short…
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The Wensleydale Hotel, Middleham, North Yorkshire
Hotel Review Location: The Wensleydale Hotel is located in the delightful small town of Middleham nestled on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales National Park. It’s just two miles from the bustling market town of Leyburn and 10 miles from Richmond. For those travelling from London or the south, Middleham can be reached by taking…
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Exploring Hawes, Wensleydale
Our stay at the Wensleydale Hotel had been lovely and before checking out we enjoyed another of their delicious breakfasts to set us up for the day. We then packed up the car and headed off to explore more of this beautiful part of Yorkshire. Our first stop was at Aysgarth Falls just a 25 minute…
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A walk around Richmond, North Yorkshire
Our day started in the best way possible with a delicious breakfast at the Wensleydale Hotel, Middleham and this set us up nicely for the day ahead. We’d planned to spend the day exploring the historic market town of Richmond, noted for its Norman castle, elegant Georgian architecture and riverside setting. It took us just…
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Weekend in Wensleydale
We were up bright and early for our road trip to scenic Wensleydale in North Yorkshire. The area is famous for the cheese to which it gives its name but for lots of other interesting things too as we were soon to discover. Our first stop was to the village of Masham (pronounced massham) to…
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The Great Yorkshire Show 2022
The Great Yorkshire Show (GYS) was back with a bang this year with all 140,000 tickets selling out in advance of the 2022 show. The 163rd show took place between 12-15 July in Harrogate, North Yorkshire with fine weather and mostly sunny conditions each day. The show is England’s premier agricultural event organised by the…
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Afternoon Tea at The Devonshire Arms, Bolton Abbey
When an invitation dropped into my inbox inviting me for afternoon tea at the Devonshire Arms Hotel I couldn’t have been happier as it’s such a beautiful country house hotel. It’s located on the Yorkshire estate of the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire in Bolton Abbey lying in a tranquil setting along the banks of the…
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Getting festive at the Jet2 City Breaks Christmas Event
A few weeks ago I was excited to receive an email from the lovely people at Jet2 inviting me to attend their bloggers Christmas party and before I knew it the day had arrived. All glammed up with party dress on, I caught a train into Leeds and found my way to Headrow House located…
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The Great Yorkshire Show, Harrogate
After the disappointment of last year’s show having to be cancelled due to the pandemic I was excited to be returning to Harrogate this summer. The Great Yorkshire Show is one of the largest agricultural shows in the country and a wonderful showcase of rural life. Organising an event of this size to make it COVID…
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A Day in Newcastle
To complete our weekend break in Durham we decided to spend our final day in Newcastle. Trains run frequently between the two cities taking just 15 minutes, with standard off-peak adult returns £7.90. As it was a Sunday we were able to travel on any service so we arrived into Newcastle station bright and early…
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Exploring Durham Cathedral and University
Sunshine streamed through the windows as we drew back the curtains and it looked as if the previous day’s beautiful weather was continuing. We started the day with a walk through Durham’s Market Place where stalls had been set up for the weekly Saturday market. Being unable to resist a browse through the stalls, we…
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A weekend in Durham
Durham is a small city nestled on the banks of the River Wear in the north east of England. It’s famous for its Norman cathedral, 11th century castle and world renowned university, with this part of the city designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. In his book ‘Notes from a small island’ Bill Bryson called…