Harrogate

Harrogate is a North Yorkshire spa town, 19 miles north of Leeds and roughly 35 minutes from Leeds station by train. Its population is around 164,000, and the town has consistently ranked among the higher-rated destinations in surveys of quality of life in Britain. Its wealth came from its mineral springs, which were first identified in the 16th century by William Slingsby and which were subsequently developed into a series of bath houses and pump rooms serving the Victorian upper classes.

What makes the Turkish Baths worth visiting?

The Turkish Baths on Parliament Street are the most distinctive piece of infrastructure the spa era left behind. They opened in 1897 as part of the Royal Baths complex, which cost around £120,000 to build and was officially opened by the Duke of Cambridge in July of that year. A thorough refurbishment between 2004 and 2006 restored the original Moorish tile work and plunge pools, and the baths remain in daily use, considered by spa historians to be the most historically complete operational Victorian Turkish baths in England. Sessions are bookable in advance and vary by time and gender-allocation schedule.

Bettys Cafe Tea Rooms on Parliament Street opened in 1919 and has become an institution across Yorkshire, with six locations in total. The Harrogate branch is the original and tends to have a queue, but moves relatively quickly. It is expensive by cafe standards and worth it for the pastries and the setting.

What else is there to see and do in Harrogate?

Valley Gardens, a 17-acre park to the south-west of the town centre, contains 36 of Harrogate's mineral wells and passes through formal gardens, wooded walks, and open lawns. The Mercer Art Gallery on Swan Road, housed in a former spa building, holds a permanent collection of 19th and 20th-century work and stages changing exhibitions.

The food scene in Harrogate has broadened significantly over the past decade, with a concentration of independent restaurants along Parliament Street, Montpellier Hill, and the streets around the Montpellier Quarter, which also holds independent clothes and homeware shops.

Harrogate suits those who want a quieter alternative to the larger Yorkshire cities, couples looking for a comfortable weekend with good food and a proper spa, and anyone who has an interest in the specific genre of Victorian civic confidence that this kind of town represents.