10 Best Sights in Leeds, Yorkshire

The family seat of the Earls of Harewood, cousins of the King, the spectacular, 1759, neoclassical Harewood House (pronounced har-wood) was created by York architect John Carr and the period's leading interior designer, Robert Adam—a project that was financed, sad to say, by money that came from sugar plantations and the slave trade. Highlights include important paintings by Gainsborough and Reynolds, fine ceramics, and a magnificent State Bed and other furniture by Chippendale, who was born in nearby Otley.

In June, July, September, and October there are periodic tours of the Private Apartments, which is where the earl and countess live and where you can see a notable collection of watercolors by JMW Turner and works by modern artists like Egon Schiele. The Old Kitchen and Below Stairs exhibition illustrates life from the servants' point of view.

Capability Brown designed the handsome grounds, and Charles Barry added a lovely Italian garden with fountains in the 1840s. Children will love the bird garden with over 40 rare and endangered species and the adventure playground. The estate is 7 miles north of Leeds; you can get here aboard the Harrogate District Bus 36.

These distinctive, slightly skewed concrete blocks by architect David Chipperfield form the largest purpose-built gallery in the United Kingdom outside London. Overlooking the River Calder, they house an impressive permanent collection of important works by 20th-century British artists, notably sculptors such as Henry Moore and Barbara Hepworth; painters that include  L. S. Lowry, Ben Nicholson, and Frank Auerbach; and photographers like Martin Parr. Rolling exhibitions devoted to contemporary art are displayed in the Calder gallery. The museum is in the down-to-earth West Yorkshire town of Wakefield, 12 miles south of Leeds off the M1.

This outdoor exhibition space near Wakefield is part of a former 18th-century estate encompassing more than 500 acres of fields, lakes, exotic trees, and rolling hills. The galleries in the park, garden, and three indoor spaces cut into a hillside are filled with a carefully curated collection that includes works by Henry Moore and Barbara Hepworth, as well as modern sculptors like Antony Gormley, Anthony Caro, and David Nash. A visitor center has a café, a self-service restaurant, a table-service restaurant, a gallery for temporary exhibitions, and information about the ecology and history of the estate. You can get here easily from Leeds by train or car.

East of Granary Wharf, the Calls, now the heart of Leeds's gay nightlife, has old riverfront warehouses converted into snazzy bars and restaurants that enliven the cobbled streets. The best have pleasant terraces overlooking the river.

Once at the heart of Leeds's decaying industrial zone, this regenerated development in the Canal Basin along the River Aire is now a trendy hub of chic bars and pleasant cafés. Granary Wharf is reached via the Dark Arches, brick railway tunnels now full of shops, where the River Aire flows under City Station.

Next door to the Victorian Town Hall, this impressive art museum has a strong core collection of works by Courbet, Sisley, Constable, and Crome; multiple 20th-century British masters; and the internationally acclaimed Yorkshire sculptor Henry Moore, who studied at the Leeds School of Art. The graceful statue on the steps outside the gallery is Moore's Reclining Woman. More works by Moore are at the adjacent Henry Moore Institute, which also has regular exhibitions of modern sculpture. The Craft Centre and Design Gallery, underneath the gallery, exhibits and sells fine contemporary crafts.

A 45-minute drive south from Leeds to Rotherham brings Yorkshire's industrial past into focus at this widely respected science museum housed in a former steelworks. Smoke, flames, and sparking electricity bring one of the original six arc furnaces roaring to life in a sound-and-light show. Four pavilions—one each devoted to fire, earth, air, and water—use interactive exhibits to illustrate the role of elements in science and technology. In summer, there's an outdoor adventure playground and an outdoor water park (both science-themed).

Occupying a redeveloped 13-acre dockland site 15 minutes from the city center, this state-of-the-art museum houses armaments in a collection that was begun during the reign of Elizabeth I, when select objects were displayed at the Tower of London. Four themed galleries (War, Tournament, Self-Defense, and Asian and African) trace the history of weaponry from around the world through some 4,500 objects. See Indian elephant battle armor (said to be the largest animal armor on display in the world), models of warriors on horseback, Henry VIII's suit of armor, and floor-to-ceiling tents. See daily spirited demonstrations of hand-to-hand combat, shoot a crossbow (extra charge), direct operations on a battlefield, or experience an Elizabethan joust (around Easter and the end of August).

A grand country estate in the middle of a city, this huge Elizabethan and Jacobean building—built around 1500 and remodeled in the 16th and 17th centuries––was at one point the family home and birthplace of Lord Darnley (1545–67), the notorious husband of Mary, Queen of Scots. It contains one of Britain's most important collections of fine and decorative arts, including furniture, paintings, and ceramics. Surrounding the house are 1,500 acres of parkland, lakes, gardens, miles of woodland walks, as well as a working rare breeds farm, where kids can enjoy a petting zoo. The park and gardens were created by noted 18th-century landscape designer, Capability Brown. Temple Newsam is 4 miles east of Leeds on A63; Bus 10 runs directly from Leeds Central Bus station from Easter to mid-September.

Even the squeamish won't balk at the exhibits in this museum devoted to presenting social and medical history in a kid-friendly way. Educational but entertaining interactive displays take you back to the disease-ridden Leeds slums of the 1840s, reveal the realities of surgery without anesthetics, and explore the history of childbirth. The museum is popular with school groups on field trips. It's a mile east of the city center and accessible by Buses 16, 42, 49, and 50.