Picking up a hire car at Wellington Road Industrial Estate in Leeds means you’ll be ideally placed to visit the city centre or access the inner ring road to get out and about in the wider area. Together with neighbouring Bradford, Leeds forms one of the UK’s biggest urban areas and is the perfect gateway to the heart of the Yorkshire region.
Explore the city of Leeds
Once a hotbed of the industrial revolution, Leeds has been reborn as a glossy city-break attraction. Old warehouses and factories have found a new life in a glamorous city centre packed with designer shops, fashion boutiques and acclaimed restaurants. From the new Trinity Centre to the 150-year-old Corn Exchange, you’ll find some of the best shopping in Britain in today’s Leeds. And don’t miss Kirkgate Market. It’s the largest covered market in Europe and was where the Marks & Spencer business established its first ever stall.
Enjoy a trip to neighbouring Bradford
Bradford is another former commercial centre that has risen to become a cultural and leisure attraction. You’ll find exciting modern attractions like the interactive displays at the National Museum of Media where you can appear in your own TV show. If you’ve got a hire car you can drive to the wonderful World Heritage Site of Saltaire on the outskirts of Bradford. This is an intact 200-year-old mill complex complete with the rows of back-to-back terraced houses. Today it’s a fascinating area that includes a museum, arts centre and gallery, and plenty of quirky shops and cafes.
Delve further afield
Leeds can be the gateway to some memorable day trips into the surrounding area of Yorkshire. The old capital of the north, York, is a short drive to the northeast. Here’s you’ll be able to walk along the intact city walls dating back to the Romans, then wander through cobbled medieval streets to find the castle and the atmospheric Minster, one of England’s most famous churches.
Harrogate is another short drive from Leeds. This is a charming period spa town where you can browse up-market galleries and shops amid leafy parks and grand old houses. Betty’s teashop is an acclaimed local institution - it’s the best place to try traditional Yorkshire afternoon tea and cakes.
