What to do with grandchildren in Yorkshire and Humber
23rd September 2019
With an area half the size of Belgium, Yorkshire is the UK’s largest county and one of the country’s most unique as it has its own flag, dialect and its own event, Yorkshire Day.
While people are often drawn to this part of England because of the incredible walking trails and cycle routes on offer, there are lots of family-friendly attractions in the county.
This means it is a great place to visit for grandparents that are looking after their grandchildren, which is becoming a common trend. It was recently revealed in an article on the Mirror that more grandparents are looking after their grandchildren with an estimated one million grandparents able to get credits worth £250 a year on their pension if they spend any time at all looking after their children's children.
This guide takes you through the most accessible attractions and activities grandparents and grandchildren can do in Yorkshire and Humber. So, even if you suffer from mobility problems and need to use aids like new models of walk in showers or stairlifts around your home, then all these attractions will be able to cater for you.
Flamingo Land Resort
Location: Malton, North Yorkshire
Website: https://www.flamingoland.co.uk/
Opening Times: 10am-5pm
Best for: Animal Lovers
Although it is in the name, Flamingo Land Resort has much more to offer than the bird as there are more than 100 species of animals in the zoo, including warthogs, red pandas, hippos, white and black rhinos, kangaroos, sea lions, snakes, penguins, lions, tigers and lots more.
As well as the zoo there is a theme park and this is home to a number of thrill rides and rides for kids. The thrill rides include the Mumbo Jumbo’s rollercoaster with its 112° vertical drop, while the family attractions include the Flamingo1 where you can experience all the thrills of a self-steer racing car.
Visitors with mobility issues are catered for at Flamingo Land as there are designated parking spaces reserved for disabled badge holders. They can also get two discounted entry tickets and rides are accessible to people with mobility problems.
Wheelchairs are available to rent for free and there are accessible toilets available through the attraction. The zoo is accessible to wheelchair users and visitors with mobility problems except for some raised viewing areas which have a set of steps leading up to them.
York Dungeon
Location: York
Website: https://www.thedungeons.com/york/en/
Opening Times: 11am-4pm (open to 5pm on weekends)
Best for: Crime and punishment enthusiasts
The York Dungeon allows visitors to live and breathe the city’s darkest history as you can walk through 11 live shows with actors in 75-minutes.
The award-winning attraction has specially designed sets and special effects as visitors experience 2,000 years of stories and meet characters from these times including Vikings, Dick Turpin and Guy Fawkes!
The facilities at York Dungeon have been designed so they are fully accessible to disabled visitors and those of you suffering from mobility problems. The dungeon has mainly level pathways, but there are stairlifts and slopes to help visitors. Electric wheelchairs are not permitted in the dungeon, but there are manual wheelchairs available to use.
York's Chocolate Story
Location: York
Website: https://www.yorkschocolatestory.com/
Opening Times: 10am-4pm
Best for: Chocoholics
If your not watching a chocolatier make chocolate this Monday, you’re doing it wrong... pic.twitter.com/a22m1rGttd
— York'sChocolateStory (@yorkschocstory) August 12, 2019
At York's Chocolate Story you can unwrap the history of chocolate through an informative guided tour. This takes you through the history of the most famous chocolate-making families in York and all their best creations.
York was famous for its chocolate for around 300 years and still today it remains as the UK’s home of chocolate.
Visitors will not only learn about this rich history of chocolate making but will learn the art of the chocolatier for yourself and how the sweet treat is made from bean to bar.
The York's Chocolate Story is very accessible as visitors can access all areas of the attraction with a lift being able to take visitors to different floors. There are also accessible toilets available and for people who are unable to stand during the tours, there are seats in each room.
North Yorkshire Moors Railway
Location: Pickering to Whitby
Website: https://www.nymr.co.uk/
Opening Times: 9am-6pm
Best for: Trainspotters
This popular attraction allows visitors to see 24 miles of amazing scenery and experience travel behind heritage steam locomotives in historic carriages.
The different stations are themed throughout the different steam eras and you can visit Goathland, which was used as the famous train station Hogsmeade in Harry Potter and is used as Heartbeat’s fictional train station Aidensfield.
During your trip, you can see picturesque bridges, meadows, tunnels and beautiful towns and villages along the route.
Visitors with mobility problems can ride on the heritage steam and diesel trains throughout the year, although some types of mobility scooters cannot be carried. Four of the five stations on the route are easily accessible for wheelchair users and others with mobility problems. Newtondale Halt does not have disabled access.
Eureka! The National Children's Museum
Location: Halifax
Website: https://www.eureka.org.uk/
Opening Times: 10am-4pm (Tues to Fri), 10am-5pm (Sat and Sun)
Best for: Explorers
Eureka! The National Children's Museum is not like other museums and there are six zones children and accompanying adults can explore during their visit.
Each of these zones is filled with interactive exhibits that have been specially designed to inspire inquisitive minds to help them learn about the world. The All About Me gallery is all about the human body, while other exhibits focus on the science of music and theatre.
The museum has level access at the entrance and the two floors are accessible by lift. This is why the attraction has previously been awarded one of the most accessible attractions in Britain by tourist boards in England, Scotland and Wales.
The Deep
Location: Hull
Website: https://www.thedeep.co.uk/
Opening Times: 10am-6pm
Best for: Budding marine biologists
The Deep is one of the best aquariums in the world as visitors can journey through the world’s oceans. You will travel from tropical lagoons to the depths of the coldest oceans, by exploring more than 5,000 different species living in 50 different displays.
The aquarium is informative and uses interactive displays, presentations and daily dive shows to open the marine world up to its visitors.
Some of the most popular exhibitions include the awakening seas, which explore four billion years of ocean history from giant fossils to Megalodon shark teeth, and the underwater viewing tunnel, which allows you to venture into the depths of our oceans.
The aquarium in Hull is the perfect place to take your grandchildren and if you are suffering from mobility problems, then you can visit the attraction without worrying about getting around. There is level access at the main entrance, two electric scooters, seven wheelchairs and four walking aids available to hire.
This guide has rounded up the top grandchild-friendly attractions in Yorkshire and Humber that are accessible to those with mobility problems and need aids like walk in showers and baths. Below we’ve recapped the top attractions:
- Flamingo Land Resort
- York Dungeon
- York's Chocolate Story
- North Yorkshire Moors Railway
- Eureka! The National Children's Museum
- The Deep
READ ALSO: Tips and advice for grandparents
This news article is from Handicare UK. Articles that appear on this website are for information purposes only.
