Vacation in Leeds

Introduction Leeds is a city in the metropolitan borough of the City ofLeeds in West Yorkshire in the north of England. The River Aireruns through the city. In 1974 the former county borough ofLeeds was merged with the towns of Wetherby, Morley, Otley,Pudsey, and other surrounding areas to form a metropolitanborough -- the city status of the county borough being conferredon the new metropolitan borough.HistoryLeeds was an agricultural market town in the middle ages, andreceived its first charter in 1207. In the Tudor period Leedswas mainly a merchant town manufacturing woollen cloths andtrading with Europe via the Humber estuary. At one point nearlyhalf of England's total export passed through Leeds. Theintroduction of the Leeds and Leeds Canal in 1816 and therailway in 1848 catalysed the city's industrial growth. Places of interest Despite its longtime reputation as a grimy northern industrialcity, Leeds will surprise anyone with the beauty and diversityof its City Centre. Some places to visit except the museums andart galleries: * Quarry Hill Cultural Quarter * Millennium Square * Leeds Arena * Harewood / Eastgate shopping quarters (commence Late2006/Early 2007) * Trinity Shopping Quarter (commence 2006) * South Leeds Sport Centre Museums and Art Galleries Leeds has a large number of museums, being the home of theRoyal Armouries Museum (opened in 1996), the Leeds City Museumwhich is dedicated to the history of Yorkshire, the Thackray'sMedical Museum and the Leeds City Art Gallery. Leeds also boaststhe Grand Theatre, the City Varieties music hall and the WestYorkshire Playhouse. Shopping While many cities can boast innumerable shopping centres andhigh street stores Leeds trademark is sophistication. It hasbecome the shopping Mecca of the North - Gucci, Prada, D&G graceHarvey Nic's rails. Excepts these, street shops like - KarenMillen, Jigsaw, Kookai, Lambretta, Vivienne Westwood, Joseph,Ted Baker and Mexx jostle, are waiting there to feast theshopping spree in Leeds. The heart of Leeds is The Headrow, thecity's main thor...

...oughfare. Along its length one can find some ofthe city's main attractions; the City Museum, City Art Galleryand The Henry Moore Institute which has the finest collection of20th Century paintings outside of the Tate. Off The Headrow isBriggate with its ornate shopping centres. The Grand Theatre andOpera House are located here also. Major shows visit regularlyso it's worth checking out. Over all the City Center hosts ashopping center that fulfills every need of shopping. Food & Drink The city of Leeds offers an extensive choice of places to eat,drink and relax. Award winning restaurants, Victorian pubs,fashionable wine bars and venues offering every type of ethniccuisine ensure that all tastes. Leeds has a very large studentpopulation and boasts a large number of bars and nightclubs, aswell as venues for live bands such as the Cockpit, The NewRoscoe, and Joseph's Well, which combine to generate a vibrantnightlife. For American style restaurants TGI Fridays,Wellington Street, Frankie and Benny's, Cardigan Fields,Kirkstall, Hard Rock Café are few to name. Babylon, 10 YorkPlace, Browns, The Headrow, The Calls Grill are some of Europeanstyle restaurants. From Chinese, French to Italian all type offood is available in Leeds. Listed are some famous among them:Cafe Rouge, Canton Flavour, Lucky Dragon, Little Tokyo, CactusLounge etc. Education Leeds has two universities, the University of Leeds, and LeedsMetropolitan University as well as various higher educationcolleges, including Trinity & All Saints' College accredited bythe University of Leeds, giving it one of the largest studentpopulations in the country. The main campuses of bothuniversities are near the city centre, as is that of thesimilarly revered College of Art. Leeds Grammar School, situatedon the outskirts of the city at Alwoodley Gates and dating backto 1552, is the principal public school for boys. Leeds Girls'High School is an independent, selective school for girls,located in Headingley and consistently ranked highly ineducation tables. Sports The town has a str...

...ong sporting heritage, with the YorkshireCounty Cricket Club, Leeds Rhinos (the Rugby League team) andLeeds Tykes (the Rugby Union team) playing at HeadingleyStadium, and Leeds United F.C. playing at Elland Road. Tours and Sightseeing An organized tour in Leeds consists of local sightseeingincluding museums and playhouses, shopping and Leeds Castle. Hotels and accommodations The dedicated team at SleepUK can assist and advise on all yourLeeds hotel requirements. Online and offline access to Leeds'accommodation network ensures travelers will be offered the bestpossible deal at the time of your visit whether you requireluxury hotels in Leeds or budget hotels in Leeds. Hotels in all categories are opening in Leeds all the time,reflecting the city's renewed prosperity and popularity as ashort-break destination. Whether you are visiting Leeds on vacation or just on businesstrip, you may need to find accommodation in Leeds and stayovernight in a B&B or a budget or luxury hotel. Leeds has lots of budget and luxury hotels. They are very muchconvenient, friendly and comfortable. Among them - Ascot GrangeHotel, MalmaisonHotel, Hotel LeedsExpress by Holiday InnLeeds, City Centre, The ButlersHotel, Haley's Hoteland Restaurant, Weetwood HallConference Centre & Hotel, 42 The Calls,HarewoodArms, Quebecs, The LeedsBoutique Hotel, Golden LionHotel, Comfort InnLeeds, Merrion Hotel,Harman Suites1 & 2, Self-Catering Apartments, Nea Ramada,Leeds ParkwayHotel, Village Hotel &Leisure Club Leeds are few to name about. TransportIt has in the past been served well by its canal, and today byits rail network at Leeds station, from where Metro Trainsoperate to all parts of West Yorkshire and other operators tothe rest of the country. Leeds Station is the busiest in the UK,outside London. With two motorway (the A1 (M), M1 and M62)intersecting at Leeds, it is the principal northern hub of themotorway network. Leeds Bradford International Airport is locatedto the north-west of the city and has scheduled flights todestinations within the U.K and Europe.