During the Victorian period, when Harrogate was a prestigious health resort, the Valley Gardens were developed to give visitors a pleasant place to walk as part of their health regime, before taking ‘the cure’ of the spa waters.
So there is no better place to walk off the excesses of a trip to Harrogate than walking through this beautiful park in the centre of town, and onwards through the Pine Woods to RHS Garden Harlow Carr. This is our favourite walk in Harrogate, and the one we send all our visitors on.
The walk runs 1.5 miles (2.4km) each way from Valley Gardens to RHS Garden Harlow Carr. It is gentle, mostly flat with one uphill stretch, dog friendly for much of the route, and takes as little as 30 minutes each way or a whole leisurely day with stops.
The route is 1.5 miles (2.4km) each way, so you could yomp it quickly in 30 minutes each direction, but we would advise allowing longer for wandering, sightseeing and refreshment stops.
Your walk starts in Valley Gardens in the centre of town, climbs gently through the Pine Woods, and finishes at RHS Garden Harlow Carr, where you can have lunch before retracing your steps.
Because the walk is 1.5 miles each way, you might want to have a hearty breakfast first. There are plenty of good independent spots for this in Harrogate, and we have rounded up our favourites in our full guide to a weekend break in Harrogate.
Enter Valley Gardens through the entrance opposite the Pump Room Museum at the bottom of Montpellier Hill.
Take the path on the left, the lower of the three options, and begin your stroll through these beautifully maintained gardens, which are English Heritage Grade II Listed. -Interestingly, the Victorians erected a covered glass walkway over the lower path through the gardens so that visitors could enjoy a healthy walk in all weathers.
As you walk, you will pass the Magnesia Well Tea Room, the Ripley ice cream outlet, and a boating pond for model boats. Opposite the Magnesia Well Tea Room is a circular flower bed called the Wells Bed, with a lovely nymph statue in the middle, although the nymph is removed over the winter months.
To the right of the Wells Bed you will see the Harrogate 1571 sculpture, dedicated to the town’s 89 natural springs, which lights up beautifully at night. If the town’s spa heritage catches your interest, it is the same story we tell in our guide to the Turkish Baths Harrogate.
Continue on the left-hand path, taking a quick detour through the beautiful and tranquil Japanese Garden.
As you exit at its top side, you will see a large children’s playground ahead, and tennis courts to the right. Turn right in front of the playground so the pitch and putt course is on your right. After the pitch and putt, turn left onto a path that climbs uphill, passing a disc golf field on the left and a bowling green on the right.
Keep going until you reach a wooded area and a fork in the path. This is the start of the Pine Woods.
Valley Gardens is dog friendly, however dogs must be kept on a lead whilst in the gardens.
Take the right hand path at the fork and follow it through the Pine Woods until it meets a road. Cross over the road and pick up the path directly opposite, continuing back into the woods.
The Pine Woods cover around 96 acres of semi-natural woodland with several paths winding through, but stay on the main path for this walk.
You will pass a clearing on the left which is popular with dog walkers, and further along a viewpoint on the right with binoculars for looking across the fields towards the Army Foundation College and beyond. Eventually, just before the path reaches a road, you will see a sign pointing left for RHS Garden Harlow Carr. Take that path and follow it to the road crossing for the garden.
You can let your dog off the lead in the Pine Woods, which makes this a lovely stretch for four-legged companions.
RHS Garden Harlow Carr is the highlight of the walk, and worth building time into your day for. It offers stunning gardens with spectacular seasonal displays and activities, a serene place for a wander at any time of year. There is a good garden centre on site and a large shop, perfect for picking up gifts.
If you want to see the meadow flowers at their best, or particular types of flowers in bloom, then check our guide to the best time of year to visit Harrogate can help you choose.
A few practical things to know before you go:
Tickets: Entry is ticketed, and it is best to book through the official RHS website for the latest prices and opening times.
RHS membership: If you have a Royal Horticultural Society membership, entry to Harlow Carr is included, so bring your card. If you visit RHS gardens regularly, membership can quickly pay for itself.
Bettys access: You can reach the Bettys Café at Harlow Carr from outside the garden, without paying for admission, so you can still have lunch there even if you skip the gardens.
Dogs: Dogs are not allowed inside RHS Garden Harlow Carr except during their special 'bring your dog into the gardens' events, so check the RHS website for those dates..
There are a few good options depending on whether you have a dog with you.
Bettys is a Yorkshire institution, famous well beyond the county, and either a sure bet for a lovely lunch. You may need to queue for a table, but if you have time on your side the wait is worth it. Remember you can access this café without paying for garden admission.
Originally a Victorian hotel for guests taking the Harlow Carr spa waters, it has recently reopened within the garden boundary and uses seasonal produce grown in the RHS gardens. As dogs are not allowed inside Harlow Carr, you cannot bring one here.
If you have a dog with you, pick up a coffee and light lunch at the Bamber and Brown’s teepee with its outdoor seating. They serve good cakes and light bites such as bagels and pizza at the weekend. To find it, turn right instead of left at the end of the Pine Woods path and walk past the overflow car park, and it is only a couple of minutes along the lane.
Once you are ready, retrace your steps through the Pine Woods and back into Valley Gardens, as far as the junction with the pitch and putt course. This time, turn left briefly to see the Old Magnesium Well Pump Room, built in 1858. This pump once dispensed mineral waters rich in sulphur and iron, used to treat gout, rheumatism, digestive disorders and anaemia. The building is occasionally open on Valley Gardens heritage days.
From the Pump Room, continue back towards the circular Wells Beds. From there you can either take the left-hand path up to the Sun Pavilion and walk south along the Colonnades, or take the middle path and keep an eye out for the fossilised tree stump, up to 300 million years old, one of the facts we picked up on Harry’s walking tour of Harrogate.
The Sun Pavilion is a beautiful space that opened in 1933, with one main room crowned by a stunning Art Deco glass dome that floods it with light. After restoration, it was reopened by Queen Elizabeth II in 1998 and now serves as a wedding and events venue.
In front of the Sun Pavilion is a terrace looking over the lawn down to a bandstand, and to the east side are the Colonnades, a partially covered walkway designed to let the sunshine through onto those sitting beneath. In Victorian times it would have been lined with deckchairs, and it leads back down to the Pump Room entrance of Valley Gardens.
If you happen to visit on the first Sunday of the month, you can enjoy the Valley Gardens Artisan Market along the Colonnades, ideal for picking up presents or souvenirs.
Back at your starting point, after all that walking and sightseeing, you may be ready for a restorative drink at Hales Bar, Harrogate’s oldest gas-lit bar, dating back to 1776. The interior even featured in the Oscar-winning film Chariots of Fire. It is popular with locals and tourists alike and attracts a wonderfully varied crowd, making it one of the most laid-back bars in town.
For more places to eat and drink once you are back in the centre, our weekend break in Harrogate guide has plenty of ideas.
If you are after a proper full-day walk but would rather not travel too far, the walk out to Almscliffe Crag is a lovely one. This distinctive Millstone Grit outcrop sits about four miles south-west of Harrogate above the Lower Wharfe Valley, with sweeping views over Wharfedale, and it is a longstanding favourite with walkers and climbers alike. Best of all, you can finish, or break, at the Square and Compass pub in the pretty village of North Rigton, roughly a 40-minute stroll from the crag, for a well-earned pint or a plate of good food.
It is just one of the walks we love around this corner of North Yorkshire. For this route and plenty more, have a browse of our full walks guide.
Join thousands of travelers looking for inspiration from our FREE Planet Travel newsletter!
Your step-by-step framework for stress-free, unforgettable trips — from first idea to final itinerary.
Your step-by-step framework for stress-free, unforgettable trips — from first idea to final itinerary.
Join thousands of travelers looking for inspiration from our FREE Planet Travel newsletter!
