WHY?

Young families and couples flock to Yorkshire, specifically Harrogate, to fill their boots with leafy parks, great schools, tempting house prices and a buzzy town centre that’s bursting with one-off shops, cafés and restaurants.

EAT

Make a beeline for Bettys, one of the most famous tea rooms in the UK and a town institution with cakes and pastries worth making the move for. Coach & Horses in the centre of town is the kind of gastropub everyone wishes were their local (think perfect fish pie and triple-cooked chips), while a table at The West Park Hotel is the place for a spot of people-watching over lunch – a culinary celebration of seasonal and local produce. For fancy dining, fill your belly at Michelin-approved Paradise Café at Daleside Nurseries.

SHOP

Yorkshire’s shopping capital is buzzing with indies, particularly around Commercial Street, Cold Bath Road and Kings Road. Try on quality pre-worn fashion at Elegant Era Vintage, browse the shiny shelves of elegant family-run Ogden of Harrogate Jewellers and wallow in literature galore behind the sky blue facade of Imagined Things Bookshop. For art, glassware, ceramics and accessories pay a visit to Inger & Rae and don’t forget to drop by The Cheeseboard to sample dozens of delicious local cheeses.

HEALTH & WELLBEING

If you can’t find relaxation in a spa town famous for its healing waters since 1571, where can you? Top spots include the Victorian Turkish Baths with beautiful Moorish design and Islamic arches or state-of-the-art spa sensation Rudding Parkwith its rooftop garden and Aufguss sauna rituals. You may recognise fitness studio owner Rachel Woolford, recent winner of The Apprentice, if you sign up to her burgeoning, boutique North Studio gym. More golf courses than you can shake a five iron at and tennis clubs, too, as well as booming racquet sports like pickleball and padel.

COMMUNITY

This tight-knit, friendly town welcomes volunteers and strives to put the fun into fund-raising. From firework displays to a Winter Ball, check out the latest feel-good events while Farmers’ Markets are held every second Thursday and an Artisan Market in Valley Gardens on the first Sunday of the month. The Harrogate & District Community Action (HADCA)charity supports local communities to make the district a great place to live and work. If you’ve time to spare, there are lots of ways to help from making tea to becoming an eco-warrior. Harrogate Community Radio shares a harmonious spirit through music – if it sounds like something you’d be interested in, they’d love to hear from you…

NEARBY ATTRACTIONS

Harrogate’s ringed by the magnificent Stray, 200-acres of open green space perfect for leisurly strolls, ball games and runs. Rudding Park Spa is worth tracking down for the rooftop pool and amazing thermotherapy treatments, or head below ground to magical Stump Cross Caverns, a subterranean network of caves underneath the Yorkshire Dales. Drive to the stunning gardens at Beningbrough Hall, Gallery and Gardens or the Himalayan Garden and Sculpture Park.

CULTURE

The Mercer Art Gallery houses more than 2,000 works of art which should keep art lovers happy for the foreseeable, while the Royal Pump Room Museum is a fascinating insight into crazy spa treatments through the ages (peat bath, anyone?). Harrogate’s also home to two excellent theatres, the Blues Café Bar, which has live music most nights of the week (and 60 different gins, just saying). Not forgetting the three-day long Great Yorkshire Show, an annual highlight on the outskirts of town.

AVERAGE HOUSE PRICE

house prices have dropped by 7% in the last, so strike while the prices are hot. Average high prices are £377,319. Most sales are semi-detached properties going for an average £375,133, while terraced properties sell for around £286,635.

HOT PROPERTY

NURSERIES

Ofsted outstanding nurseries are sprinkled across this family-friendly town, though there’s high demand for the best such as Acorns Playgroup, Tiny Teapots Private Day Nursery and the exceptionally idyllic Rigg Farm Montessori.

SCHOOLS

Ashville College is the top day and boarding school for kids aged 2-18 on a 64-acre site in town, while Harrogate Ladies College has a great reputation if you’re looking for a great girls’ school. The co-ed Harrogate Grammar School, which takes pupils aged 11-18, and St John Fisher Catholic Academy, a large co-ed for 11-18 year olds, should both be on your radar while St Aidan’s Church of England High School is in the top 100 non-selective secondary schools in the country. Western Primary School is an excellent state primary to move near.

BEST KEPT SECRET

Harrogate’s Victorian Turkish Baths are fully restored and a wonderful place to relax, rejuvenate and soak in the town’s healing waters.

COMMUTE

Hop on a train at Harrogate and you can be in Leeds in just over 30 mins, reach York in 40 mins and London Kings Cross in a little over three hours. Leeds Bradford Airport’s handy for trips to Europe.

View the full Top 300 Best Places to Live