Handy, hedonistic, hip, holistic, here & now, humongous… all the best H-words apply to Headingley. Even Hobbits (really, JRR Tolkien was here).
More moves than strictly
About two miles from the city centre, Headingley does buses big time. If all the timetables were laid end-to-end they’d reach our nearest neighbouring star system. Fact.
Buses 1, 6, 19, 19a, 28, 56, 97, X84, X85 run regularly to the city centre
40 min walk to Leeds city centre
Buses 1, 6, 28 and 97 run regularly to the universities
M62, M1, A64M and A1M easily reached
Railway straight into city centre
Leeds Bradford Airport 15 minutes’ drive
Leeds Beckett has a campus in Headingley
Shoptastically yours
Headingley Central has Sainsbury’s, Greggs, Wilko’s, Costa, Boots…all the mainstream-style brands. But the town’s also famous for more boutiquey, eccentric and independent emporia. So you can buy spaghetti hoops and a Javanese funeral banjo in the same locality. Result.
Sue Ryder Vintage & Retro, plus many more charity shops
The Bowery – coffee shop/art and events space/craft workshops/gifts
The Workshop – coffee shop - with rentable sewing machines, obvs
Growlers – craft beers, and somewhere to fill your growler (take-away jug)
In the boring-but-useful category - several banks and a post office
To do
If you’re a cricket-loving, art-focused, hiking, biking, rugby nut, hipster creative, footie fan, film-going, audiophile, historian-cum-futurist, nature freak, world citizen humanist kind of a person (and who isn’t), Headingley is right up your street. No room to list it all, but here are a few ideas…
Cottage Road Cinema – built in 1912 and possibly the cutest cinema in the world
Headingley Stadium – cricket and rugby league par excellence
Beckett Park – gorgeous greenery and tennis-ness
Meanwood Valley Nature Reserve – nice bogs and more
Athletics Centre – Leeds Becket Uni Campus
Bad Brains MBC – a no-brainer for the mountain biking-minded
Night. eats & drinks
We have to mention the Otley Run, a legendary pub crawl/fancy dress fest that starts – and sometimes never goes further than – Headingley. Then there’s the dining dilemma of just so many restaurants and cafes to choose from, classic ale type pubs and oh-so-hip bars. You are easily spoilt for choice in Headingley, so here are some pointers…
Proper pubs – The Original Oak, Skyrack, Three Horseshoes
Woodie’s Craft Alehouse – fab craft ales in a house owned by Woodie
Manahatta – cool New York-inspired bar, DJs on weekends
The Box Bar Open Mic – Tuesday nights, free drink for every performer
Red’s True BBQ – truly awesome
The Cat’s Pyjamas – top Indian street food
Ecco Pizzeria – Neapolitan, wood fired, authentic
Nandos – no introduction needed
Santorini Bar & Grill – A TripAdvisor favourite
*Not.
Other student-friendly areas nearby
