Travel

By Air

Leeds is very accessible by air, served by its own airport – shared with Bradford. It is also possible to fly direct to Leeds from Heathrow and Amsterdam, amongst a wide range of other destinations. Leeds is a member airport of Star Alliance. Low-cost airline Jet2 also provides a large range of European flights from Leeds, which is its main base. Leeds Bradford airport is about 10 miles north-west of the City Centre, outside the suburb of Yeadon. Cabs are in plentiful supply and there is a regular bus service (the 757) into the city.If travelling from Asia and the United States Manchester International Airport provides the most direct access to Leeds, with direct, swift (around an hour from the airport to Leeds) trains running through the night (although they’re only every couple of hours or so after 1am). The rapidly growing Doncaster Sheffield Robin Hood International Airport (Doncaster or Robin Hood will suffice to make yourself understood) is also within easy reach of Leeds.Leeds has a busy, modern train station, one of the biggest in the country with regular trains to a huge range of destinations all over the UK. For example, GNER & Midland Mainlineserve London (2-2.5 hrs), Trans-Pennine Express serve Manchester(about an hour), York (20-30 mins), Newcastle (about 90 mins). Virgin Cross Country also serve the south-west, Birmingham and Scotland. You can check timetables here. Leeds City Station is just off City Square, right in the heart of the City Centre. There are many major bus stops serving the whole city within 2-3 minutes walk of the station, principally on Infirmary Street. Cabs wait outside the station, but many hotels, attractions and the main shopping area are within easy walking distance of the station.Express coaches also serve Leeds’ modern Bus Station – for cheap ones from Newcastle and London check Megabus.com or for slightly more expensive ones from a far wider variety of destinations, try National Express. The Yorkshire Coastliner bus connects Leeds with York and the beautiful Yorkshire coast, though the train is faster and more comfortable. Leeds Bus & Coach station is in the east of the City Centre, near Quarry Hill, where the Playhouse is situated. It is an easy walk to the main shopping area, and by 2011 extensive renovation will have linked the station to the main shopping area. In the mean time, to reach further parts of the City Centre, the Free City Bus stops here, and of course many of the city’s main bus routes terminate in the Bus Station.

By Road

Leeds is perhaps the best connected UK city by road, lying right in the centre of the country, halfway between London and Edinburgh on the A1 (now largely motorway), and halfway between the two coasts, linked to Liverpool, Manchester, the M6 and Hull by the M62. The M1 motorway runs from London to Leeds via Milton Keynes, Leicester, Nottingham and Sheffield. Whilst driving into Leeds and around the City Centre, particularly at rush hour, is best avoided, making the trip by car is fairly uncomplicated, with the M621, A64, A65, A61, A58 and several other major roads converging on central Leeds.

By Ferry

Ferries can be caught from Rotterdam and Zeebrugge to Kingston Upon Hull, which is only an hour away by train, car or by coach.

Getting around

Getting around Leeds is fairly easy. The bus service isn’t bad – most major routes within the city are every 10 minutes or so. If you’re just visiting the City Centre, you might as well walk, as much of it is suprisingly compact. Taxis can be expensive, but the black and white ones are licensed and safer than private hire cabs. There is a FreeCityBus that loops around much of the City Centre every 10 minutes during the day. There is a limited suburban train service, which is unlikely to be of much use to the casual visitor, but plans are underway for a radical overhaul of the city’s transport system since the proposed tram system had its funding withdrawn by the government.To orientate yourself, free maps are available at the tourist information and a number of visitor attractions. There are some street maps dotted around the City Centre, and it is possible to download one online at the city’s tourist website (quite simple but good for basic orientation) or in guide books, street atlases, etc. However, Leeds’ central area is fairly compact with most of the major attractions and shops within walking distance of one another.Useful bus routes for visitors include:

• 1 – Running from Holt Park in North West Leeds through Headingley, past the Universities, through the City Centre and on to Beeston
• 2 – Runs from Middleton in South Leeds through the City Centre to Chapel Allerton, Moortown along Street Lane through Roundhay to Roundhay Park
• 3 – Also connects South Leeds, the City Centre and Chapel Allerton
• 12 & 13 – links the City Centre, South, Harehills, Oakwood and Roundhay Park
• 18 – Links North West Leeds, Headingley Cricket Ground, the City Centre and Temple Newsham as well as other East Leeds destinations
• 28 – Connects the Clarence Dock, City Centre, Headingley, and Adel
• 95 & 96 – run along the main City Centre-Headingley-Otley Road corridoor
• 97 – Leeds to Bradford via Headingley and Guiseley
• 757 – connects the City Centre and airport

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