Follifoot

Follifoot is a small village and civil parish in North Yorkshire, tucked into rolling parkland and farmland about four miles southeast of Harrogate on the A658. Its unusual name is thought to come from Old Norse, meaning roughly 'place of the horse fight' - a nod to a medieval combat sport, and locals believe the village was once a centre for training and staging horse contests. Follifoot does not appear in the Domesday Book; the earliest documentary references to it date from the 12th century in old land and tax records.

What the village lacks in size it makes up for in character. The green still holds a set of restored stocks, an old horse pond and an animal pound, alongside a weathered Saxon cross thought to date from the 7th or 8th century. At the top of the village stands the Rudding Park estate, a roughly 2,000-acre property whose grand house was largely built in the early 19th century for the Hon. William Gordon, after Lord Loughborough had earlier brought in the landscape designer Humphry Repton to shape its grounds. The Mackaness family, who have owned Rudding Park since 1972, transformed the house into one of the north of England's best-known hotel, spa and conference destinations, and the wider estate now includes a golf course, kitchen garden and holiday park alongside the working farmland that still surrounds the village.

Top things to do near Follifoot

Follifoot's setting between Harrogate and Knaresborough means visitors have two well-known Yorkshire towns, plus the Rudding Park estate itself, within very easy reach.

• Rudding Park Estate - the historic house and grounds at the top of the village, now home to a hotel, spa, golf course and kitchen garden that supplies its Horto restaurant.
• RHS Garden Harlow Carr - a 58-acre Royal Horticultural Society garden on the edge of Harrogate, with woodland, streamside walks and seasonal floral displays.
• Harrogate Turkish Baths - a beautifully preserved Victorian Turkish bath dating from 1897, with Moorish-style mosaics and steam rooms still in everyday use.
• Knaresborough Castle - the ruins of a former royal stronghold set high above the River Nidd, a short drive from Follifoot.
• Mother Shipton's Cave - England's oldest tourist attraction, in Knaresborough, tied to the legend of the 15th-century prophetess and including a petrifying well.
• Stockeld Park - a family-friendly estate near Spofforth with woodland activities and seasonal events, a few miles from the village.

Getting to Follifoot

Follifoot sits directly on the A658, which links Harrogate to Wetherby and the A1(M), making the village straightforward to reach by car. Harrogate itself, around four miles away, has a mainline railway station with regular services to Leeds and York, from where connections run across the country; Leeds Bradford Airport is also within about a 30-minute drive. There is no railway station in Follifoot itself, so most visitors arrive by road or taxi from Harrogate.

Best time to visit Follifoot

Spring and early summer bring the gardens at Harlow Carr and Rudding Park's own grounds into full bloom, while autumn colours the parkland and estate woodland around the village. Summer is the busiest period for the wider Harrogate and Knaresborough area, with outdoor events and riverside activity in full swing, while winter has its own appeal thanks to Rudding Park's well-known festive light trail and the cosy pull of Harrogate's Turkish Baths on a cold day.

Where to stay near Follifoot

The obvious choice is Rudding Park itself, the country house hotel and spa at the top of the village, which also operates a holiday park with lodges and touring pitches set within the estate's parkland. Harrogate, a few minutes away by car, offers a much wider range of hotels and guest houses for those wanting to be closer to the town's restaurants and shops.

Food and drink near Follifoot

Rudding Park's own restaurants, including the spa-side Horto, draw on produce grown in the estate's kitchen garden. The Deer House family pub near the estate is a popular stop for a casual meal with outdoor seating. For a wider choice of cafes, pubs and restaurants, Harrogate town centre is only a short drive away and offers everything from traditional Yorkshire tea rooms to contemporary dining.