Ripon

Ripon sits where the River Ure and River Skell meet on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales, a compact market city that has held city status since Anglo-Saxon times thanks to its cathedral. With a population of around 17,000, it is one of the smallest cities in England, built around a spacious market square dominated by a 90-foot obelisk and ringed by Georgian coaching inns and independent shops. Its skyline is unmistakable: the twin west towers of Ripon Cathedral, standing on the site of a monastery founded by St Wilfrid in 672AD.

What sets Ripon apart from other small Yorkshire towns is how much genuine history is packed into it. Beneath the cathedral lies an Anglo-Saxon crypt, one of the oldest intact pieces of church architecture in the country, built to house holy relics soon after Wilfrid returned from Rome. Above ground, every evening at nine o'clock, a robed hornblower still sounds a horn at each corner of the market obelisk, a tradition said to stretch back over a thousand years to when the city appointed a night watchman, or 'wakeman', to guard its gates. A few miles outside the city, the ruined splendour of Fountains Abbey and the ornamental water gardens of Studley Royal, together a UNESCO World Heritage Site, draw visitors from across the world. Ripon makes an ideal, low-key base for exploring this corner of North Yorkshire, close enough to Harrogate and the Dales to combine with a wider trip, but quiet and characterful enough to enjoy in its own right.

Top things to do in Ripon

Ripon rewards a slow wander, but there is also a genuine cluster of nationally significant sights within easy reach of the city centre.

• Ripon Cathedral — Consecrated on the site of St Wilfrid's 7th-century monastery, the cathedral mixes Norman, Early English and Gothic architecture above one of the oldest surviving Anglo-Saxon crypts in England.
• The Ripon Hornblower — Every night at 9pm, a hornblower in traditional dress sounds a horn at the market square obelisk, a ceremony recorded since the 9th century and said never to have been missed in over 1,100 years.
• Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal Water Garden — A few miles southwest of the city, this National Trust-run UNESCO World Heritage Site combines the largest monastic ruins in England with an 18th-century landscaped water garden and a medieval deer park.
• Ripon Racecourse — Known as 'the garden racecourse' for its well-kept grounds, it hosts a regular calendar of flat racing through spring and summer and is one of the prettiest small racecourses in the north of England.
• Newby Hall and Gardens — A short drive from the city, this Adam-designed stately home has gardens laid out along the River Ure, along with a miniature railway and adventure gardens for families.
• Ripon Museum Trust sites — The Workhouse Museum, Prison and Police Museum and Courthouse Museum together tell the story of law, order and poverty in Georgian and Victorian Ripon.
• Market Square and the Wakeman's House — One of the largest market squares in England, framed by the timber-framed Wakeman's House and a busy Thursday street market.

Getting to Ripon

Ripon is just off the A61 between Harrogate and Thirsk, with the A1(M) a short drive to the east, making it an easy stop for anyone travelling the A1 corridor through Yorkshire. Leeds Bradford Airport is around 40 minutes away by car. Ripon itself has no railway station; the nearest mainline stations are at Harrogate and Thirsk, both roughly 20 minutes away, with regular bus connections into the city centre from both. Local and regional bus services also link Ripon with Harrogate, Leeds and the surrounding Dales villages.

Best time to visit Ripon

Late spring and summer bring the longest days for exploring Fountains Abbey's grounds and the Dales beyond, along with the main season of flat racing at Ripon Racecourse. Autumn colours the Studley Royal water garden and deer park beautifully and tends to be quieter than midsummer. Ripon's Thursday market and its small but lively calendar of events, including the annual Ripon International Festival, run through much of the year, while a visit to the nightly hornblowing ceremony works whatever the season, rain or shine.

Where to stay in Ripon

Ripon's accommodation is centred on a handful of historic coaching inns and townhouse hotels around the market square and cathedral, alongside bed and breakfasts on the approach roads into the city. For those wanting more space or a rural setting, the surrounding villages and the edge of the Dales offer farmhouse stays, self-catering cottages and campsites within a short drive, making Ripon a practical base whether you want to be in the thick of the city or out among the fields.

Food and drink in Ripon

The Old Deanery, in a 17th-century former deanery next to the cathedral, is one of the city's best-known restaurants with rooms. The Royal Oak on Kirkgate is a popular gastropub serving modern British food in the heart of the city, while The Wheatsheaf and other market square pubs offer a more traditional Yorkshire pint and pub lunch. Ripon's Thursday market brings local produce into the square, and the city's bakeries and tearooms, several tucked into its narrow lanes, are a good spot for a break between sights.