Things to Do in Leeds When It Rains

When it rains in Leeds, head for the Royal Armouries, Leeds City Museum, Kirkgate Market and the covered arcades in town, or go further out for Tropical World in Roundhay, the Thackray Museum of Medicine and a film at the gas-lit Hyde Park Picture House. Most of the city centre ones are free or Give What You Can, and you can link several without spending long outdoors. Hours and prices were checked in October 2026.

The Royal Armouries

The best wet weather plan in Leeds is free. The Royal Armouries at Leeds Dock opens 10am to 5pm, Tuesday to Sunday in term time and daily in school holidays; book a free ticket first. Allow two to three hours. The Hall of Steel staircase is lined with 2,500 objects, there is armour for an elephant weighing 118kg, and the daily combats and shows mean kids stay interested well past lunch. It is a 20 to 25 minute walk from the station, so bring a brolly for that bit.

Leeds City Museum and Leeds Art Gallery

On Millennium Square, Leeds City Museum opens Tuesday to Friday 10am to 5pm and weekends 11am to 5pm, with a suggested £5 donation. The Leeds Tiger, in the city since 1862, and Nesyamun the 3,000 year old mummy are the headliners, and the Herbarium Cafe is there when you need a sit down. Ten minutes away on The Headrow, Leeds Art Gallery is open Tuesday to Saturday 10am to 5pm and Sunday 11am to 3pm. Its Tiled Hall Cafe, the old reading room of the 1884 Municipal Buildings, is the warmest-looking room in the city on a grey afternoon.

Shop under glass

Leeds built its shopping streets with the weather in mind. The Victoria Quarter has Brian Clarke's stained-glass roof over the whole of Queen Victoria Street, 125 metres of it, plus Frank Matcham's County and Cross Arcades. Most shops at Victoria Leeds open Monday to Saturday 10am to 6pm and Sunday 11am to 5pm. From there it is a short dash to the Corn Exchange on Call Lane, Cuthbert Brodrick's Grade I listed home of independent traders, open until 9pm on Thursdays and 10.30am to 4.30pm on Sundays.

Kirkgate Market

Kirkgate Market on Vicar Lane opens Monday to Saturday 8am to 5.30pm, closed Sundays. With around 800 stalls under cover, you can spend a whole morning in it, and the food hall sorts lunch. It is where Marks & Spencer started as a penny bazaar in 1884, if you need a fact for the group chat.

Tropical World

If the sky is grey, go somewhere warm. Tropical World on Princes Avenue in Roundhay has a butterfly house, an aquarium, a desert house and a rainforest canopy, plus meerkats, monkeys and crocodiles. Adults pay £9.50, children aged 3 to 15 pay £5.50 and under 3s are free. It opens 10am to 6pm, dropping to 10am to 4pm from late October, and closes on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year's Day.

The Thackray Museum of Medicine

At 141 Beckett Street, next to St James's Hospital, the Thackray is a museum of medicine that holds the attention of teenagers better than most. It opens daily except Tuesdays, 10am to 4pm with last entry at 3.15pm, and every day during Leeds school holidays. You choose your price: £9, £12 or £16, and children six and under go free. The Sparks soft play area is £3.50 a child for younger ones who have had enough of history.

Abbey House Museum

In Kirkstall, Abbey House Museum has recreated Victorian streets you can walk down without getting wet, plus galleries of old toys. Adults pay £7.35, children £3.60 and a family ticket is £16.25. It is closed on Mondays except bank holidays. If the rain eases, Kirkstall Abbey is just across the road.

A film and a pint

The Hyde Park Picture House at 73 Brudenell Road calls itself the only gas-lit cinema in the country, and still runs 35mm prints on two 1960s projectors. A weekday matinee before 4.30pm is £6.50 and a full price ticket is £10.50. Afterwards, the Brudenell Social Club is nearby in Hyde Park for a gig. Back in town, Whitelock's in Turk's Head Yard does real ale and home-cooked food, and is about as cosy as a pub gets on a wet Tuesday.