At the weekend, I took our eight-year-old to Lotherton Hall and Estate near Leeds. We’ve been many times before (the last time I wrote about a visit was 2016), but this was the first time that we’d been during its Halloween event, Spooky Skeletons. Indeed, as Lotherton isn’t far from York, I’ve been coming since I was young. One of my earliest memories was one of my primary school teachers being on the receiving end of a flying bird’s defecation, which, when you’re not yet ten-years-old, is hilarious.
Spooky Skeletons
As well as being the first time that I’d been to their Halloween event, this was also the first time that I had been inside the actual hall. All the downstairs rooms have been decorated with lots of skeletons – some rather anatomically questionable – and there’s a general theme of a seaside funfair of the undead as you go between the rooms. It’s not as opulent as Castle Howard’s Christmas events (we went in 2022) and clearly done on a local authority budget, but there was plenty of whimsy.
Outside, there were plenty more skeletons, and the theme was fairytale characters. For example, Robin Hood (with an arrow in his mouth), Peter Pan and Hook, and Sleeping Beauty (both before and after pricking her finger). If you’ve ever been to Lotherton’s Christmas events, it uses the same woodland walk but there were skeletons all over the grounds, including the formal gardens.
Spooky Skeletons is running until this Sunday (the 3rd November).
Lotherton Wildlife World
When I was growing up, the main reason to visit Lotherton was the Bird Garden, which had a wide collection of different species of birds. A few years ago, this became Lotherton Wildlife World, and now has a wider range of animals, including tapir, capybara, wallabies and a nocturnal area with bats and cloud rats. Some parts are a little run down, but it’s also clear to see that work is ongoing to renovate it. We were lucky enough to see feeding time for the humboldt penguins.
Accessibility
Lotherton is normally open every day. It’s not far from Junction 47 of the M1 and there’s plenty of car parking. Public transport is more of an issue; the nearest bus stop is in the village of Aberford and then it’s a 20 minute walk. Micklefield is the nearest railway station and has regular trains from Leeds towards York and Selby, but again, it’s a very long walk.
The site is mostly flat, although there are some uneven surfaces. A changing places toilet is available. Tickets are slightly cheaper if you book in advance online. A Max card discount is available.