Ripley Castle and Harewood House grounds stay open

The gardens and grounds of Ripley Castle and Harewood House will remain open to the public during the coronavirus lockdown.

The castle and house closed to the public today but the outdoor areas remain open. Both venues will provide takeaway food and drinks.

Ripley Castle will be open daily from 10.30am to 3pm with last entry at 1pm. Adult tickets are £3; entry for children is free.

The owners are also considering keeping the gardens and grounds open up to Christmas. They usually close during winter.

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Booking is currently unavailable online but tickets can be bought from the tea room. There is free parking in the main village car park, which is open from 9am to 6pm daily.

Harewood House will also keep its grounds, gardens and adventure playground open during the lockdown.

It will be open 10am to 4pm daily with last entry at 3.15pm. Pre-booked tickets are required.

Santa taking a break

Ripley Castle has also confirmed it will not be running a Santa experience in the run-up to Christmas this year.

The big man has decided to take a break this year so he won’t be in his grotto at the castle.

Harewood House has also cancelled its Lord Whitney’s Upon a Christmas Wish this year. However, it will be replaced with Christmas at Harewood.

Other places still open in lockdown

RHS Harlow Carr, Brimham Rocks and Fountains Abbey will also remain open for outdoor walks during lockdown.

They will all operate a takeaway service to keep people warm and fuelled for their autumnal and winter walks.

Garden centres are also open.

Four days of live music at Ripley Castle

Live music will return to the grounds of Ripley Castle as lockdown restrictions begin to ease.

Sounds in the Grounds will see performances from bands including the Bootleg Beatles, Beyond the Barricade and Abba Mania.

Taking place over four days, it will see the New York Brass Band perform each night as the support act to the main performance.

Tickets include a designated picnic patch for up to six people, enabling social distancing across the site, and there will be food and drink stalls available. Each will be defined by painted lines, with a metre’s distance between each patch and two metres’ distance in aisles between the rows.

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Organiser James Cundall said:

“Sounds in the Grounds offers the opportunity to get together and enjoy a fun night of live music in a stunning setting in a socially distanced way. From ABBA to The Beatles and from the greatest musicals to Country and Western I hope we have something for everyone.

“Importantly it’s an opportunity for musicians to showcase their talent again after weeks of inactivity during lockdown.

“Visitors will need to bring their own chairs, and can bring a picnic, though we advise leaving tables at home for space reasons.”

Sounds in the Grounds will take place at Ripley Castle from Thursday, September 3 to Sunday, September 6. Tickets cost from £59 plus booking fees for a two-person picnic patch.