The Station, Richmond

No visit to Richmond, North Yorkshire, is complete without a trip down to The Station – not, as the name suggests, to catch a train homewards, but to witness first-hand North Yorkshire’s up-and-coming tourist attraction. This restored Victorian railway terminus is now home to an exciting lottery-funded community and tourism enterprise. Under the building’s beautifully refurbished vaulted ceilings, there are now two state-of-the-art cinemas showing mainstream and arthouse listings; an all-day restaurant and cafe-bar offering hot and cold food to suits all appetites; extensive art gallery spaces across two floors exhibiting prestigious artists from across the UK; a heritage centre explaining the building’s railway history; and a selection of artisan food producers making and selling bread, cakes, cheese, fudge, pasta, beer and other fresh tasty goodies, and all on site.

The Station is home to art exhibitions featuring the work of some top UK artists - photo courtesy of Platform Communications

So it’s no exaggeration to say that there’s plenty to see and do for all the family, and with everything free of charge (apart from cinema tickets and food, of course) it’s a no-brainer, especially if the weather isn’t great. That said both Seasons restaurant and Archer’s ice-cream parlour both have attractive sitting out areas during the summer months, so The Station is a genuine all-weather venue.

Plenty of seating at Richmond's The Station - photo courtesy of Platform Communications

The Station is just a short signposted walk from Richmond marketplace; though it is on a bus route and has on-site parking (currently by disc available free to visitors and available from The Station and most Richmond shops). The building is also directly next to the magnificent River Swale with two low-level circular walks beginning and ending at The Station cafe (how convenient!) and exploring between them the nearby woods, Richmond’s famous waterfalls, and the ancient ruins of Easy Abbey.

Fabulous ice creams at Archer's, The Station, Richmond - photo courtesy of Platform Communications

Throughout the year The Station hosts a mixture of art exhibitions, events and children’s workshops, and the What’s On calendar is kept up to date on The Station’s website where there are also full details of current and forthcoming art exhibitions and links to all cinema listings. Opening hours are seven days; 9am-10pm; although some of the food producers close on occasional midweek days when they are attending farmers markets in the area.

Watch fudge being created at The Station - photo courtesy of Platform Communications

No wonder The Station has been branded the region’s most unique tourist attraction. According to its own marketing, it offers ‘Food, Film & Art, all day; every day’ and few could quibble with that, not least Welcome to Yorkshire, for going by the latest statistics published on their own website, The Station’s 350,000 annual visitors make it the tenth most visited attraction in the county, drawing in larger footfall than Lightwater Valley, Harewood House, the Royal Armouries in Leeds, Yorkshire Sculpture Park and others.

The Station also has an active Facebook page (search for ‘The Station’) and a free quarterly e.zine which visitors can subscribe to via The Station website here. Occasional competitions and special offers are available to subscribers.

And if you’re looking for accommodation in Richmond, check out the Richmond holiday accommodation on Hello Yorkshire.