I recently decided that anytime I attend a conference in a new city, I would extend my time and use the opportunity to go sightseeing.
I attended my biggest marketing conference, #SearchLeeds, two weeks ago at the First Direct Arena in Leeds.
It was my first time in Leeds, about an hour from Manchester.
So, I planned my itinerary to extend my departure to about 8pm.
Thankfully, it is Summer, and we have longer days now. I arrived by National Express coach at about 11 a.m., navigated the area for a while, and found my way to the arena.
I had a blast at the conference. It such an eye-opening event with about 2000 Search Marketers or SEOs.
The conference was an all-day event but was done at about 5pm.
I left at about 4 p.m. because I thought I wouldn’t have enough time to explore the City Centre.
I was wrong.
Exploring Leeds City Centre
One of my favourite things about Leeds is the strategic maps at different points in the city centre.
In Manchester, we just have signage.
In Leeds, it’s a full-blown offline Google Maps with directions.
So, if for some reason your phone dies early like mine, you can’t get lost.
Following the map accurately will help you arrive at your destination.
I followed the map and thought, why not?
It’s 5pm. I have more than enough time to visit the museums.
It turns out museums and other important tourist attractions have closing hours.
I was so sad when I got to the Leeds City Museum, and it was closed.
In fact, every single indoor attraction was closed by 5 p.m., so I just had to make do with the outdoor attractions.
While I can’t say I had fun walking around the city centre, there was sunlight, the weather was gorgeous, and I was able to burn my calories for the day.
Much Ado about Leeds’ Shopping Addiction
Remember what I said about those lovely and helpful maps around Leeds City Centre?
I didn’t know how much shopping was done in Leeds until I got to the Victoria Gardens, took a step back and observed the map for a minute or two. Woah!
The yellow spot on the map showed all the shopping centres in Leeds, and I was astounded.
I don’t think I noticed this in Liverpool because there were enough tourist attractions to compensate for the number of shopping centres.
But in Leeds, it felt like the only thing they knew how to do was shopping.
There aren’t that many tourist attractions, to be honest, compared to the shopping centres.
It just says a lot about the people as a whole.
As a business owner, I believe Leeds is a viable retail city.
Again, I never travel for shopping. I’m not rich enough yet.
But it was great to visit the Merrion Centre, which had some of the brands, like Home Bargains (of course, I snagged a couple of things) and Iceland, which weren’t available in Manchester.
Coincidentally, the Merrion Centre is right across the First Direct Arena so it was also an opportunity to have some good Chinese food.
The Best Attractions Leeds has to offer.
Regardless of how annoying the situation was, I enjoyed walking around and discovering the best attractions Leeds had to offer.
In no particular order;
- Leeds City Museum: As I mentioned earlier, it was closed by the time I got there, but it was great to know that I was able to locate it.
- Millennium Square
- Henry Moore Institute: I was seriously looking forward to this art gallery, but it was closed for repairs, or so I thought. I was too annoyed to confirm.
- Leeds Art Gallery: This was another art gallery that was also closed. One of the staff actually told me this as I was about to enter. I was crushed.
- Leeds Kirkgate Market: I was also looking forward to visiting this market. I was very sad.
- Corn Exchange: At some point, I was tired of all the closing hours, so I jumped on a bus and followed it wherever I was. I found myself at the Corn Exchange for no reason.
- Leeds Outside Markets: The last vendors were packing up when I arrived.
- Victoria Leeds: I was fascinated by all the high-street brands in Victoria Leeds. The structures left me in wonder.
- Leeds City Bus Station: This might not be an attraction, but I love how organized the bus station was.
As you can see, I must go back to Leeds very soon.
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