After months and months of talking about visiting York on a weekend break together, Emma and I finally made a date for a girls weekend away to Yorkshire. Having my own set of wheels meant we could have make a few detours along the way aka Hello Derbyshire!
Emma had asked if we could stop in Chesterfield before we departed on our trip; I had to do a google search on firstly where on earth Chesterfield was (it’s in Derbyshire) and what was special about the place. Within seconds I spotted the church; I have an addiction to shoes, Emma has an addiction to churches. And this one was special; he’s crooked! Yip a giant crooked spire but he’s still handsome don’t you think?
It was time for refuelling so we stopped off at the Church Shop / Tea Rooms for a cuppa. They were serving up Lemon Meringue Pie (on par with New Zealand quality pie) that looked amazing; possibly a reason just to visit Chesterfield alone.
Back into the smurf mobile, we were heading in the direction of Bakewell for one reason only – to eat a Bakewell Pudding. After my google search I realised that Bakewell was close to Chesterfield. We rocked up to Bakewell and were apparently overdressed – Emma in a floral dress, me jeans and ballet flats – apparently hiking boots are all the fashion in Bakewell. It’s definitely a cute town to visit, all bright and sunny!
We came to Bakewell for one reason and one reason only – to try the pudding. You all know the tarts and goodness me I love a good ol’ tart; well it all actually started in a pudding. So we stopped at The Old Original Bakewell Pudding Shop and yes I know the pudding isn’t gluten free but sometimes you have to take a hit to enjoy life! (I had a gluten food baby tummy the following day). The restaurant does offer a selection of gluten free cake though, just in case you were wondering.
Jumping back into the smurf mobile; we stopped to take some photos of the beautiful countryside and me standing on a peak in the Peak District. Those are my new Bloch Ballet flats; I swear by them ladies!
After a scary drive to Downton Abbey aka Oulton Hall via Sheffield (never ever ever ever again Sheffield)! Honestly one way systems scare me as I always worry that I won’t be able to find my way out of the one way system and starve to death. It was a blooming close call on this occasion and it meant we were extremely late for our Afternoon Tea at Oulton Hall.
But we finally safely arrived and was greeted with a beautiful old stately home which is now a luxury De Vere branded hotel in Yorkshire. Doesn’t she look beautiful!
And the lounge areas at Oulton Hall were just glorious and perfect for relaxing in and drinking a few passionfruit cocktails.
The staff kindly served us a very late Afternoon Tea; it was 6pm! The Afternoon Tea was exactly what we needed after our fun day touring Derbyshire and Yorkshire. The Lounge was so relaxing that we didn’t move from the comfy sofas; Afternoon Tea turned into a few cocktails and then it was bedtime – Emma and I had sat there for hours just chatting.
The common areas / lounges at Oulton Hall are stunning along with the grounds however the rooms just need a little sprucing up as they look a little tired and new mattresses wouldn’t go amiss either.
Emma and I were up early the following morning as we had to get our bottoms to York to meet Dannielle in front of Betty’s at 10am. Completely doable I’m sure when the York 10k run isn’t on but on the Sunday we were visiting; there were runners galore and we had to find a break between the runners to get across to Betty’s – talk about stressful! I had already eaten breakfast just over an hour beforehand so I ordered a macaroon and an Eton Mess to balance out the cooked breakfast.
As Dannielle, Emma and I had all visited York before we just decided to amble around the city and see where the wind blew us.
First stop was this cute little church situated close to York Minster; Emma advised that if you visit a church that you should always fill out the visitors book as it can influence how much funding they receive.
Even though we had just had a sugar hit at Betty’s we stopped and watched fudge getting made; oh the glorious smell of sugar. I did buy some fudge for G however I took it to work on Monday and ate it at 9am (I start at 7.15am so really 9am is elevenses for me, so it’s completely justified and I don’t feel guilty at all; plus I had bought G £18 worth of bacon before departing on my girls weekend so he didn’t really need the fudge let’s all be honest now did he – well I’m glad I got that off my chest).
York Minster is a great place to watch selfies getting taken – the skill that some people have is just amazing!
Just around the back of York Minster is a pink caravan selling cupcakes and drinks – I opted for a hot chocolate while sitting down admiring the incredible skill that went into creating the Minster.
We decided to just wander around York chatting and Dannielle managed to buy herself a grand pair of cowboy boots!
York is just so pretty…
…it should be on everyone’s travel list when visiting England!
Sadly our girls weekend had come to an end and it was time to head home in the Smurf Mobile. I had such a brilliant time travelling with Emma; the giggles, the cake and all that Yorkshire fresh air had made it feel like we had been away longer than just one night.
Where is your favourite UK Weekend Break Destination? If you are looking for ideas on what to see and do around Yorkshire then I highly recommend checking out Dannielle’s blog.
xx
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