Harrogate

February 2018 and I thought a rail trip from Alnmouth to Harrogate for a few pints of beer would be straightforward. However, as this involved changing trains in York and meeting Barfly in the York Tap, an unscheduled delay was inevitable.

On arriving at Harrogate’s Victorian station, Barfly and I called at the Harrogate Tap (sister pub of the York Tap) for a swift pint of ale.

Barfly enjoying the wonderful surroundings of the Harrogate Tap

Position vacant in the Harrogate Tap.

The Little Ale House. 7 Cheltenham Crescent, Harrogate HG1 1DH

En route to meet Bean and Jones the Beer we thought we would pop into this micropub for a stiffener. It was closed when we arrived - as you can see from the disappointment on Barfly’s face.

The Royal Baths, Parliament Street, Harrogate, North Yorkshire, HG1 2RR

Equilibrium was restored as we are about to enter Weatherspoon’s flagship pub, The Winter Gardens

Harrogate’s former Royal Baths included the Winter Gardens – built so that visitors could relax and stroll in any weather. Its name lives on in this Wetherspoon pub. During the 1920s, people could relax here, amid potted palms, listening to music from a grand piano.

Bean and Jones the Beer positioned adjacent to the bar in The Winter Gardens

No, it’s not a scene from a Busby Berkley film, but the Winter Gardens grand staircase. Not your everyday pub.

The Old Bell, 6 Royal Parade, Harrogate HG1 2SZ

We had now retired to The Old Bell for the final pint of the afternoon and it looks like the landlord of this grand little pub has just photobombed us. 

The Old Bell was first mentioned over 230 years ago in 1786, when the tenants of the original Bell said that they “provided a stock of the best wines and other liquors, and furnished the house in a manner of commodious for the reception of the genteleest families…”. Well we felt quite at home.