CityRed Living
Area Guide
Trendy City
Leeds has consistently been rated as the Number One city for students, and a lot of graduates choose to stay on and work in Leeds because they enjoyed it so much as students. So let's have a look at the coolest areas in Leeds to call home, and what makes them so special:
- Leeds City Centre
- Headingley
- Hyde Park
- Burley
- Chapel Allerton
- Kirkstall
- Meanwood
- Roundhay
- Armley
- Woodhouse
- Bradford
Leeds is renowned as the shopping mecca of the North, with its fashionable Victorian arcades, numerous designer shops and, of course, the fabulous Harvey Nichols. Most of the city centre is pedestrian-ised, so its very easy and enjoyable to get around. Key shopping, dining and entertainment areas include The Light, the Victorian Quarter, the Corn Exchange area and Call Lane.
Increasingly, Leeds is resembling continental café culture, with more and more al fresco dining and drinking facilities. The city hums to a 24 hour beat with a huge choice of bars and clubs catering to all musical tastes.
Equally, Leeds has become a celebrated culinary capital, with new restaurants opening seemingly every other week. You can find nearly every nationality represented in the city's cosmopolitan restaurants, bistros, brasseries and cafes.
Leeds' decade-long property boom shows no sign of abating, with cranes hovering over nearly every part of the city. Discerning style setters have a wide choice of cool city centre apartments and flats to choose from, all within minutes of the city's vibrant night life.
A thriving village in its own right, with many of the amenities you'd find in a big town or even the city. There's a host of bars, bistros, pubs, clubs, cafes and restaurants, including the popular Salvos, Caliente Café, Ferret Hall Bistro, Pietro, Tariq's, Trio, Dare, Citrus and two of the best fish 'n' chip outlets anywhere: Bretts and Bryans.
There are a number of local pubs catering to all tastes, whether it's real ale at the Original Oak and Three Horseshoes, or any number of trendy tipples at The Skyrack, The Box, Woodies, Headingley Taps, The Arc and several others.
The area has a wide variety of shops and services, mostly concentrated around the Otley Road, Headingley Lane, North Lane areas, and there's even a local cinema on Cottage Road. The famous Headingley Stadium plays host to the Yorkshire Cricket Club as well as the Leeds Rhinos Rugby League Club and Leeds Tykes Rugby Union Club, and the lovely Beckett Park provides lots of green space for outdoor activities.
There's a wide choice of properties available locally, from little stone cottages to traditional semis and large detached homes. So there really is something for everyone -- perhaps that's why Headingley is so popular with students and young professionals alike.
Conveniently situated between the two universities, and with Headingley just a few minutes up the road, Hyde Park is very definitely part of the heart of student-ville in Leeds. Local life revolves around the numerous shops, take-aways and cafes at Hyde Park corner, including the Clock Café and Sugar Shack. The venerable Hyde Park Pub is a local institution and a popular meeting spot.
Another key part of the local heritage is the Hyde Park Picture House, renowned for its intimate atmosphere and eclectic screenings of both art house and mainstream films.
Housing in the area tends to be concentrated on spacious, turn of the century terraces, with local neighbourhood shops on many streets. The lush green acres of Hyde Park itself offer a relaxing retreat for walking the dog, flying a kite or just chilling out.
For those on a budget, Burley fits the bill. Housing costs are relatively modest, yet Burley offers quick and easy links to the city centre, Headingley, and the many attractions of the nearby Cardigan Fields complex with its multiplex cinema, Virgin Active Health Club, bowling alley, restaurants and much more. The area has its own train station (Burley Park) and is just minutes from the main bus services on Kirkstall Road. There's a busy local Co-op supermarket and lots of local shops, including a number of good discount stores.
In recent years, Chapel Allerton has become quite the aspiring property hotspot. Popular with students, young professionals and families alike, the area has taken on a sophisticated urban village feel. There's a definite continental air about the al fresco restaurants on Stainbeck Lane where you'll find Italian, American, Chinese, European bistro style and more.
The village also boasts Greek, Thai, Indian and Lebanese restaurants, among others, and several good pubs, bars and a nightclub. It's very well served for shops and services, with two supermarkets and an array of unique gift shops and galleries.
A good variety of housing, from sought-after back-to-backs to traditional semis, plus regular buses into Leeds, have made Chapel Allerton a very desirable area, indeed.
Famous for its dramatic 12th century Cistercian Abbey ruin beside the gently flowing River Aire, Kirkstall is an increasingly sought-after area. House prices and rents are affordable, and there are excellent public transport links into Leeds city centre in just minutes. Kirkstall itself has a large, new shopping complex, with a modern leisure centre and pool just across the road, and there are a number of good local pubs, restaurants and take-aways in the area.
The nearby Cardigan Fields complex boasts a multiplex cinema, bowling alley, Virgin Active Health Club, Evolution nightclub and several types of restaurants.
Bordering the bustling centre of Headingley, Meanwood is rapidly becoming a Leeds property hot spot in its own right. For an area with such good transport links and a wide choice of local amenities, the property prices are very reasonable. There are numerous terraced properties near the village centre, with a large suburban development of inter-war and later semis all along Stonegate Road.
Meanwood is well served by its many local shops, restaurants, takeaways and pubs, most of which are within easy walking distance of residential areas.
One of the key attractions of the area is Meanwood Valley Nature Reserve. This large greenbelt parkland incorporates part of the Dales Way long distance foot path, and is also very popular with local residents just out for a stroll.
One of the more affluent areas of the city, Roundhay is as well known for its famous park as for its many grand residences. The 700 acre park includes 2 lakes, extensive woodlands and a cricket pitch, and hosts numerous events, from fireworks displays on 5th November to the annual Asian community Mela celebrations.
The Street Lane area of Roundhay is home to a wide choice of shops, including several exclusive fashion boutiques, and there are a number of good cafes, bistros and restaurants, such as the famous Flying Pizza. The Roundhay Fox pub next to the park is very popular with both diners and drinkers year round, especially in the summer months when competition is keen for the outside tables, and The Streets of Leeds pub is another very busy meeting spot.
Just opposite the Roundhay Fox is Tropical World, offering a fascinating journey through different tropical zones of exotic flora and fauna from around the world.
Housing in Roundhay offers an excellent choice of large, detached properties, spacious flats, semis and terraced properties.
Very much an up and coming area, Armley benefits from its close proximity to Leeds and quick and easy transport links into the city centre, the universities, the M1 and M62 motorways and the A65 corridor out the Aire Valley. House prices and rents are still relatively modest in Armley, so it's a popular area with students as well as young professionals looking to get onto the property ladder.
The award-winning Armley Mills Industrial Museum was once the world's largest woollen mill and now houses fascinating displays on clothing, textiles, engines and locomotives (once manufactured in Leeds) and the history of cinema projections, including the first moving pictures taken in Leeds.
Armley is well served in the food and drink department, with traditional pubs such as The Malt Shovel, Royal Hotel and White Horse, and a good choice of take-aways and restaurants, including Nawab's, the Beech Hotel and Viva Cuba. The Cardigan Fields development is just a stone's throw away on Kirkstall Road and offers a great selection of eateries, plus the Virgin Active health club, a mutliplex cinema, bowling alley, nightclub and much more.
Woodhouse is hard to beat as a convenient student and young professional location. It's home to Leeds University and is just minutes from the city centre. It has the feel of a leafy green suburb, yet it's a buzzing hive of activity, with two great local pubs -- The Faversham and The Library, both providing live music and club nights. Plus, there's a fantastic number of local cafes, bistros, restaurants and take-aways. Woodhouse is also within easy walking distance of Hyde Park and Headingley. Who needs a car, or even a bus pass, when you live this close to everything?
A century ago, Bradford was at the very heart of the UK textile industry, trading its fine woollens worldwide. Today, only a vestige of the industry remains, but many of the substantial Victorian-era homes and municipal buildings still stand as testament to Bradford's proud heritage.
In contrast, Bradford city centre is currently undergoing one of the most ambitious urban regeneration schemes in Europe. Over the next several years, a whole series of imaginatively designed buildings and environmental features will radically transform the cityscape into a people-centred area for shopping, entertainment, meeting, relaxing and just wandering about. The project has given the whole city a renewed buzz and brought much interest from both students and young professionals seeking affordable city accommodation.
Many areas of the Bradford are now much sought-after, as Bradford's existing assets attract new attention. From the renowned National Museum of Photography, Film and Television to the Saltaire complex in nearby Shipley, Bradford, indeed, has much to offer. Not least, it's world famous Asian restaurants, serving some of the most authentic food outside the Indian sub-continent. Little wonder that Bradford is justly known as the curry capital of Britain!