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Laura’s Student Guide to Leeds
How to make the most of your stay and keeping some pennies in your pocket!
Here is a guide to finding all you need to find places of interest in Leeds including the transport system, how much things cost and how you can explore the city of Leeds.
These are all things I wish people had told me when I was in my first year of University that I am sure will help you.
The Transport System
Trains
The most frequently used transport system in Leeds is the bus system or metro system. However, you can also use the train to get to Leeds from Burley Park, Headingley, Horsforth and further for example from Leeds Train Station you can get a train to London, Manchester, Liverpool, Sheffield, York, Middlesbrough more or less anywhere. However, the trains do not stop between these points, so if you are travelling locally it is much easier to use a bus to save walking for miles to the train station.
Prices:
How can I make it less expensive?
If you apply for a student railcard, it can save you 1/3 of all rail fares, which is a large amount of money if you are travelling to somewhere like London, but it also takes 20 or 30 pence or more off travelling to areas like York, Leeds and Knaresborough.
To apply for a railcard, go to your nearest railway station or go to:
http://www.youngpersons-railcard.co.uk/ on the internet.
Peak and Off Peak Prices
Usually train fares into Leeds are not expensive; however the prices do change at times throughout the day. If you choose to travel on the Leeds or York line at any time before 9am, then you will be charged an additional £1 on top of normal fare. This is called peak time. After this time the fares become much cheaper and you can get a single ticket to Leeds from Burley Park for around £1.20. With Railcard this becomes less expensive.
Buying your tickets
You are also advised to buy your tickets before you board the train from the stations ticket office, or you may be charged extra on board. However, if the train does not have a ticket office for example: Burley Park or Headingley, you just explain this to the conductor when he comes and checks your ticket and you will be able to buy on board.
If you are planning a journey check out
www.thetrainline.com , where you can plan your journey, order tickets and also check on how much your journey is going to cost.
Buses
Service: West Yorkshire Metro
Website: http://www.wymetro.com/
Where do the buses go?
Most buses to main destinations leave from Leeds Bus Station where you can get to anywhere from Skipton, Bradford, Ripon, Harrogate and Huddersfield. However local buses can be found in Headingley, particularly outside the Arndale Centre where most of the main buses leave. Make sure you are on the right side of the road for your bus. Buses next to the Wilkinsons and the Superdrug store are heading into Leeds and the opposite side heads towards Horsforth, Guiseley and Holt Park.
How much does the bus cost?
At the moment, it is more reliable to buy a ticket called ‘Dayrider’ which enables you to travel anywhere within the local area all day for one price. Any time after 9am and before 4pm this will cost you £2.70. Any time between 4pm-7pm and any time before 9am, this will cost you £3.70 because this is peak time. Sometimes it is cheaper to buy a return to the place you are visiting if it is only local, however it is easier to buy a dayrider because you can use it at any time of the day for no extra cost.
Where do the buses go?
From the Headingley Arndale Centre you can catch a bus to:
Buses heading away from Leeds (towards Horsforth, Holt Park, Guiseley and Yeadon)
Buses to and from Leeds Language Academy
18, 18a, 49, 49a, 50 and 5a all come from the city centre and travel past the language academy. From the stop number 10950 on Burley Road opposite Woodsley Road. To go from Leeds Language Academy to Leeds City Centre, you can take the same buses and go to stand number 10969 on the opposite side of the road.
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Bus Number
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Bus Destination
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97 or 97A (Check at bus stop)
Around 30 mins to Morrisons
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Guiseley Morrisons via Horsforth
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96
Around 20 mins to Holt Park
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Holt Park Via Cookridge
(see ‘supermarkets and leisure centres) through Horsforth
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1
(10 mins to Holt Park)
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Holt Park Shopping Centre
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95
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Boddington Hall (Student residence for University of Leeds)
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28
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Adel
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X Numbers
(eg: X96 or X84)
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If the bus has an ‘X’ before it’s number this means it is limited stop, meaning that you wont be able to leave the bus at some stops. Try to avoid these buses unless you are leaving the bus at the final destination.
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Buses towards Leeds from Headingley Arndale
(Next to Superdrug and Wilkinson’s)
Good News! You can get on most buses to Leeds from this stop. You do not need to wait for a specific bus if you are going to Leeds City Centre.
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Bus Number
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Destination
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28
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Clarence Dock (Leeds City Centre)
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97 or 97a
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Leeds Bus Station
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95
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Leeds Bus Station
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96
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Leeds Bus Station
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1
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Beeston (via Leeds)
Stops at Leeds city Centre
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Buses in Hyde Park
You can use the number 56 bus in Hyde Park which leaves from:
Chestnut Avenue, Chestnut Road, Royal Park road and Victoria Road and will take you into Leeds stopping at The Headrow (Primark, PC World and St John’s Arcade)
Also Leeds City Centre offers a ‘Free City Bus’ which will take you round the city centre for free. It stops at some of the Leeds University Buildings, Leeds Train Station, the bus station, The Corn Exchange and various shopping streets around Leeds. It is a very useful service for getting around the city.
Supermarkets
FOOD!
Morrisons
There are a few large supermarkets in the City of Leeds. One of these can be found in Leeds City Centre. It is called Morrisons. You can get any of the buses mentioned before towards Leeds to get to Morrisons. Be warned though it is very busy on a Saturday when most of the students do their shopping. It would be better to go during the week when it is quieter so you can explore it fully.
Prices are cheap depending on what you buy of course, but Morrisons offer a ‘Betterbuy’ range on basic foods such as beans, bread, cheese, eggs, milk etc which is very popular with the students.
Morrisons also have another store in Guiseley (accessible by bus on the other side) and also in Kirkstall, a walk away from Burley Park. It is best to go shopping with a few friends to help carry a big load!
ASDA
ASDA can be found at Holt Park Shopping Centre (Number 96 or Number 1 bus) it is easy to find things, smaller than Morrisons and much less busy. It is sometimes slightly less expensive than Morrisons. Average prices include,
Beans: £1.16 for a pack of four tins
A Loaf of Bread: 59p
Biscuits: The most expensive packet of ASDA biscuits is around 28p
Pitta Bread: Packet 26p (6 Pittas)
Oven Chips: £1.11 (1.81kg)
Fishfingers: 29p
They also have a separate Pizza counter, Deli Counter (for meat, cheese and other savouries) a take away counter and lots of canned food. You can get a lot of groceries for a small amount of money if you buy ASDA’s products.
Somerfield (Headingley Arndale Centre)
Somerfield is a reasonably priced mini supermarket, however it is not as cheap as ASDA or Morrissons. You can get other products that you may not find in ASDA however for example they have a salad bar which can be good for lunch, but it is mostly more expensive products.
TESCO Metro
Expensive. Go to ASDA or Morrissons.
Fruit and Vegetable Shopping
The best place to get fruit and vegetables is local markets. There is a market in Hyde Park and in Headingley however the biggest market by far is the Leeds Kirkgate Market (Leeds City Centre). It is massive, and the fruit and vegetables are very very unexpensive and there is always a great variety. There is an indoor and outdoor section of the market. The outdoor sells fruit vegetables and other stalls and the indoor sells dried food, spices, meat (great if you are shopping for a few people), toys and clothes. Well worth a visit. It is excellent.
You can get any bus to Leeds City Bus Station and the Kirkgate Market is just a short walk away.
The Cinema
The Cinema is a great way of spending an evening out relaxing. There are four main cinemas in Leeds.
They are:
The Hyde Park Picture House
Brudenell Road
Leeds
LS6 1JD
Cottage Road Cinema
Headingley
LS6 4DD
http://www.nm-cinemas.co.uk/
VUE
The Light
The Headrow
LS1 8TL
http://www.myvue.com/
Kirkstall
VUE
Cardigan Fields
LS4 4DJ
http://www.myvue.com/
The Vue cinemas in Kirkstall and in Leeds City Centre (The Light) both show a lot of mainstream films, whichever have just been released and are popular. Cottage Road Cinema will show one or two films. It is very small. Hyde Park picture house will show films with subtitles and films that VUE would not normally show for example cultural or international films (non-Hollywood).
Ticket Prices
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Name of Cinema
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Ticket Prices
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Hyde Park Picture House
(2 films max)
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Adult: £5.50
Student (with student card)
£4.50
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Cottage Road Cinema
(1 or 2 films shown)
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Student: £4.00 (all shows)
Adult: £5 (All Shows)
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VUE Kirkstall
(19 or 20 films per week)
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Adult: £6.50 (After 5pm)
£5.65
Student: £4.75 (Before 5pm)
£4.85 (After 5pm)
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VUE The Light
(19 or 20 films per week)
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Adult: £6.50 (After 5pm)
£5.65
Student: £4.75 (Before 5pm)
£4.85 (After 5pm)
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‘Orange Wednesdays’
In the UK, if you are with the mobile phone network provider called ‘Orange’ you are given an offer to go to a local cinema and buy a ticket which is two for one. This means that you pay for one ticket and get another free on a Wednesday. It only works on a Wednesday and it only works if you are on the Orange network. To get your ticket you need to produce a text from Orange with a voucher code which the cinema usher will ask for at the ticket desk. To get this code text:
· Text ‘film’ to phone number 2-4-1
· Call 241 from your Orange phone
This is a great way of saving some money going out. The money you save you can spend on ice cream or popcorn for you and your friend! Yum! J
Eating Out
Leeds has such a massive amount of restaurants it is hard to know where to start. They cater for all kinds of nutritional needs, for example halal meat, vegetarian, free from nuts, gluten etc, fast food, pasta, expensive food and sandwiches.
Pizza Hut
One of the best places to go on a student budget is:
Pizza Hut
Pizza hut offers a lunchtime deal which is £4.99 for a pizza buffet including as much pizza and pasta as you like!
They also do deals in the evening which work out much cheaper than buying things separately and have a main course, desert and starter for around £7.
Pizza Hut can be found:
Cardigan Fields,
Kirkstall Road,
Leeds,
LS4 2BT
(Next to the Cinema)
0113 279 9876
Or
36 Harrogate Road,
Leeds,
LS7 4LA
0113 262 9955
Nandos (Including Halal Nandos)
Nando’s is a chicken restaurant which serves all kinds of chicken with chips, rice, salad, garlic bread, Pitta Bread and burgers. It is around £5 for a meal, which includes a burger or chicken breast in Pitta plus one side order for example a portion of rice or chips. This serves Halal meat.
A Nando’s can be found in the same place as Kirkstall VUE cinema and Pizza Hut. There is also one in Leeds City Centre in the Light shopping centre, on the Headrow and also one on Briggate (Leeds City Centre)
Nandos
152-154 Briggate,
Leeds,
LS1 8BR
01132 427 736
Also try Subway, (which also offers Halal alternatives) and has an offer which is ‘Sub of the Day’ the server will advise you which sandwich is ‘Sub of the Day’ and a six inch sandwich will only cost you £1.99.
Check out: www.subway.com.uk
For more information
Also try: Wagamamas, which serves Japanese style food including rice and vegetables with chicken.
Takeaways
There are many different take-aways in Leeds, all which claim to be the best you can get in Leeds. From personal experience, the cheapest takeaways are not the best. Be careful when ordering takeaway because if it isn’t made properly you could run the risk of making yourself ill. Order takeaway from firms you trust and make sure food is thoroughly cooked before eating it.
Swimming, Gyms and leisure centres
After all the luxurious food and leisure time, you might want to find a leisure centre to visit the gym or to relax in the swimming pool or even play a bit of sport. Leeds has plenty of places to do this. You can choose to go for a private or public health club, depending on what your needs are. If you need a ladies only health club or a men’s only health club, you may need to go private. However this can be very expensive.
Public Leisure Centres
Leeds City Council
Public Leisure Centres in Leeds are run by Leeds City Council. They operate similar timetables and are for community and local school use.
Holt Park Leisure Centre
Holt Park leisure centre is located within the Holt Park Shopping Centre (Near the ASDA). It has a gym and a large public swimming pool with a smaller pool for children. It also has a sports hall where sporting activities can be booked in advance for example football, badminton, Netball and basketball.
Holt Park does operate some ladies only sessions, but the males are allowed in after around 30 mins into the session. Swimming takes place late afternoon and evening as in the morning the local school takes swimming lessons there. The gym is payable by session, but you need to have an induction before using the gym. The timetable can be found on the following website:
It can also be contacted by telephone on: 0113 267 9033
Kirkstall Leisure Centre
Kirkstall Leisure centre is very similar to Holt Park Leisure centre except it is a bigger building. It offers similar activities which can be booked in advance and more regular swimming times than Holt Park because it is not used as much by local schools.
Timetables for Kirkstall Leisure Centre can be found on the internet:
The Prices for Kirkstall and Holt Park Leisure Centres can be found on the internet too. Log on to:
Private Health Clubs
Esporta Health Club, Leeds
Unit 21 The Light,
The Headrow,
Leeds,
LS1 8TL
0113 233 7500
Virgin Active
H E M House,
Kirkstall Rd,
Leeds,
LS4 2BT
Tel: 08453012303
Fitness First
Redcote Lane,
Kirkstall Rd,
Leeds,
West Yorkshire
LS4 2AL
Tel: 0113 263 4044
Shopping on the Internet
If you are good at bidding for items at auction on the internet www.ebay.co.uk is a good place to go if you are looking for a bargain.
The cheapest places to buy English CD’s, DVD’s and other electronical items are:
This firm is based in Jersey and charges no added tax to your purchase, with free delivery, which makes your item much cheaper.
This site has massive ranges of products and is a place to pick up a bargain. There are some very low priced books and CD’s availiable.
This site is good for electrical bargains and laptops, MP3 players and other electronical items.
This website allows you to compare items from anywhere on the web and tells you where you can find it cheapest. Simply type the product name into the bar at the top and you will be able to find the product you want at the cheapest price.
Yell.com is the internet version of the UK’s phone directory yellow pages. You can find more or less any company or service you want on Yell.com including their telephone number, address and website.
Last tip: when looking for student recipes, use google and search the UK for websites that will give you hundreds of websites with endless amounts of recipes to impress your friends.
The Theatre
There are three main theatres in the city of Leeds. These are:
Leeds Grand Theatre & Opera House
46, New Briggate,
Leeds,
LS1 6NZ
Tel: 0113 245 6014
This theatre offers ballet, opera, musicals and drama and is probably the most expensive of the theatres in Leeds but offers high quality entertainment.
City Varieties Music Hall
Swan St,
Leeds,
LS1 6LW
Tel: 0113 243 0808
This music hall offers Pantomimes in the pantomime season (December-January) and also various dramas and written plays, including Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. It is a beautiful theatre which is due for refurbishment, so check before you go!
The West Yorkshire Playhouse
Playhouse Square, Quarry Hill,
Leeds,
LS2 7UP
Tel: 0113 213 7700
http://www.wyp.org.uk/
The West Yorkshire playhouse is situated near St James’ Hospital, quite close to Leeds City Bus Station. It offers lots of different kinds of plays and dramas and the ticket prices for each play can be found on the website where you can also buy your tickets to be sent to you or to pick up on the night of your performance.
Useful Numbers and Help
If you do get stuck in a situation, don’t panic. I have thought of some phone numbers and internet sites which will give you advice on how to deal with the situation.
Fire, Ambulance or Police
· If you need Police, Fire or Ambulance Assistance at Any time phone:
999 immediately and ask for the service you require.
· If you need Police advice at any time for any reason, phone the West Yorkshire Police information line on:
0845 6060606. Look out for local signs on information about avoiding crime and ask the local police station or fire station for more information.
Landlord and House or Accommodation Problems
· If you ever have a problem with your accomodation or house the first person you should contact is your landlord. Make sure you make a record of his/her contact details when you move into the property.
· If they do not respond, consult your contract you would have signed with them or the letting agent and make sure that you are inkeeping with contract regulations before you take any further action.
If you are sure you are not breaking your contract, phone the Citizens Advice Bureau on: 0113 262 9479. This is placed in Chapeltown in Leeds but they will be able to make an appointment with you to help.
· You can also telephone or visit Unipol, situated near Leeds University on: 0113 243 0169.
Unipol Student Homes, 155-157
Woodhouse Lane,
Leeds
LS2 3ED
· If none of these help you may have to take legal action, but go through all of the above processes first.
If you need help from anyone at any point, do not be afraid to ask and make your stay in Leeds a healthy happy and enjoyable one. J
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