Our Top 11 Things To Do In South Yorkshire
With a portion of the Peak District National Park within its borders, as well as stately homes, heritage centres and family-friendly country parks, South Yorkshire is no slouch when it comes to keeping its visitors entertained.
Add Sheffield’s urban attractions and a few hidden gems into the mix, and you have all the ingredients for an activity-filled holiday. Concerned about ‘activity-filled’ being code for ‘expensive’? Don’t worry: many of the places suggested below are free of charge. What will you do first?
Here’s our list of the top 11 things to do in South Yorkshire.
The Peak District National Park
Hiking, biking and guided activities in a hilly landscape
If you pick only one destination from this list, the Peak District should be it.
With so many outdoor activities in this vast national park on the western fringes of the county, you might be tempted to extend your holiday by a day or two.
Expert guidance is at hand for extreme sports like caving, climbing and paragliding, or set off for an independent hike on the Peak District’s 1,800 miles of paths (bring a good supply of plasters in case of blisters). Make sure your route includes some of the area’s famed beauty spots, like Padley Gorge’s waterfalls and Stanage Edge, a bluff with views across a dramatic landscape.
All bike hire centres in the park have tag-alongs and buggy trailers, so you don’t have to worry about the kids struggling to keep up as you pedal through wild moors, wooded valleys and rugged hills.
The best way to explore is to stay at a campsite within easy reach of the Peak District. If the national park’s extensive hiking network sounds daunting, you can always draw more focused inspiration from our list of the best scenic walks in South Yorkshire.
Around Doncaster
Cusworth Hall Museum and Park
Spend a family day in a country house’s landscaped park
This elegant 18th-century country house has a museum with costumes, everyday objects and other exhibits illustrating 300 years of local and social history.
For most visitors, though, Cusworth Hall is all about the landscaped grounds. Relax with a picnic on a tree-shaded patch of lawn, stroll along the reedy ponds spotting swans and ducklings, or help the kids with ‘I spy’-type challenges on the nature and tree trails.
Brodsworth Hall and Gardens
A gently worn stately home with flower-filled gardens
The grounds at Brodsworth Hall are a riot of seasonal colour. Explore paths that meander through tall trees and topiary hedges, admiring the fragrant rose garden and the extensive fern collection as you go. Then step inside the 19th-century stately home, but don’t expect a look into how the other half lived.
Sure, the rooms are grand and the period furnishings elegant, but the frayed sofas and faded wallpaper reveal the aristocratic owners’ economic struggle in the post-war years. Anyone who’s ever had to fix a leaking roof can sympathise.
For a more classic experience of a stately home, Wentworth Woodhouse is a palatial mansion with a monumental façade, stucco-decorated ceilings and the Marble Saloon – so grand that it was used for a ball scene in ‘Downton Abbey’.
Potteric Carr Nature Reserve
Wetlands with birdwatching and family-friendly activities
From sandpipers to marsh harriers, birdlife abounds at this hidden gem on the edge of Doncaster. Join a guided walk, explore alone or help the kids complete the story trail by looking for clues while strolling through woodland, marshes and meadows.
The tearoom’s decked terrace overlooks a pond, so you can keep an eye out for toads, dragonflies and water voles as you tuck into a sandwich or a homemade scone.
Conisbrough Castle
Medieval castle with views from the keep
Built in the 12th century, this limestone castle had already been abandoned by the late 1400s. Its distinctive ruins, high on a grassy knoll, were the inspiration behind the Coningsburgh Castle that appears in Sir Walter Scott’s novel Ivanhoe.
Explore the grounds, scattered with informative graphic novel-type boards, then climb the restored four-storey keep for far-reaching views of the surrounding area, including the imposing Conisbrough Viaduct across the river Don. If heights are not an issue, cycle on this 21-arch structure as part of a four-mile route to Doncaster.
Search for campsite accommodation around the Doncaster area.
Around Barnsley
Elsecar Heritage Centre
Conservation village with shops and events
For a family day out, check out Elsecar, a former ironworks and colliery that has reinvented itself as a heritage centre.
Travel back to the days of the Industrial Revolution with interactive storytelling events for kids, guided tours of the 18th-century village and demonstrations of the mighty Newcomen Beam Engine steam pump. There are also plenty of shopping options, from antiques to traditional sweets, plus exhibition areas and craft workshops.
Cannon Hall Museum, Park and Gardens
Decorative arts in a country house with kid-friendly gardens
This 18th-century country house might have you wishing for a rainy day, just so you can spend a few hours admiring pewter Art Nouveau objects with floral details, Flemish paintings and a glass collection that ranges from a Roman-era lotion bottle to contemporary sculptures.
Many visitors, however, simply like to make the most of the grounds, which are dotted with architectural follies, lotus ponds and waterfalls, plus balance beams, wooden teepees and other play equipment. Free and dog-friendly, Cannon Hall is also a popular spot for picnics.
Close encounters with alpacas, Shetland ponies and goats await at nearby Cannon Hall Farm, where the kids can scurry around the giant tube maze or tackle ziplines and climbing frames on the adventure course.
Worsbrough Mill and Country Park
Historic mill in a nature reserve with birdwatching and fishing
Powered by water from the river Dove, the centuries-old Worsbrough Mill still produces flour from organic grains. Buy a pack or two from the on-site shop for your own bake-off challenges back home.
The main draw for most visitors, however, is the surrounding country park, a free-to-access local nature reserve with woodland, wildflower meadows and reedbeds that attract plenty of wildlife. Explore it on foot or by bike, while helping the kids complete the storytelling trail challenge.
Grebes and coots gather around the large reservoir, as do anglers looking to catch carp, bream and perch.
Click here to book a campsite in the Barnsley area. For more ideas on where to go angling, check out our guide to carp fishing in South Yorkshire.
In Sheffield
Millennium Gallery
Steel manufacturing displays in Sheffield’s city centre
Want to learn more about what put Sheffield on the map? (And no, we’re not talking about its music scene and cool bands like The Human League and Pulp.) The Millennium Gallery has a permanent display of locally made cutlery and tableware that illustrates the history of Sheffield’s world-renowned steel industry.
Rotating exhibitions highlight contemporary local painters, modern design and photography.
Stay in the city centre for more galleries, including Bloc Projects, which promotes up-and-coming artists, and Site Gallery, with a focus on digital and multimedia works.
Sheffield Botanical Gardens
Themed gardens and a Victorian bear pit
A half-hour’s stroll from the city centre takes you to this green oasis established in the 1830s.
There’s plenty to see here, from the huge Grade II-listed Glass Pavilions to 18 themed areas, including Mediterranean and Himalayan gardens. There’s also a rare example of a Victorian bear pit, though thankfully, these days, the only bear at the bottom of it is a sculpture.
Click here to see camping options around Sheffield. 
Penistone
Market town on the Trans Pennine Trail
With a weekly country market and a fortnightly farmers’ market, the town of Penistone makes for a mouthwatering pitstop on your South Yorkshire tour. Stock up on homemade cakes and jams, free-range eggs and locally grown vegetables, then have a stroll in the surrounding countryside.
The Trans Pennine Trail passes through Penistone en route to Wortley to the south east. Settle in for a pint of real ale at the wood-panelled Wortley Arms, or explore the landscaped gardens at Wortley Hall, an elegant stately home.
Look for campsites near Penistone.
Are you in the ‘two wheels good, four wheels bad’ brigade? Check out our guide to cycling in the South Yorkshire region. Before you pack up and go, make sure you book your South Yorkshire campsite first. If you decide to stay a little longer and explore the surrounding counties, here’s a useful link to our Ultimate North East Region Camping Guide.