Dale Pitt Lakes and Lodges

Yorkshire Wildlife Park is a zoo and conservation centre on the outskirts of Doncaster, South Yorkshire. You explore on foot, with three walk-through animal reserves and themed lands that recreate habitats from around the world.

Tip: Booking tickets in advance is cheaper than buying on the day, and Planet Putt next to the entrance is a good wet-weather add-on.

The Deep is a public aquarium in Hull, overlooking the Humber Estuary where the River Hull meets it. Its Endless Ocean tank holds sharks, rays and northern Europe's only pair of green sawfish, and you can walk through Europe's deepest viewing tunnel or ride a glass lift through the water.

Tip: Check the daily talk times when you arrive and plan your visit around the shark and penguin talks. Use HU1 4DP or HU9 1TU for sat nav, which takes you to Tower Street.

Pontefract Castle is a dramatic medieval fortress, now a ruin, with plenty of stories to tell. Built by Ilbert de Lacy in the late 11th century, it is thought to be where King Richard II died, and it saw a series of sieges during the English Civil War. Today it is also a much-loved community space, and entry is free.

Tip: Use the free car park behind the castle (sat nav WF8 2JF). It is a 122m walk to the site, cobbled and uneven in places, with a 1 in 13 gradient. Check the castle website for any roadworks affecting access before you go.

The Trolleybus Museum at Sandtoft sits on part of a former wartime RAF station in Lincolnshire. It was founded in 1969 to house and restore trolleybuses as they disappeared from Britain's streets, and its collection is now described as the largest of preserved trolleybuses in the world, with well over 50 vehicles.

Tip: The museum only opens on selected days, so check the Open Days calendar on its website before you travel.

Cusworth Hall is an 18th-century Grade I listed country house near Doncaster, built in the Palladian style by George Platt and altered by James Paine. It is a country house museum, with displays on the history of South Yorkshire inside the hall.

Conisbrough Castle in South Yorkshire dates back to the 11th century, and its stone keep was built around 1180 to 1190 by Hamelin Plantagenet, half-brother of Henry II. Standing 28 metres high, the circular keep has six massive buttresses, and its design is unique in England. The castle also gained fame as a setting in Walter Scott's novel Ivanhoe.

Tip: Book advance tickets online to save 15%.

Tropical World is a licensed zoo in Roundhay Park, Leeds, made up of climate-controlled glass houses that each recreate a tropical environment. You start in the butterfly house, where butterflies fly freely around a swampy setting with terrapins, koi and Morelet's crocodiles. From there you move into an Aztec-themed aquarium with stingrays, octopus, seahorses, piranhas and poison dart frogs.

Tip: Free parking is close by, a short walk away, and buses 2 and 12 stop right outside. Dogs, including assistance dogs, are not allowed inside.

Murton Park is set in 14 acres of countryside east of York and is home to the Yorkshire Museum of Farming. Inside you can explore the history of farm machinery, rural life and the Women's Land Army. Outdoors there are animals to meet, play areas, and a short ride on the Derwent Valley Light Railway at weekends.

Tip: The living history sites may have limited or no access during school term time, so visit at a weekend or in the school holidays to see the Roman fort and Viking village.