Mother Shipton's Cave

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Mother Shipton's Cave

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A mystical folklore experience. England's Oldest Tourist Attraction, including the Petrifying Well and Mother Shipton's Cave 🔮 Who was Mother Shipton?
(1819)

Mother Shipton’s is a beloved Knaresborough landmark and England’s oldest visitor attraction, open since 1630. This popular visitor attraction tells the story of Mother Shipton and the Petrifying Well. Historic Woodland Walk
A picturesque mile-long walk along the River Nidd features the cave where famous Yorkshire prophetess Mother Shipton was born. It is situated next to the Petrifying Well, a unique geological phenomenon. Over hundreds of years curiosity has drawn millions of visitors to the well to see cascading water turn everyday objects to stone - as if by magic. People around the world visit the park, a remnant of the Royal Forest of Knaresborough with some of the oldest, tallest beech trees in the country. Mother Shipton was born in a cave in 1488 and grew up around Knaresborough. As she grew older, her prophecies became known throughout England. She foretold the defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588 and the Great Fire of London in 1666. She made her living telling the future and warning those who asked of what was to come. Fun for all the Family
Great for all ages, there’s fun for families in the adventure playground, scenic picnic areas, interactive trails during events, and petrified objects displayed in the museum and gift shop. Dogs are welcome in all areas, apart from the playground. For more information visit our website.

02/11/2026

🎄 Can you believe we’re in November already?! It’s time to start thinking about Christmas… and lots of slots for our Magical Christmas Experience are 𝑎𝑙𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑑𝑦 𝑓𝑢𝑙𝑙𝑦 𝑏𝑜𝑜𝑘𝑒𝑑! ✨

Enjoy a visit with Santa, with just you and your family in our gorgeous, cosy grotto with Santa and one of his friendly elves. Each child with a Santa Experience Ticket will receive a luxurious soft toy gift!

Children with a Santa Experience Ticket will also receive a festive activity pack and can settle down for stories with Holly Berry. ❤️

It’s a lovely tradition to share with your family, and we’re so proud to have been voted Best Christmas Experience in the Yorkshire Tots to Teens Awards. We’d love you to come and see why! 🌟

Book your festive visit via our website 🎟️

02/11/2026

🎄 We’re now closed while our little team transforms the site for Christmas! ✨

Thank you so much to everyone who joined us for our Halloween event this year. We loved welcoming you!

We can’t wait to open the doors to our Magical Christmas Experience and Winter Woodland Walks from the 28th November. There’s plenty of festive magic on the way! 🌟

Have you booked your visit yet? We look forward to seeing you soon! ❤️

01/11/2026

🎃👻 IT'S THE FINAL DAY OF OUR HALLOWEEN EVENT! 👻🎃

The spooky fun isn't over just yet! 🕷️🕸️

We have a few spaces left for one last day of Halloween magic 🖤

🎟️ Spaces are limited – book now via our website!

31/10/2026

We hope you've all had a fantastic Halloween and enjoyed plenty of spooky fun! 🕸️🦇

We're looking forward to welcoming you tomorrow for the FINAL DAY of our Halloween event! 🎃

31/10/2026

🎃 And just like that... 𝑖𝑡'𝑠 𝐻𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑒𝑛! 👻

A huge thank you to all our wonderful visitors for sharing spooky season with us so far. We’ve loved seeing your costumes, and our witches have had a bewitching time with you! 🧡✨

We can’t wait for more Halloween fun, who’s joining us? 🕷️🍂

Prebooking is essential for our popular Halloween event. Admission is completely sold out for the 31st October, but some spaces remain for the 1st November.

30/10/2026

🎃 A little reminder - we’re FULLY BOOKED today! 🎃

We’re so pleased that so many of you want to join us for our award-winning events. Thank you for all your support! 🧡

There are still a few spaces available for Sunday 1st November, but you’ll need to be quick! 👻✨ Please remember that booking is essential for Halloween and Christmas, our busiest times.

30/10/2026

🚗 Car admission is 𝐅𝐔𝐋𝐋𝐘 𝐁𝐎𝐎𝐊𝐄𝐃 all day today (30th October) and tomorrow (31st October).

🚶 We still have a few pedestrian admission spaces available for the 31st, but they’re very limited!

Please remember to pre-book before visiting this Halloween, we’re very busy and don’t want you to miss out! 👻

We can’t wait to see you all! 🧡

29/10/2026

✨🎄 Wow, some of you are organised! 🎄✨

Already getting your Christmas shopping sorted nice and early! 🎁❤️

Lots of orders are heading out from the online shop this week, and it’s lovely to see! ✨

Wishing Well Water and Petrified Bears are flying out the door, of course! 🧚‍♀️💧🐻

Are you an early Christmas shopper, or more of a last-minute elf?

29/10/2026

🎃👻 We LOVE it when our visitors get into the spirit! 🧙‍♀️🕸️

Your costumes have been amazing, and we’d love to see more! 🧡 If you have any photos of your spooky outfits, please share them with us in the comments below! 📸👇

28/10/2026

We’ve had a couple of questions this week asking if we’re dog friendly at Halloween… YES we are! 🐶🎃

We love welcoming your spooky doggy companions! We just ask that they’re kept on a lead at all times and don’t enter the playground or gift shop. 🐾

There are treats for them too - we sell doggy ice cream, dog treats and puppuccinos! 🍦

Please note that dogs aren’t permitted during our Christmas event due to the event setup, so Halloween is the perfect time to bring your four-legged friends along for some spooky fun! 🧙‍♀️🖤

Address

Prophecy Lodge, High Bridge
Knaresborough
HG58DD

Telephone

+441423864600

Website

http://www.mothershipton.co.uk/

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