The Settle Flowerpot Festival… a Fun, Free, Family Day Out in the Yorkshire Dales

The Settle Flowerpot Festival is a fun and free day out in the Yorkshire Dales for all of the family this summer! 

I stumbled across it by accident after having done a hike in the surrounding hills when looking for somewhere to have lunch. 

As I was wandering around the town having dried off from a very wet and rainy walk, I saw some characters made from flowerpots on street corners, on top of doorways, and in all sorts of other eye-catching locations. 

With the rain starting to pour down again though, I was more interested in finding somewhere dry to sit inside and have lunch than find out what these characters were all about!

So, after finding somewhere to eat and while having a delicious lunch at Ye Olde Naked Man Café (I had a bacon, brie and cranberry sandwich and a latte), I asked the staff, and searched online for what was happening in the town.  

From 16th July until 4th September the Settle Flowerpot Festival is running, with loads of weird and wonderful characters to hunt for throughout the town centre and surrounding area. And best of all, since they’re all just placed on the streets, on prominent buildings, or hidden down side alleys and courtyards, it’s all free to do! 

If you really want to make the most of the fun and try and find all of the displays, there are quiz sheets and trails with clues to follow, which you can purchase from the tourist information or other participating shops in the town. There are 3 trails in total, and it costs £2 for one trail or £5 for all 3, plus a map of the town.

With the rain having eased off while I had my lunch, I head back out and start my hunt for as many of the characters as I can find… it is largely aimed at kids so I fully embrace my inner child, but there are plenty of nostalgic characters from my childhood and some amusement for adults to find too! 

Super Mario, Postman Pat, SpongeBob SquarePants, Mickey Mouse, and Daenerys from Game of Thrones (at least I think it was supposed to be her although it looks more like an eagle rather than a dragon she’s riding) are all flowerpots I find, plus many many more!

But the best ones have to be the Beatles walking down Abbey Road, and Boris, fresh on his holidays after losing the Prime Minister job, enjoying some Stella’s and still denying that it’s a party!! (I obviously had to get a selfie with him, just a shame I didn’t have any beers of my own!) And I’m sure it’s not a coincidence that Pinocchio is just a few yards down the road from him either… 

There are almost 200 displays to find across the 3 different trails, so you could spend a whole day hunting for them. But having walked over 5 miles in the cold, wind and rain this morning in the hills, I give up after finding the ones in the town centre and head home… so if you explore and find more than I did, please tag us in your social media posts (@TrovenTrip) and add your own Blog or Plog on here!  

More information can be found on the official website… http://www.settleflowerpotfestival.co.uk/ and their Facebook page… https://www.facebook.com/groups/settleflowerpots. Flowerpot Workshops for children where you can make your own flowerpot creations to take home with you can also be booked on their website, so you can try your hand and see how your creative skills compare to some of the characters you find during your explore!