Scarborough Spa is a vast complex offering many events and activities in an impressive heritage-listed cliffside building. As its name suggests, the site was built around the region’s spa waters, although it is now known for its Jazz Festival, Spa Orchestra, dances and concerts. Move around the complex to appreciate its excellent views of the sea.
Admire the stately architecture of the building, with its turrets, domes and arched windows. Attend a dramatic performance in the Spa Theatre. Admire the Victorian design of this auditorium that seats 570 people. Get one of the balcony seats to feel like royalty as you watch the theatrical display. The Grand Hall is a larger theatre with 1,630 seats. Attend a craft fair at the Sun Court Theatre.
Visit the Vita Dome for its spectacular vista of the sea and rugged coast. It is used for functions and banquets. Listen to the intense sounds of the Spa Orchestra, which has been performing for more than a century. The complex puts on the Jazz Festival for a few days in mid-September.
Ride the Scarborough Spa Cliff Lift, a funicular train that transports passengers between the clifftop and the spa buildings below. Enjoy lunch or dinner at the upscale Farrer’s Bar & Brasserie.
Learn the fascinating story behind the building. The notion of a spa here dates back to the early 1600s, when a prominent local investigated the healing properties of the water bubbling beneath the cliff. Hear how people flocked from across the country to taste the water and bathe in it. Several buildings were constructed over the centuries, up until the current installation in the 1880s.
Get tickets from the box office beside the site’s main entrance. It is open daily from morning until late afternoon, with closures on Sundays in January.
Scarborough Spa is near the coast in southeastern Scarborough. Walk 15 minutes to reach the spa from Scarborough Railway Station. The spa is just south of South Bay Beach and Scarborough Harbour. Parking is available, for a fee, in the spaces at the front of the building or in the underground parking under Spa Bridge.
