Market Harborough

Market Harborough offers a range of ways to shape a stay: a canal arm without locks, several types of markets, historic buildings, and themes relating to museums and crafts. If you are looking for a hotel, you can plan your trip around the interests that appeal to you most—such as visiting markets, architectural history or a hands-on activity.

Canal and markets

The Market Harborough Arm runs lock-free along its entire route of just under six miles from Foxton to Market Harborough. Union Wharf is a place to stroll and linger. This makes it easy to combine the canal with a walk or a break. The waterway and its lack of locks offer a different focus from the town’s markets and cultural attractions.

Harborough Market includes a general market, a vintage, retro and antiques market, and a Sunday market for antiques and collectables. The formats have different focuses: alongside the general market are offerings with an explicitly stated focus on vintage items, antiques and collectables. The Sunday market is a separate option. If antiques or collectables are of particular interest to you, Sunday may be especially relevant when planning your visit; check the dates before arranging your trip around it.

Discover places and activities

Market Harborough is also home to “Frank the Plank”, a human sundial. The Leicestershire Craft Centre gives visitors the opportunity to learn a skill such as sewing. This adds a sundial and a hands-on activity to the themes of markets and the townscape. Those who enjoy learning or getting involved while travelling will find a different way to explore here than on a visit focused mainly on buildings and history.

A tour with a Blue Badge Guide can be booked to discover the history and heritage of Market Harborough, Lutterworth and the Harborough District. Its scope therefore extends beyond Market Harborough to include the other two areas named. The tour is a good option if you are interested in history and heritage.

Architectural history and museum

The Church of St Dionysius is a prominent feature in many views of Market Harborough, both near and far. It shapes the view of the town from different perspectives. For those interested in architecture and the townscape, it is a particularly visible landmark.

The Old Grammar School is a timber-framed building on stilts dating from 1614. Its design and date offer two specific aspects to focus on during a visit: its elevated construction and its place in history. The building also hosts outdoor markets for crafts and art. This brings together architectural interest and a market offering with a creative focus in one place.

The Symington Building was originally a Victorian corset factory and houses Harborough Museum on its first floor. The building thus combines a former industrial use with its present role as a museum. The museum tells the stories of Iron Age Harborough through a hoard of more than 5,000 coins found near Hallaton in 2000 and a Roman cavalry helmet. This gives the museum a specific historical focus.

Tailor your search to what interests you most during your stay in Market Harborough.

Discover more destinations: Markfield, Market Bosworth, Melton Mowbray, Narborough, Quorn, Great Glen, Ashby De La Zouch, Coalville

For the wider travel overview: Leicestershire.