Welcome to the booking site for the 155th Mark Benevolent Fund Festival, to be held in Harrogate on Saturday 1st July 2023. The Province of West Yorkshire is proud to be the host for what we anticipate will be a most spectacular and enjoyable weekend.
We start with an informal Welcome Party on the Friday evening. There will be a buffet meal, with entertainment from ‘Soulmates’ and the chance to meet and chat with all our guests and local Mark Masons and their partners. This will be held at the Harrogate Convention Centre, as will be the Gala Dinner on Saturday evening.
Harrogate has many wonderful attractions both in town and the surrounding area. In particular, the famous RHS Harlow Carr gardens are a short drive or bus journey away, only three miles from our venue. Local transport will easily take you to the ancient and beautiful cities of York and Ripon with their lovely cathedrals, and if you should feel more energetic the National Trust’s ‘Brimham Rocks’ are to be found on the edge of town. There is also the famous Betty’s Tea Rooms, an afternoon tea experience not to be missed, and Harrogate Spa where all sorts of treatments, saunas and pools are available to pre book.
A visit to Harewood House, the home of Lord Harewood, has been arranged for Saturday, which will include return transport, a tour of the house, and access to its stunning gardens and bird garden.
Saturday evening will, of course, see us all back at the Harrogate Convention Centre for the main event of the weekend, the Gala Dinner. We will enjoy a celebratory evening with music provided by ‘Downtown Swing’, and after Dinner the results of our Province’s efforts on behalf of the MBF’s 155th Festival will be announced with due ceremony.
This web site enables you to book for the Friday evening Welcome Party, the excursion to Harewood House and the Saturday evening Gala Dinner. In addition, there is a link to our hotel booking partner, Reservation Highway, with negotiated special rates at a number of hotels in Harrogate, all of which are within a short walking distance of the Harrogate Convention Centre, with the Crowne Plaza hotel actually being on site.
Joan and I, together with the brethren of West Yorkshire and their partners, look forward to meeting you all, and to giving you a real Yorkshire welcome on your visit to Harrogate.
Jim Steggles
Festival President