The direct drive from Leeds to Manchester is 44.1 mi (71 km), and should have a drive time of 51 mins in normal traffic.

If you’re going on a road trip from Leeds to Manchester, we did the research for you and compiled some great stops along the way — with Peak District National Park, Stoke-on-Trent, Wakefield, Sheffield, Preston, Salford, Keighley, Buxton, Bradford, and Altrincham and top places to visit like Tropical World and RHS Garden Harlow Carr, or the ever-popular Roundhay Park.

Top cities between Leeds and Manchester

The top cities between Leeds and Manchester are Peak District National Park, Stoke-on-Trent, Wakefield, Sheffield, Preston, Salford, Keighley, Buxton, Bradford, and Altrincham. Peak District National Park is the most popular city on the route — it's 1 hour from Leeds and 1 hour from Manchester.

Wakefield

Wakefield is a cathedral city in West Yorkshire, England, on the River Calder and the eastern edge of the Pennines, which had a population of 99,251 at the 2011 census.
The Battle of Wakefield took place in the Wars of the Roses and it was a Royalist stronghold in the Civil War.

Bradford

Bradford is a city in the northern English county of West Yorkshire. Housed in a 19th-century mill, Bradford Industrial Museum includes exhibits on textile machinery, steam power and engineering. The National Science and Media Museum focuses on photography, film and television, and has an IMAX cinema. Lister Park has a boating lake and Cartwright Hall art gallery, with a space dedicated to local artist David Hockney.

Keighley

Keighley is a town and civil parish within the City of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, 11 miles northwest of Bradford at the confluence of the rivers Aire and Worth. Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, Keighley lies between Airedale and Keighley Moors. Book a taxi from Oldham to Manchester airport