Royal Armouries and New Dock Hall

You can keep a large conference, its exhibition and its dinner on one site at Leeds Dock, moving between a pillar-free 1,259 m² hall, a divisible 886 m² hall and a two-tier lecture theatre without taking guests to a second venue. You also get museum galleries for receptions and dinners, so a drinks reception can sit among the arms and armour collection. The Royal Armouries Museum and the adjoining New Dock Hall stand on Armouries Drive, and the venue says it hosts more than 380 events a year and can take up to 2,500 delegates.

Event spaces and capacities

You can size the room to the audience, from a boardroom of 20 to a reception of 1,500 indoors. The homepage counts 12 event spaces, the spaces pages list 16 and the PDF venue guide adds the Vera Suite, Hall of Steel and Tilt Yard. New Dock Hall is the largest indoor room and the main exhibition space at 1,259 m², with 5.8m ceilings, suspension points, a programmable star cloth and no pillars. The venue quotes trade shows of up to 1,500 there and reception space for 1,000 in the Royal Armouries Hall. That hall splits into Hall A (152 m²), Hall B (136 m²) and Hall C (598 m²) behind soundproof walls.

Capacities as published by the venue on its spaces page and each room’s own page, checked 4 November 2026. Figures for the Vera Suite, Hall of Steel and Tilt Yard come from the venue guide. A dash means no figure is published, and no classroom figures appear. Boardroom layouts are 40 in the Pearl Suite, 30 in the Aire Suite, Barton Suite and The Masters, and 20 in the Hotot and Vera suites.

Getting there and parking

Your delegates can reach the venue without a car, because the venue says Leeds station is within walking distance and the museum says a water taxi runs from the station to Leeds Dock. Leeds Bradford Airport is about a 30-minute cab ride or under an hour on the Flyer A1 bus, and Manchester Airport is just over an hour and a half by direct train. Drivers use Armouries Drive and Chadwick Street, with the M1, M62, M621 and A1 nearby.

The location page says the on-site car park has 1,250 spaces, the outdoor space pages say 1,400 and the organiser guide says 1,500. The museum says CitiPark runs it and the venue does not publish charges. Van and car parking arranged with Leeds City Council is a 7-minute walk away. The venue offers 20 free cycle bays and a repair kit on Armouries Drive. Tell your Event Manager about coach arrivals, because additional Traffic Officers must be hired through the venue.

Exhibition builds get vehicle access from the service yard through loading bay doors into New Dock Hall. The venue has no storage for deliveries and asks that nothing arrives more than 2 days before an event.

Guests with access needs get step-free routes to every meeting and conference room and four passenger lifts that take wheelchairs. Stages can have a ramp or portable lift and most rooms have induction loops. Drop-off bays on Armouries Drive have a 15-minute limit. CitiPark Leeds Dock has chargeable blue badge spaces, 42 according to the organiser guide, and the museum lists five free spaces opposite the Holiday Inn.

Catering, AV and accommodation

You deal with one catering team, because all food and drink on site must come from Royal Armouries Taste and outside catering is not permitted. The team offers tastings and trained allergen champions, and wants special dietary needs 7 working days ahead. The day delegate package includes a room with daylight, a standard AV package with support, refreshment breaks, a buffet lunch, a dedicated Event Manager and free wireless, though no price is published. For events up to 31 January 2027, the venue offers 15% off one full-day plenary room hire in six named rooms, including the Bury Theatre and Pearl Suite.

You can keep production with one supplier that knows the building, AV & C, the venue’s official event production partner, which covers staging, lighting and live streaming. Exhibitors cannot use the free Wi-Fi and must pre-order a cabled connection. The venue holds Silver accreditations from Green Tourism and Greengage, and its organiser guide cites ISO 14001:2015.

The venue lists no bedrooms of its own but says more than 6,000 hotel bedrooms are within walking distance. The Holiday Inn Express is next door, the 248-room Leonardo Hotel is an 8-minute walk away, and the venue also names The Queens Hotel as a city option.

What to ask before you book

• Which Royal Armouries Hall figures apply to your set? The room page gives 650 for dinner and 600 theatre, while the venue guide gives 700 or 800 for dinner and 500 or 600 theatre. The venue’s photos of the hall also show columns, so ask for a sightline plan.
• How many of the car park spaces can you have? The Event Planner sets the number for your tenancy, and you should also ask about charges and EV charging, which the venue does not publish.
• When can a gallery event start? The museum opens 10am to 5pm, so check set-up times for the War and Tournament galleries, and confirm dinner numbers in the Mulberry Suite, where the guide gives 16 and the room page gives none.
• Where do wheelchair users sit in the Bury Theatre, Cinema of War and News Room? The accessibility page says the venue has no fixed seating, but those room pages describe it.
• What is the licensed limit for The Square? Its page shows 10,000 on 4,000 m², the guide shows 2,500 for Museum Square, and the page calls it a public square, so ask how much can be closed off.

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Sources: Royal Armouries Events, spaces, location and parking, accessibility, services, venue guide, organiser information guide and the museum FAQs, checked 4 November 2026.