Fodor's London (2015)
Main Table of Contents
Getting Oriented
Cambridge
Oxford
Stratford-upon-Avon
Warner Bros. Harry Potter Studio Tour
Windsor Castle
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Planning
Updated by Kate Hughes and Jack Jewers
Londoners are undeniably lucky. Few urban populations enjoy such glorious—and easily accessible—options for day-tripping. Even if you have only one day to spare, head out of the city. A train ride past hills dotted with sheep, a stroll through a medieval town, or a visit to one of England’s great castles could make you feel as though you’ve added another week to your vacation.
Not only is England extremely compact, the train and bus networks, although somewhat inefficient and expensive compared with their European counterparts, are extensive and easily booked (though pricing structures can be confusing), making “a brilliant day out” an easy thing to accomplish.
Although you can do the Warner Bros. Harry Potter Studio Tour in a day, visiting many of the towns near London will be a frenzied day trip. Heavy summer crowds make it difficult to cover the sights in a relaxed manner, so consider staying for a day or two. You’d then have time to explore a different England—one with quiet country pubs, tree-lined lanes, and neat fields. No matter where you go, lodging reservations are a good idea from June through September, when foreign visitors saturate the English countryside.
PLANNING
GETTING AROUND
Normally the towns near London are best reached by train. Bus travel costs less, but can take twice as long.Wherever you’re going, plan ahead: check the latest timetables before you set off, and try to get an early start.
STATION TIPS
You can reach any of London’s main-line train stations by Tube. London’s bus stations can be confusing for the uninitiated, so here’s a quick breakdown:
Green Line Coach Station is on Bulleid Way (in front of the Colonnades Shopping Centre on Buckingham Palace Road) and is the departure point for most Green Line and Megabus services.
Victoria Bus Station is where many of the local London bus services arrive and depart, and is directly outside the main exits of the train and Tube stations.
Victoria Coach Station is on Buckingham Palace Road: it’s a five-minute walk from Victoria Tube station. This is where to go for coach departures; arrivals are at a different location, a short walk from here.
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Exploring | Where to Eat
60 miles northeast of London.
With the spires of its university buildings framed by towering trees and expansive meadows, its medieval streets and passages enhanced by gardens and riverbanks, the city of Cambridge is among the loveliest in England. The city predates the Roman occupation of Britain, but there’s confusion over exactly how the university was founded. The most widely accepted story is that it was established in 1209 by a pair of scholars from Oxford, who left their university in protest over the wrongful execution of a colleague for murder.
This university town may be beautiful, but it’s no museum. Even when the students are on vacation, there’s a cultural and intellectual buzz here. Well-preserved medieval buildings sit cheek-by-jowl next to the latest in modern architecture (for example the William Gates building, which houses Cambridge University’s computer laboratory) in this growing city dominated culturally and architecturally by its famous university (whose students make up around one-fifth of the city’s 109,000 inhabitants), and beautified by parks, gardens, and the quietly flowing River Cam. A quintessential Cambridge pursuit is punting on the Cam (one occupant propels the narrow, square-end, flat-bottom boat with a long pole), followed by a stroll along the Backs, the left bank of the river fringed by St. John’s, Trinity, Clare, King’s, and Queens’ colleges, and by Trinity Hall.
Visiting the Colleges
College visits are certainly a highlight of a Cambridge tour, but remember that the colleges are private residences and workplaces, even when school isn’t in session. Each is an independent entity within the university; some are closed to the public, but at others you can see the chapels, dining rooms (called halls), and sometimes the libraries, too. Some colleges charge a fee for the privilege of nosing around. All are closed during exams, usually from mid-April to late June, and the opening hours often vary. Additionally, all are subject to closures at short notice, especially King’s; check the websites in advance. For details about visiting specific colleges not listed here, contact Cambridge University.
Tours
City Sightseeing.
This company operates open-top bus tours of Cambridge—the Backs, the colleges, the Imperial War Museum in Duxford, and the Grafton shopping center. Tours can be joined at marked bus stops in the city. Ask the tourist office about additional tours. | Cambridge Train Station, Station Rd. | 01223/433250 | www.city-sightseeing.com | From £14.
Visit Cambridge.
Walking tours, as well as other tours, are led by an official Blue Badge guide. The two-hour tours leave from the tourist information center at Peas Hill. Hours vary according to the tour, with the earliest leaving at 11 am and the latest at 1 pm in winter, 2 in summer. | Peas Hill | 0871/226-8006 | www.visitcambridge.org | From £18.50.
Essentials
Visitor Information
Cambridge University. | 01223/337733 | www.cam.ac.uk.
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EXPLORING
TOP ATTRACTIONS
Fodor’s Choice | Fitzwilliam Museum.
In a Classical Revival building renowned for its grand Corinthian portico, the Fitzwilliam, founded by the seventh viscount Fitzwilliam of Merrion in 1816, has one of Britain’s most outstanding collections of art and antiquities. Highlights include two large Titians, an extensive collection of French impressionist paintings, and many works by Matisse and Picasso. The opulent interior displays its treasures to marvelous effect, from Egyptian pieces such as inch-high figurines and painted coffins, to sculptures from the Chinese Han dynasty of the 3rd century BC. | Trumpington St. | 01223/332900 | www.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk | Free | Tues.-Sat. 10-5, Sun. noon-5.
King’s College.
Founded in 1441 by Henry VI, King’s College has a magnificent late-15th-century chapel that is its most famous landmark. Other notable architecture is the neo-Gothic Porters’ Lodge, facing King’s Parade, which was a comparatively recent addition in the 1830s, and the classical Gibbs building. TIP Head down to the river, from where the panorama of college and chapel is one of the university’s most photographed views. Past students of King’s College include the novelist E.M. Forster, the economist John Maynard Keynes, and the World War I poet Rupert Brooke. | King’s Parade | 01223/331212 | www.kings.cam.ac.uk | £7.50, includes chapel | Term time, Mon. 9:45-3:30, Tues.-Fri. 9:30-3:30, Sat. 9:30-3:15, Sun. 1:15-2:30; out of term, Mon. 9:45-4:30, Tues.-Sun. 9:30-4:30.
Fodor’s Choice | King’s College Chapel.
Based on Sainte-Chapelle, the 13th-century royal chapel in Paris, this house of worship is perhaps the most glorious flowering of Perpendicular Gothic in Britain. Henry VI, the king after whom the college is named, oversaw the work. From the outside, the most prominent features are the massive flying buttresses and the fingerlike spires that line the length of the building. Inside, the most obvious impression is of great space—the chapel was once described as “the noblest barn in Europe”—and of light flooding in from its huge windows. The brilliantly colored bosses (carved panels at the intersections of the roof ribs) are particularly intense, although hard to see without binoculars. An exhibition in the chantries, or side chapels, explains more about the chapel’s construction. Behind the altar is The Adoration of the Magi, an enormous painting by Peter Paul Rubens. TIP The chapel, unlike the rest of King’s College, stays open during exam periods. Every Christmas Eve, a festival of carols is sung by the chapel’s famous choir. To compete for the small number of tickets available, join the line at the college’s main entrance early—doors open at 7 am. | King’s Parade | 01223/331212 | www.kings.cam.ac.uk | £7.50, includes college and grounds | Term time, weekdays 9:30-4, Sat. 9:30-3:45, Sun. 1:15-3; out of term, daily 9:30-5; last admission 30 mins before closing. Chapel occasionally closed for services and private events; call or check online.
Fodor’s Choice | Polar Museum.
Beautifully designed, this museum at the university’s Scott Polar Research Institute chronicles the history of polar exploration. There’s a particular emphasis on the British expeditions of the 20th century, including the ill-fated attempt by Robert Falcon Scott to be the first to reach the South Pole in 1912. Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen reached the pole first; Scott and his men perished on the return journey, but his story became legendary. There are also collections devoted to the science of modern polar exploration and the indigenous people of northern Canada, Greenland, and Alaska. | Scott Polar Research Institute, Lensfield Rd. | 01223/336540 | www.spri.cam.ac.uk/museum | Free | Tues.-Sat. and bank holiday Mon. 10-4. Closed Sat. of bank holiday weekends.
WORTH NOTING
Emmanuel College.
The master hand of architect Christopher Wren (1632-1723) is evident throughout much of Cambridge, particularly at Emmanuel, built on the site of a Dominican friary, where he designed the chapel and colonnade. A stained-glass window in the chapel has a likeness of John Harvard, founder of Harvard University, who studied here. The college, founded in 1584, was an early center of Puritan learning; a number of the Pilgrims were Emmanuel alumni, and they remembered their alma mater in naming Cambridge, Massachusetts. | St. Andrew’s St. | 01223/334200 | www.emma.cam.ac.uk | Free | Daily 9-6, except exam period.
Queens’ College.
One of the most eye-catching colleges, Queens’ is named after Margaret, wife of Henry VI, and Elizabeth, wife of Edward IV. Founded in 1448, the college is tucked away on Queens’ Lane, next to the wide lawns that lead down from King’s College to the Backs. The secluded “cloister court” looks untouched since its completion in the 1540s. Queens’ masterpiece is the Mathematical Bridge, the original version of which is said to have been built without any fastenings. The current bridge (1902) is securely bolted. The college is closed to visitors late May to late June. | Queens’ La. | 01223/335511 | www.quns.cam.ac.uk | Mid Mar.-Sept. £2.50; Oct. weekends and Nov.-mid Mar. free for parties of 5 or fewer. | Mid-Mar.-mid-May and late June-Sept., daily 10-4:30; Oct., weekdays 2-4, weekends 10-4:30; Nov.-mid-Mar., daily 2-4.
Trinity College.
Founded in 1546 by Henry VIII, Trinity replaced a 14th-century educational foundation and is the largest college in either Cambridge or Oxford, with nearly 700 undergraduates. In the 17th-century great court, with its massive gatehouse, is Great Tom, a giant clock that strikes each hour with high and low notes. The college’s greatest masterpiece is Christopher Wren’s library, colonnaded and seemingly constructed with as much light as stone. Among the things you can see here is A. A. Milne’s handwritten manuscript of The House at Pooh Corner. Trinity alumni include Isaac Newton, William Thackeray, Lord Byron, Alfred Tennyson, and 31 Nobel Prize winners. | St. John’s St. | 01223/338400 | www.trin.cam.ac.uk | £1 | College and chapel daily 10-4, except exam period and event days; Wren Library weekdays noon-2, Sat. in term time 10:30-12:30; Great Court daily 10-4:30.
WHERE TO EAT
Loch Fyne.
SEAFOOD | Part of a Scottish chain that harvests its own oysters, this airy, casual place across from the Fitzwilliam Museum is deservedly popular. The seafood is fresh and well prepared, served in a traditional setting with a modern ambience. Try the Bradan Rost smoked salmon if it’s on the menu; it’s flavored with Scotch whisky. The restaurant is also open for breakfast. | Average main: £16 | 37 Trumpington St. | 01223/362433 | www.lochfyne-restaurants.com.
River Bar & Kitchen.
MODERN BRITISH | Across the river from Magdalene College, this popular waterfront bar and grill serves delicious steak and burgers, plus specialties such as lobster macaroni and cheese and roast chicken with a bourbon barbecue glaze. Light lunches are served in the afternoon, and the evening cocktail list is small but elegant. Try the French 75, which is gin with lemon juice, sugar, and sparkling wine. | Average main: £20 | Quayside, Thompsons La., off Bridge St. | 01223/307030 | www.riverbarsteakhouse.com | Reservations essential.
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Exploring | Where to Eat
55 miles northwest of London.
With arguably the most famous university in the world, Oxford has been a center of learning since 1167, with only the Sorbonne preceding it. It doesn’t take more than a day or two to explore its winding medieval streets, photograph its ivy-covered stone buildings and ancient churches and libraries, and even take a punt down one of its placid waterways. The town center is compact and walkable, and at its heart is Oxford University. Alumni of this prestigious institution include 48 Nobel Prize winners, 26 British prime ministers (including David Cameron), and 28 foreign presidents (including Bill Clinton), along with poets, authors, and artists such as Percy Bysshe Shelley, Oscar Wilde, and W. H. Auden.
Oxford is northwest of London, at the junction of the rivers Thames and Cherwell. The city is more interesting and more cosmopolitan than Cambridge, and although it’s also bigger, its suburbs aren’t remotely interesting to visitors. The interest is all at the center, where the old town curls around the grand stone buildings, great restaurants, and historic pubs. Victorian writer Matthew Arnold described Oxford’s “dreaming spires,” a phrase that has become famous. Students rush past on the way to exams, clad with antiquarian style in their requisite mortar caps, flowing dark gowns, stiff collars, and crisp white bow ties. TIP Watch your back when crossing roads, as bikes are everywhere.
Visiting the Colleges
You can explore major sights in town in a day, but it takes more than a day to spend an hour in each of the key museums and absorb the college scene. Some colleges are open only in the afternoons during university terms. When undergraduates are in residence, access is often restricted to the chapels, dining rooms, and libraries, and you’re requested to refrain from picnicking in the quadrangles. All are closed certain days during exams, usually from mid-April to late June.
Tours
City Sightseeing.
This company offers hop-on, hop-off bus tours with 19 stops around Oxford; your ticket, purchased from the driver, is good for 24 hours. | 01865/790522 | www.citysightseeingoxford.com | From £14.
Oxford Tourist Information Centre.
You can find information here on the many guided walks of the city. The best way of gaining access to the collegiate buildings is to take the two-hour university and city tour, which leaves the Tourist Information Centre at 10:45 and 1 daily, 1 and 2 on Saturday. You can book in advance. | 15/16 Broad St. | 01865/252200 | www.visitoxfordandoxfordshire.com.
EXPLORING
TOP ATTRACTIONS
Fodor’s Choice | Ashmolean Museum.
Britain’s oldest public museum displays its rich and varied collections from the Neolithic to the present day over five floors. Innovative and spacious galleries on the theme of “Crossing Cultures, Crossing Time” explore connections between the priceless Greek, Roman, and Indian artifacts, as well as the Egyptian and Chinese objects. In regards to the superb art collection, not to be missed are drawings by Raphael, the shell-encrusted mantle of Powhatan (father of Pocahontas), the lantern belonging to Guy Fawkes, and the Alfred Jewel, set in gold, which dates from the reign of King Alfred the Great (ruled 871-899). TIP There’s too much to see in one visit, but the free admission makes return trips easy. The Ashmolean Dining Room, Oxford’s first rooftop restaurant, is a good spot for refreshments. | Beaumont St. | 01865/278002 | www.ashmolean.org | Free | Tues.-Sun. and national holidays 10-5.
Fodor’s Choice | Magdalen College.
Founded in 1458, with a handsome main quadrangle and a supremely monastic air, Magdalen (pronounced maud-lin) is one of the most impressive of Oxford’s colleges and attracts its most artistic students. Alumni include such diverse people as P.G. Wodehouse, Oscar Wilde, and John Betjeman. The school’s large, square tower is a famous local landmark. TIP To enhance your visit, take a stroll around the Deer Park and along Addison’s Walk; then have tea in the Old Kitchen, which overlooks the river. | High St. | 01865/276000 | www.magd.ox.ac.uk | £5 | July-Sept., daily noon-7 or dusk; Oct.-June, daily 1-6 or dusk.
FAMILY | Fodor’s Choice | Pitt Rivers Museum.
More than half a million intriguing archaeological and anthropological items from around the globe, based on the collection bequeathed by Lieutenant-General Augustus Henry Lane Fox Pitt Rivers in 1884, are crammed into glass cases and drawers. Items are organized thematically, an eccentric approach that’s surprisingly thought-provoking. Labels are handwritten, and children are given flashlights to explore the farthest corners and spot the world’s smallest dolly. Give yourself plenty of time to wander here. Children will have a field day. | S. Parks Rd. | 01865/270927 | www.prm.ox.ac.uk | Free, suggested donation £3 | Mon. noon-4:30, Tues.-Sun. and national holidays 10-4:30.
WORTH NOTING
Christ Church.
Built in 1546, the college of Christ Church is referred to by its members as “The House.” This is the site of Oxford’s largest quadrangle, Tom Quad, named after the huge bell (6¼ tons) that hangs in the Christopher Wren-designed gate tower and rings 101 times at five past nine every evening in honor of the original number of Christ Church scholars. The vaulted, 800-year-old chapel in one corner has been Oxford’s cathedral since the time of Henry VIII. The college’s medieval dining hall, re-created for the Harry Potter films, contains portraits of many famous alumni, including 13 of Britain’s prime ministers. TIP Plan carefully, as the dining hall is only open weekdays 10:30-11:40 and 2:30-4:30 and weekends 2:30-4:30. Lewis Carroll, author of Alice in Wonderland, was a teacher of mathematics here for many years; a shop opposite the meadows on St. Aldate’s sells Alice paraphernalia. | St. Aldate’s | 01865/276492 | www.chch.ox.ac.uk | £8; £9 in July and Aug. | Mon.-Sat. 10-5, Sun. 2-5; last admission 30 mins before closing.
Radcliffe Camera and Bodleian Library.
A vast library, the domed Radcliffe Camera is Oxford’s most spectacular building, built in 1737-49 by James Gibbs in Italian baroque style. It’s usually surrounded by tourists with cameras trained at its golden-stone walls. The Camera contains part of the Bodleian Library’s enormous collection, begun in 1602. Much like the Library of Congress in the United States, the Bodleian contains a copy of every book printed in Great Britain and grows by 5,000 items a week. Tours reveal the Duke Humfrey’s Library, which was the original chained library and completed in 1488. Guides will show you spots used for Hogwarts School in the Harry Potter films. TIP Arrive early to secure tickets for the three to six daily tours. These are sold on a first-come, first-served basis (except for the extended tour on Wednesday and Saturday, which can be prebooked). Audio tours, the only tours open to kids under 11, don’t require reservations. Call ahead to confirm tour times. | Broad St. | 01865/287400 | www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk | Audio tour £2.50, minitour £5, standard tour £7, extended tours £13 | Bodleian and Divinity School weekdays 9-5, Sat. 9-4:30, Sun. 11-5.
St. John’s College.
One of Oxford’s most attractive campuses, St. John’s has seven quadrangles surrounded by elaborately carved buildings. You enter the first through a low wooden door. This college dates to 1555, when Sir Thomas White, a merchant, founded it. His heart is buried in the chapel (by tradition, students curse as they walk over it). The Canterbury Quad represented the first example of Italian Renaissance architecture in Oxford, and the Front Quad includes the buildings of the old St. Bernard’s Monastery. | St. Giles | 01865/277300 | www.sjc.ox.ac.uk | Free | Daily 1-5 or dusk.
University Church of St. Mary the Virgin.
Seven hundred years’ worth of funeral monuments crowd this spacious church, including the tombstone, on the altar steps, of Amy Robsart, the wife of Robert Dudley, Elizabeth I’s favorite. One pillar marks the site where Thomas Cranmer, author of the Anglican Book of Common Prayer, was brought to trial under Queen Mary for his marital machinations on behalf of Henry VIII. TIPThe top of the 14th-century tower has a panoramic view of the city’s skyline. It’s worth the 127 steps. The Vaults and Garden Café, a part of the church accessible from Radcliffe Square, serves breakfasts and cream teas as well as good lunches. | High St. | 01865/279111 | www.university-church.ox.ac.uk | Church free, tower £4 | Mon.-Sat. 9-5, Sun. noon-5; last admission 30 mins before closing.
WHERE TO EAT
Brasserie Blanc.
FRENCH | Raymond Blanc’s sophisticated brasserie in the Jericho neighborhood, a hipper cousin of Le Manoir aux Quat’ Saisons in Great Milton, is one of the best places to eat in Oxford. Wood floors and large windows keep the restaurant open and airy. The changing menu lists stunning adaptations of bourgeois French fare, sometimes with Mediterranean or Asian influences. Try the chicken confit and Armagnac prune paté or Jervaulx blue cheese to start and a boeuf bourguignonne to follow. The £11.50 fixed-price lunch is a good value, and kids have their own menu. | Average main: £15 | 71-72 Walton St. | 01865/510999 | www.brasserieblanc.com.
Grand Café.
CAFÉ | The grand, gold-topped columns of the café’s facade draw you here, to the country’s oldest coffeehouse (est. 1650) and now an excellent spot for sandwiches and salads. It’s packed with tourists and the service can be slow, but this is still a pretty spot for afternoon tea. From Thursday through Saturday night, it transforms into a popular cocktail bar. | Average main: £8 | 84 High St. | 01865/204463 | www.thegrandcafe.co.uk.
Jamie’s Italian.
ITALIAN | One of chef Jamie Oliver’s missions is to re-create the best rustic Italian fare all over the country, and it’s no different at this buzzing eatery. There’s a diverting range of starters, pastas, and mains such as truffle tagliatelle with Parmesan and nutmeg or British lamb lollipops with toasted nuts and lemon yogurt. The various dishes served on a wood plank are a steal, desserts are light—granola crumble, for example—and the crowd is lively. | Average main: £12 | 24-26 George St. | 01865/838383 | www.jamieoliver.com.
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Exploring | Stratford Environs | Where to Eat
104 miles north of London.
Stratford-upon-Avon has become adept at accommodating the hordes of people who stream in for a glimpse of William Shakespeare’s world. Filled with distinctive, Tudor half-timber buildings, this is certainly a handsome town, and the Royal Shakespeare Theatre is a don’t-miss for those who want to see Shakespeare performed in England. But the town can feel, at times, like a literary amusement park, so if you’re not a fan of the Bard, you may want to explore elsewhere.
Tours and Tickets
City Sightseeing.
Hop-on, hop-off guided tours of Stratford are run by City Sightseeing, and you can combine the tour (about an hour with no stops) with entry to either three or five Shakespeare houses. In summer, the same company’s Heart of Warwickshire tour includes Compton Verney, Charlecote Park, and Warwick (four trips on weekends from April through July, daily in August). | 01789/412680 | www.city-sightseeing.com | From £12.50.
Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.
The main places of Shakespearean interest (Anne Hathaway’s Cottage, Hall’s Croft, Mary Arden’s Farm, Nash’s House and New Place, Shakespeare’s Birthplace, and Shakespeare’s Grave) are run by the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust. Buy a money-saving combination ticket to all five properties for £22.50, or pay separate entry fees if you’re visiting only one or two. Family tickets are an option, too. Advance booking online gives you a 10% saving, and tickets are valid for a year. Tickets for Hall’s Croft and Nash’s House and New Place are available only as a rather pricey (£14.95) joint ticket that includes the birthplace and grave. | 01789/204016 | www.shakespeare.org.uk.
Stratford Town Walk.
This walking tour runs year-round and also offers ghost-themed walks and cruises. | 01789/292478, 0785/576-0377 | www.stratfordtownwalk.co.uk | From £5 | Mon-Thurs. at 11, Fri.-Sun. at 11 and 2.
Essentials
Visitor Information
Stratford-upon-Avon Tourist Information Centre. | Bridgefoot | 01789/264293 | www.discover-stratford.com.
EXPLORING
Hall’s Croft.
One of the finest surviving Jacobean (early 17th-century) town houses, this impressive residence has a delightful walled garden. Hall’s Croft was the home of Shakespeare’s elder daughter, Susanna, and her husband, Dr. John Hall, a physician who, by prescribing an herbal cure for scurvy, was well ahead of his time. His consulting room and medical dispensary are on view along with the other rooms, all containing Jacobean furniture of heavy oak, including a fine child’s high chair, and some 17th-century portraits. The café serves light lunches and afternoon teas. | Old Town | 01789/292107 | www.shakespeare.org.uk | £15.90, includes admission to Shakespeare’s Birthplace, Nash’s House and New Place, and Shakespeare’s Grave | Apr.-Oct., daily 10-5; Nov.-Mar., daily 11-4.
Holy Trinity Church.
The burial place of William Shakespeare, this 13th-century church sits on the banks of the Avon, with a graceful avenue of lime trees framing its entrance. Shakespeare’s final resting place is in the chancel, rebuilt in 1465-91 in the late Perpendicular style. He was buried here not because he was a famed poet but because he was a lay rector of Stratford, owning a portion of the township tithes. On the north wall of the sanctuary, over the altar steps, is the famous marble bust created by Gerard Jansen in 1623 and thought to be a true likeness of Shakespeare. The bust offers a more human, even humorous, perspective when viewed from the side. Also in the chancel are the graves of Shakespeare’s wife, Anne; his daughter Susanna; his son-in-law John Hall; and his granddaughter’s husband, Thomas Nash. Nearby, the Parish Register is displayed, containing Shakespeare’s baptismal entry (1564) and his burial notice (1616). | Trinity St. | 01789/266316 | www.stratford-upon-avon.org | £2 for chancel | Mar. and Oct., Mon.-Sat. 9-5, Sun. 12:30-5; Apr.-Sept., Mon.-Sat. 8:30-6, Sun. 12:30-5; Nov.-Feb., Mon.-Sat. 9-4, Sun. 12:30-5; last admission 20 mins before closing.
Nash’s House and New Place.
The house where Shakespeare died in 1616, called New Place, was built in 1483 “of brike and tymber” for a lord mayor of London, and was Stratford’s grandest piece of real estate when Shakespeare bought it in 1597 for £60. It was torn down in 1759 by the Reverend Francis Gastrell, who was angry at the hordes of Shakespeare-related sightseers. You can see finds from the excavations carried out here from 2010 to 2012 in the heavily restored Nash’s house next door, the residence of Thomas Nash, who married Shakespeare’s last direct descendant, his granddaughter Elizabeth Hall. It’s now furnished in 17th-century style, and the gardens contain an extensive Elizabethan knot garden and a fine display of cloud topiary. | Chapel St. | 01789/292325 | www.shakespeare.org.uk | £15.90, includes admission to Shakespeare’s Birthplace, Hall’s Croft, and Shakespeare’s Grave | Apr.-Oct., daily 10-5; Nov.-Mar., daily 11-4.
Fodor’s Choice | Royal Shakespeare Company.
One of the finest repertory troupes in the world and long the backbone of the country’s theatrical life, the company performs plays year-round in Stratford and at venues around Britain. The Royal Shakespeare Theatre, home of the RSC, has a thrust stage based on the original Globe Theater in London. The Swan Theatre, part of the theater complex and also built in the style of Shakespeare’s Globe, stages plays by Shakespeare and contemporaries such as Christopher Marlowe, as well as works by contemporary playwrights. Prices range from £5 to £50. TIP Seats book up fast, but day-of-performance and returned tickets are sometimes available. | Waterside | 0844/800-1110 ticket hotline | www.rsc.org.uk.
Fodor’s Choice | Shakespeare’s Birthplace.
A half-timber house typical of its time, the playwright’s birthplace is a much-visited shrine that has been altered and restored since he lived here. Passing through the modern visitor center, you are immersed in the world of Shakespeare through a “Famous Beyond Words—Shakespeare All Around Us” visual and audio exhibition created for his 450th birthday celebrations in 2014. The house itself is across the garden from the visitor center. Colorful wall decorations and furnishings reflect middle-class Elizabethan domestic life. Shakespeare’s father, John, a glove maker and wool dealer, purchased the house; a reconstructed workshop shows the tools of the glover’s trade. Mark Twain and Charles Dickens were both pilgrims here, and you can see the signatures of Thomas Carlyle and Walter Scott scratched into Shakespeare’s windowpanes. In the garden, actors present excerpts from the plays. There’s also a café and bookshop on the grounds. | Henley St. | 01789/201822 | www.shakespeare.org.uk | £15.90, includes entry to Hall’s Croft, Nash’s House and New Place, and Shakespeare’s Grave | Apr.-June, Sept., and Oct., daily 9-5; July and Aug. daily 9-6; Nov.-Mar., daily 10-4.
STRATFORD ENVIRONS
Two additional stops on the Shakespeare trail are just outside Stratford; also nearby is spectacular Warwick Castle.
Fodor’s Choice | Anne Hathaway’s Cottage.
The most picturesque of the Shakespeare Trust properties, on the western outskirts of Stratford, was the family home of the woman Shakespeare married in 1582. The “cottage,” actually a substantial Tudor farmhouse, has latticed windows and a grand thatch roof. Inside is period furniture, including the settle where Shakespeare reputedly conducted his courtship, and a rare carved Elizabethan bed; outside is a garden planted in lush Edwardian style with herbs and flowers. A stroll through the adjacent orchard takes you to willow cabins where you can listen to sonnets and view sculptures with Shakespearean themes, while the nearby arboretum has trees, shrubs, and roses mentioned in Shakespeare’s works. TIP The best way to get here is on foot, especially in late spring when the apple trees are in blossom. The signed path runs from Evesham Place (an extension of Grove Road) opposite Chestnut Walk. Pick up a leaflet with a map from the tourist office; the walk takes a good half hour. | Cottage La. | Shottery | 01789/295517 | www.shakespeare.org.uk | £9.50; £23.90 with the Five House Pass which includes Hall’s Croft, Mary Arden’s Farm, Nash’s House and New Place, Shakespeare’s Birthplace, and Shakespeare’s Grave | Apr.-Oct., daily 9-5; Nov.-Mar., daily 10-4; last admission 30 mins before closing.
FAMILY | Mary Arden’s Farm.
A working farm, where food is grown using methods common in the 16th century, is the main attraction at Mary Arden’s House (the childhood home of Shakespeare’s mother) and Palmer’s Farm. This bucolic stop is great for kids, who can try their hand at basket weaving and gardening, listen as the farmers explain their work in the fields, and watch the cooks prepare food in the Tudor farmhouse kitchen. It all brings the past to life. There are crafts exhibits, a café, and a garden. The site is 3 miles northwest of Stratford; you need to walk or drive here, or else go with a tour. | Off A3400 | Wilmcote | 01789/293455 | www.shakespeare.org.uk | £12.50; £23.90 with the Five House Pass which includes Anne Hathaway’s Cottage and Gardens, Hall’s Croft, Nash’s House and New Place, Shakespeare’s Birthplace, and Shakespeare’s Grave | Apr.-Oct., daily 10-5.
FAMILY | Fodor’s Choice | Warwick Castle.
The vast bulk of this medieval castle rests on a cliff overlooking the Avon—“the fairest monument of ancient and chivalrous splendor which yet remains uninjured by time,” to use the words of Sir Walter Scott. Today the company that runs the Madame Tussauds wax museums owns the castle, and the exhibits and diversions can occupy a full day. Warwick is a great castle experience for kids, though it’s pricey (there are family rates). Warwick’s two soaring towers, bristling with battlements, can be seen for miles: the 147-foot-high Caesar’s Tower, built in 1356, and the 128-foot-high Guy’s Tower, built in 1380. Warwick Castle’s monumental walls enclose an impressive armory of medieval weapons, as well as state rooms with historic furnishings and paintings by Rubens, Van Dyck, and other masters. Exhibits display the sights and sounds of a great medieval household as it prepares for an important battle, and of a princess’s fairy-tale wedding; in the Dragon Tower, Merlin and a talking dragon breathe life into the Arthurian legend. Below the castle strutting peacocks patrol the 60 acres of grounds elegantly landscaped by Capability Brown in the 18th century. TIP Arrive early to beat the crowds. If you book online, you save on ticket prices. Lavish medieval banquets (extra charge) and special events, including festivals, jousting tournaments, and a Christmas market, take place throughout the year, and plenty of food stalls serve lunches. | Castle La.off Mill St. | Warwick | 01926/495421, 0871/265-2000 24-hr information line | www.warwick-castle.com | Castle, Dragon Tower, and Dungeon £30.60; Castle and Dungeon £28.20; Castle £22.80; parking £6 | Late July and Aug., daily 10-6; mid-Sept.-mid-July, daily 10-5; last admission 30 mins before closing.
WHERE TO EAT
Fodor’s Choice | The Black Swan/The Dirty Duck.
BRITISH | The only pub in Britain to be licensed under two names (the more informal one came courtesy of American GIs who were stationed here during World War II), this is one of Stratford’s most celebrated pubs—it’s attracted actors since the 18th-century thespian David Garrick’s days. A little veranda overlooks the theaters and the river here. Along with your pint of bitter, you can choose from the extensive menu of daily specials, wraps, ciabattas, steaks, burgers, and grills. Few people come here for the food, though you will need to book ahead for dinner: the real attraction is the ambience and your fellow customers. | Average main: £10 | Waterside | 01789/297312 | www.dirtyduck-pub-stratford-upon-avon.co.uk.
Opposition.
MODERN BRITISH | Hearty, warming meals are offered at this informal, family-style restaurant in a 16th-century building on the main dining street near the theaters. The English and international dishes—chicken roasted with banana and served with curry sauce and basmati rice, for instance—win praise from the locals. There’s a good range of lighter and vegetarian options and fixed-price menus as well. Make reservations a month ahead in summer. | Average main: £14 | 13 Sheep St. | 01789/269980 | www.theoppo.co.uk | Closed Sun.
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Exploring
20 miles northwest of London.
Popular and family friendly, the Warner Bros. Harry Potter Studio Tour has sets and props from the successful films, and plenty of engaging interactive diversions for all ages. The train and a special shuttle bus from Watford get you here.
EXPLORING
FAMILY | Fodor’s Choice | Warner Bros. Harry Potter Studio Tour.
Muggles, take note: this spectacular attraction just outside Watford will give you at least three hours of experiencing the magical world of the wizards and witches of Harry Potter. From the Great Hall of Hogwarts to magical props, each section of this attraction showcases the real sets, props, and special effects used in the eight movies. Visitors enter the Great Hall, a fitting stage for costumes from each Hogwarts house. Admire the intricacies of the Hogwarts Castle model (50 feet in diameter), ride a broomstick, try butterbeer, or just take refuge in the comforting confines of Dumbledore’s office. Tickets, pegged to a 30-minute arrival time slot, must be prebooked online. The studio tour is a 20-minute drive from St. Albans. You can also get here by taking a 20-minute train ride from London’s Euston Station to Watford Junction (then a 15-minute shuttle bus ride). Via car from London, use M1 and M25 and enjoy the free parking. | Studio Tour Dr. | Leavesden | 0845/084-0900 | www.wbstudiotour.co.uk | £30 | Daily 10-4 (until 6:30 at some times of year).
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Exploring | Where to Eat
21 miles west of London.
The tall turrets of Windsor Castle, one of the homes of the Royal Family, can be seen for miles around. The grand stone building is the star attraction in this quiet town with some remaining medieval elements—though Eton College, England’s most famous public school, is also just a lovely walk away across the Thames.
Essentials
Visitor Information
Royal Windsor Information Centre. | Old Booking Hall, Windsor Royal Station, Thames St. | 01753/743900, 01753/743907 for accommodations | www.windsor.gov.uk.
EXPLORING
Fodor’s Choice | Windsor Castle.
From William the Conqueror to Queen Victoria, the kings and queens of England added towers and wings to this brooding, imposing castle, visible for miles and now the largest inhabited castle in the world. Despite the multiplicity of hands involved in its design, the palace manages to have a unity of style and character. The most impressive view of Windsor Castle is from the A332 road, coming into town from the south. Admission includes an audio guide and, if you wish, a guided tour of the castle precincts. Entrance lines can be long in season and you’re likely to spend at least half a day here, so come early.
William the Conqueror began work on the castle in the 11th century, and Edward III modified and extended it in the mid-1300s. One of Edward’s largest contributions was the enormous and distinctive Round Tower. Later, between 1824 and 1837, George IV transformed the castle into the fortified royal palace you see today, the only royal residence in continuous use by the Royal Family since the Middle Ages.
As you enter the castle, Henry VIII’s gateway leads uphill into the wide castle precincts, where you’re free to wander. Across from the entrance is the exquisite St. George’s Chapel (closed Sunday). Here lie 10 of the kings of England, including Henry VI, Charles I, and Henry VIII (Jane Seymour is the only one of his six wives buried here). One of the noblest buildings in England, the chapel was built in the Perpendicular style popular in the 15th and 16th centuries. The elaborate Albert Memorial Chapel was created by Queen Victoria in memory of her husband.
The North Terrace provides good views across the Thames to Eton College, perhaps the most famous of Britain’s exclusive “public” boys’ schools. From the terrace, you enter the State Apartments, which are open to the public most days. On display to the left of the entrance to the State Apartments in Windsor Castle, Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House is a perfect miniature Georgian palace-within-a-palace, created in 1923. Electric lights glow, the doors all have tiny keys, and a miniature library holds Lilliputian-size books written especially for the young queen by famous authors of the 1920s.
Although a fire in 1992 gutted some of the State Apartments, hardly any works of art were lost. Phenomenal repair work brought to new life the Grand Reception Room, the Green and Crimson Drawing Rooms, and the State and Octagonal Dining Rooms. A green oak hammer-beam roof looms magnificently over the 600-year-old St. George’s Hall, where the Queen gives state banquets. The State Apartments contain paintings by Rubens, Van Dyck, and Dürer, among others. The tour’s high points are the Throne Room and the Waterloo Chamber, where Sir Thomas Lawrence’s portraits of Napoléon’s victorious foes line the walls. TIP To see the castle come magnificently alive, check out the Changing the Guard, which takes place daily at 11 am from April through July and on alternate days at 11 am from August through March. Confirm the exact schedule before traveling to Windsor. | Castle Hill | 020/7766-7304 tickets, 01753/831118 recorded information | www.royalcollection.org.uk | £18.50 for Precincts, State Apartments, Gallery, St. George’s Chapel, and Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House; £10 when State Apartments are closed | Mar.-Oct., daily 9:45-5:15, last admission at 4; Nov.-Feb., daily 9:45-4:15, last admission at.
Fodor’s Choice | Eton College.
Signs warn drivers of “Boys Crossing” as you approach the Tudor-style buildings of Eton College, the distinguished boarding school for boys ages 13 through 18 that was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI. It’s all terrifically photogenic, because during the college semester students still dress in pin-striped trousers, swallow-tailed coats, and stiff collars. Rivaling St. George’s at Windsor in terms of size, the Gothic Chapel contains 15th-century grisaille wall paintings juxtaposed against modern stained glass by John Piper. Beyond the cloisters are the school’s playing fields where, according to the duke of Wellington, the Battle of Waterloo was really won, since so many of his officers had learned discipline and strategy during their school days. Among the country’s prime ministers to be educated here is David Cameron. The Museum of Eton Life has displays on the school’s history. The school offers public tours, although as of this writing they were suspended due to construction. They are set to resume again in 2015, but call ahead for more information. | Brewhouse Yard | Eton, Berkshire | 01753/671177 | www.etoncollege.com.
WHERE TO EAT
Two Brewers.
BRITISH | Locals congregate in a pair of low-ceiling rooms at this tiny 17th-century establishment by the gates of Windsor Great Park. Those under 18 aren’t allowed inside the pub (though they can be served at a few outdoor tables), but adults will find a suitable collection of wine, espresso, and local beer, plus an excellent menu with such dishes as fish cakes and hot and cold sandwiches. On Sunday the pub serves a traditional, hearty lunchtime roast. | Average main: £15 | 34 Park St. | 01753/855426 | www.twobrewerswindsor.co.uk | Reservations essential | No dinner Fri.-Sun.
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