Fountains Abbey & Studley Royal
North Yorkshire
The alluring and strangely obsessive water gardens of the Studley Royal estate were built in the 18th century to enhance the picturesque ruins of 12th…
Must-see attractions in Great Britain
Cumbria & the Lakes
Three miles east of Cartmel on the B5278, Holker Hall has been the family seat of the Cavendish family for nigh on four centuries. Though parts of it date…
York
York's National Railway Museum – the biggest in the world, with more than 100 locomotives – is well presented and crammed with fascinating stuff. It is…
Holyrood & Arthur’s Seat
The Scottish Parliament Building, on the site of a former brewery and designed by Catalan architect Enric Miralles (1955–2000), was opened by the Queen in…
Greenwich
Designed as a dining room for retired and disabled sailors and completed in 1726, the Painted Hall is an over-the-top banqueting space that's covered…
The West End
Arguably London’s finest smaller gallery, the Wallace Collection is an enthralling glimpse into 18th-century aristocratic life. The sumptuously restored…
North London
This magnificent neoclassical mansion stands at the northern end of Hampstead Heath in a glorious sweep of landscaped gardens that lead down to a…
Dundee
The three masts of Captain Robert Falcon Scott's famous polar expedition vessel the RRS Discovery provide a historic counterpoint to the modern…
The Lake District
The poet William Wordsworth's most famous residence in the Lake District is undoubtedly Dove Cottage, but he actually spent a great deal more time at…
Chester
A good way to get a sense of Chester's unique character is to walk the 2-mile circuit along the walls that surround the historic centre. Originally built…
Liverpool
Museums are, by their very nature, like a still of the past, but the extraordinary International Slavery Museum resonates very much in the present. It…
Llandudno
From sea level it's difficult to gauge the sheer scale of the limestone chunk known as the Great Orme (Y Gogarth), yet it's 2 miles in circumference and…
St Fagans National History Museum
Cardiff
Historic buildings from all over the country have been dismantled and re-erected in the semirural surrounds of St Fagans village, 5 miles west of central…
Manchester
Manchester's rich industrial legacy is explored in this excellent museum set within the enormous grounds of the old Liverpool St station, the oldest rail…
Greenwich
Narrating the long, briny and eventful history of seafaring Britain, this excellent museum has three floors of engrossing exhibits. Highlights include JMW…
Norfolk
Both monarchists and those bemused by the English system will have plenty to mull over here, at the Queen's country estate. It's set in 25 hectares of…
Manchester
The story of Britain's 200-year march to democracy is told in all its pain and pathos at this superb museum, housed in a refurbished Edwardian pumping…
York
Interactive multimedia exhibits aimed at bringing history to life often achieve exactly the opposite, but the much-hyped Jorvik manages to pull it off…
Vindolanda Roman Fort & Museum
Northeast England
The extensive site of Vindolanda offers a fascinating glimpse into the daily life of a Roman garrison town. The time-capsule museum is just one part of…
Glasgow
This visually impressive modern museum at Glasgow Harbour owes its striking curved forms to late British-Iraqi architect Zaha Hadid. A transport museum…
Warner Bros Studio Tour: The Making of Harry Potter
Oxford & the Cotswolds
Whether you’re a fair-weather fan or a full-on Potterhead, this magical studio tour is well worth the admittedly hefty admission price. All visitors have…
Dove Cottage & The Wordsworth Museum
The Lake District
On the edge of Grasmere, this tiny, creeper-clad cottage (formerly a pub called the Dove & Olive Bough) was famously inhabited by William Wordsworth…
Kensington & Hyde Park
This splendid Victorian confection on the southern edge of Kensington Gardens is as ostentatious as its subject wasn't. Queen Victoria’s humble German…
South Cornwall
This is Cornwall's real-life secret garden. Formerly the family estate of the Tremaynes, Heligan's magnificent 19th-century gardens fell into disrepair…
Brighton & Hove
The Royal Pavilion is the city’s must-see attraction. The glittering party pad and palace of Prince George, later Prince Regent and then King George IV,…
Glasgow
Attached to the Hunterian Art Gallery, this is a reconstruction of the first home that Charles Rennie Mackintosh bought with his wife, noted designer…
Kelvingrove Art Gallery & Museum
Glasgow
A magnificent sandstone building, this grand Victorian cathedral of culture is a fascinating and unusual museum, with a bewildering variety of exhibits…
Cumbria & the Lakes
Carlisle's brooding, rust-red castle lurks on the north side of the city. Founded around a Celtic and Roman stronghold, the castle's Norman keep was added…
Kensington & Hyde Park
This inventively redesigned museum vibrantly relates the history of the British Army, from the perspective of its servicemen and servicewomen. Reopening a…
Richmond, Kew & Hampton Court
This 49.5m-tall eight-sided pagoda (1762), designed by William Chambers (who designed Somerset House), is one of Kew Gardens' architectural icons. During…
Dorset
Dorset's must-see stately home looks every inch the setting for a period drama. It overflows with rich decor, most famously in the Spanish Room, which is…
Parc Cenedlaethol Bannau Brycheiniog
Dramatically perched atop a steep limestone crag, high above the River Cennen, are the brooding ruins of Wales' ultimate romantic castle, visible for…
Cardiff
Flanked by the castle and the River Taff, Bute Park was donated to the city along with the castle in 1947. With Sophia Gardens, Pontcanna Fields and…
Edinburgh
Edinburgh's Royal Botanic Garden is the second-oldest institution of its kind in Britain (after Oxford), and one of the most respected in the world…
Oxford
If exploring an enormous room full of eccentric and unexpected artefacts sounds like your idea of the perfect afternoon, welcome to the amulets-to-zithers…
North Devon
Clovelly is privately owned, and admission is charged at the hilltop visitor centre. The village's cobbled streets are so steep that cars can't cope, so…
Greater Glasgow
Paisley Abbey is well worth the short trip from Glasgow. This majestic Gothic building was founded in 1163 by Walter Fitzalan, first high steward of…
South Cornwall
Grandly located at the head of the Fal estuary, 4 miles south of Truro, Trelissick is one of Cornwall's most beautiful aristocratic estates, with a formal…
Hampshire
Portsmouth's blockbuster draw sees you gazing at the evocative hulk of Henry VIII's flagship, the Mary Rose, and jumping aboard Nelson's Battle of…
North Devon
The honey-grey Regency manor house of Arlington Court exudes charm, from the model ships and shells collected by the owners, to the produce-packed walled…
