Lots to see and do at this 15-acre botanical garden: a koi pond, aviary, butterfly house, bonsai…read morecollection, glasshouses, and many trails winding through various gardens. I was also witnessed a poor wild peacock being chased by children across the Main Lawn. Tickets are low-priced at £7.50 per adult. A 15 to 20 minute bus ride from the main city stops right by the garden. We didn't explore every nook and cranny, but covered the highlights in the hour that we stayed.

The Birmingham Botanical Gardens is a medium-sized and well-maintained gardens a bit outside the…read morecity center. They have pleasant fields for strolling, a small area with some bird houses for your bird-watching enjoyment, plus some indoor greenhouses with plants from different climates. It's not that large, but you could enjoy an hour or two here. Come when the weather is nice to enjoy some greenery.

Winterbourne is a great place for a sunny day. £5 gives you access to the Arts and Crafts house and…read moregardens, both of which are lovely. Behind the more formal gardens are woodland trails (you might even see a beech tree I helped to coppice as a student many years ago) and Edgbaston reservoir, a calm expanse of water populated by ducks, moorhens and crested grebes. There are beautiful waterside rock gardens with stepping stones, which I love. The whole place feels like a sanctuary from the city and is conveniently located close to the Barber Institute and the university campus if you want to make more of a day of it. There's a tea room which sells serviceable scones (with that really aerated cream rather than proper whipped or clotted cream though) and also sandwiches, soup and potatoes etc. You can get plants and gifts at the shop- and if you go during the week you may be able to get some advice from the gardeners, too.

Beautiful House and garden just 5 minutes away from Birmingham University. Amazing greenhouses…read morefilled with various flowers, cacti, plants. Such a lovely place to visit on a summer day especially if you check out their tearoom by the terrace!

What a fantastic day out. This place offers a lot for family's…read more Great value for £8 per adult and £5 for children over two, under twos are free ! The grounds are fantastic lots of open space for the children to wonder and explore and also paths that follow through the trees and gardens. There's a big adventure playground full of lots to explore, zip wire, slide climbing frame etc. There were also blow up slides and a paddling pool. There was a separate area with Wendy houses, trampolines and a climbing frame for the smaller children which was in a really nice relaxing area. You can get up close with pigs, rabbits, guinea pigs and chickens in Pet's Corner. There is 66 acres of beautiful gardens and woodland walks, the views across the River Severn and Wales and spectacular ! There's also a cafe and shop. The cafe is really nice I had a caramel latte with a cheese and chutney sandwich came to £5.50 wich Is good value. Plenty of parking available. Overall a fantastic day out which was really enjoyed by all.

Old Down Country Park is not your typical stately home. It is a farm/zoo/park/house. Great for the…read morewhole family too. They have large lawn areas for picnics, a café for those who didn't pre-prepare food, and lots and ltos of animals. Expect to find your typical farm animals. Goats? Check. Pigs? Check. Sheep? Check. Ponies? Check. Wallabies????check!!! Entry is only a fiver and you can spend the whole day there (weather permitting) walking along the Victorian walls and cooing at all the cute animals.

Shugborough is a charming estate with a lively house. We came here often in my childhood, and it…read morehas been well kept the grounds house events such as classic car shows and charming sculpture walks. The courtyard host coffee shops and ice cream, and I live the bridges. The passing bridge is still a favourite for pooh sticks even though I'm a fully grown woman. Nice place, great for a picnic too. PS, its a cracking place to collect conkers!

Shugborough Hall is a National Trust Property located in Stafford. The location and the Christmas…read moremarket event they were holding on the weekend made it the perfect place for the annual Jewellery Quarter residents trip (yes, I am of an age that I go on Coach trips). I have vague memories of maybe visiting this place in the depths of time gone by, although with most National Trust properties - they are much of a muchness. Once you've seen one stately home you kinda get the gist. As you would expect, it's pretty impressive. The driveway must be nearly a mile long to get to the property (and is a little dicey, so be prepared to close your eyes if you're an insecure passenger) and the place is surrounded by rolling green fields. I would imagine in the summer you might see deer (or at least cattle) strolling around as you approach the house. The house itself is pretty magnificent. Some of it's buildings are constructed in what I imagine to be sandstone and the main building is bright white and looks very well kept. There is plenty of parking to be had on site and as well as the house there are gorgeous gardens, a tea room a gift shop and all of the facilities you would expect from a National Trust property. The Christmas event is wonderful. As well as numerous market stalls under cover at the front of the building with lots of craft and local produce, there was live music and food being served all through the day. Once we had gotten in to the market, we grabbed a hot food and a warm drink and began to plan our day. The market had a great selection of gifts to be had! Everything from handmade toys, jewellery, clothing and food was on offer for very reasonable prices. We picked up some great presents (and a little something for me, of course) and had a really nice time chatting to the stall holders who explained how everything was made and where ingredients etc were sourced from. The inside of Shugborough had been specially with a "Christmas by candlelight" theme. Only the downstairs was open (apparently the upstairs is open normally) and all of the rooms were decorated with gorgeous bouquets of flowers, candles and decked out with Christmas trinkets. The staff were also wearing the clothing of the era and were on hand to answer any questions about the house, the history or anything in the rooms. Entrance for an adult to get into both the hall and the market was £8 in advance. I felt this was a fair price to have a look around the house, the gardens and the markets. Obviously a lot of effort goes into making everything look just right for the occasion and it felt very festive. I would recommend a visit to Shugborough during the Christmas event or at any point in the year if you're a fan of stately homes. The gardens must look magnificent in the Summer when everything is in bloom, but even in winter we had a lovely wander around admiring them. I would recommend the hall as a nice afternoon out for the family.

This is definitely worth a visit. I was skeptical given the ticket prices (which admittedly aren't…read moretoo bad, I was just being cheap) but I was so so glad I let my friend convince me. There are so many butterflies and it's pretty large, it does take a while to walk through the whole thing and I definitely enjoyed it.

This was a day out with friends and we decided we wanted to go to Stratford upon Avon,…read moreShakespeare's birthplace. As part of things we wanted to see was this Butterfly farm. The admission ticket is valid for all day. We loved the hothouse where all the butterflies are allowed to fly freely, if you sit still then they land on you. It is a hothouse so it is pretty warm inside, try to wear comfortable clothes, avoid boots, jackets and wooly coats. There is also a pond where you can feed coy carp, an arachnid house and insect world which also houses some lizards and fish. This is a fun and relaxing way to spend an afternoon. A very kid friendly place. Tips: The café and toilets are offsite so visit the loo prior to starting your trip around the hothouse.

The botanic gardens here aren't huge, but they're fun and relaxing. There are some nice strolls…read morearound the grounds, plus interesting greenhouses with a large variety of flowers and greenery to enjoy. The admission is slightly steep for what you get, but worth at least one visit.

Lovely. This…read moregarden is charmingly well laid-out and really genuinely inviting. The gift shop is full of lovely little items and there is a cafe. The feel in the gardens is really restful. That having been said, the plants are well-labelled and the displays are really informative.

Another way of escaping the city in Leicester. Most of my escape places are also free…read more The Hall (Grade II* listed) is in the midst of two acres of serene walled gardens that are open to the public. The gardens were an important aspect of the Hall in Victorian times (a status symbol that showed the family's wealth). Belgrave Hall provides an oasis of peace and quiet in a busy city. It was built in the early 18th century, in what was then a small village 3 miles from the town of Leicester. Now city traffic passes, almost unnoticed, just beyond the garden walls. In its current role as a museum, the rooms have been designed to appear as they may have been decorated and used in Victorian times, with the contrasting lifestyles of an upper middle class family and domestic servants. This period was when the Ellis family was resident. The beautifully laid out natural room settings create the feeling of having just missed the occupants of the house. Edmund Cradock, a 'nouveau riche' hosiery merchant, built the Hall between 1709 and 1713 and died soon after its completion. Ellis and his wife Priscilla moved to the Hall with eight of their eleven children seven daughters and their youngest son. The family lived there with their servants the cook, housekeeper, parlour maid,aid-of-all-work, coachman and gardener. The Ellis sisters bought the Hall from their brother in 1868, after he inherited it from their father. Upon the death of the last remaining Ellis sister in 1923, the Hall was sold. Little is known of the next owners, the Simons. The Vann's who lived there from 1767 to 1844, ran a thriving hosiery business from the Hall, employing the local framework knitters as outworkers. They gave generously to many local charities, including Leicester's first free school. John Ellis, who purchased Belgrave Hall in 1845 and his family were also noted for their good work in the community. Ellis, a wealthy businessman, was responsible for bringing the railways to Leicester in 1833. In 1936, the estate was sold to Leicester City Council for £10,500 around a third of its actual value. A number of statues and monuments from lost gardens in Leicestershire are now situated within the gardens. The rock and water garden, botanic garden, eco garden and glasshouses compliment the older, formal grounds. Refurbishment work carried out in 2005 included improved access to the gardens. The rooms show how a house of the period worked in great detail. Free admission.

Most people, when visiting Avebury, just go to see the prehistoric standing stones and then leave…read more This is a pity, as there is a lot more of this tiny village than the (admittedly UNESCO world heritage) standing stones. Just outside the stones, behind the church, is Avebury Manor. This comprises the Manor house itself, the surrounding gardens, a Dovecote, the Alexander Keiller museum (separate charge) and a 17th century barn and a former farmyard block. The manor house was built in the early 16th century, with later additions. Like the stone circle, these are all in the care of the National Trust. The rooms in the manor house were restored a decade or so ago, as part of a television series produced by the BBC, called "The Manor Reborn". Each of the rooms is decorated and furnished with restored or re-created furniture, to reflect a different period in the life of the house. There is a Tudor dining room and bedroom; the Queen Anne bedroom (she reputedly stayed here); a Georgian styled dining room; the early 20th century billiard room, library and kitchen; and the 1930s lounge. The lounge reflects the period when it was home to the wealthy archaeologist Alexander Keiller, who was responsible for the excavation and restoration of the stones in the 1930s. Unlike many properties run by the National Trust, Avebury Manor encourages a hands-on experience - you can sit on and touch the furniture, play billions on the billiard table, and generally enjoy being in the house. We found this a very refreshing change, enhance by the really lovely volunteer staff on hand. We could not have been made more welcome. Afterwards, do not miss the gardens, the formal garden, kitchen garden and topiary garden are all charming and afford some lovely photographic opportunities. Our only disappointment was the museum (we are members, so did not have to pay, but it is charged separately from the house). We found this a bit disappointing, although it does include the story of the restoration of the stones and there are some archaeological finds exhibited. Afterwards, don't miss going in the barn, which houses a veteran touring car. We visited the café (in the farmyard buildings) afterwards, and had a very nice orange and poppyseed cake and chocolate brownie with tea. I personally find that that National Trust cafés can be a little bit hit and miss, but this one was a hit largely because of the very charming staff. There is parking for those with disabled badges in the village, about a five minute walk from Avebury Manor itself. For everyone else, the main car park is situated about half a mile away, on the A4361 road between Beckhampton and Avebury.

Gorgeous surroundings and relaxed atmosphere. Very spiritual place. We went to the café/restaurant…read morewhich was nice, but the manager was very cold to us and spoke down to his staff (I presume he was as he was the manager as he was the only one not in uniform) The barn was great and a lovely walk through the gardens. Fantastic location. Thoroughly recommend.

My mum like a lot of mums I should think loves nothing more than spending a day out looking at…read moregardens. I went to the Cowbridge garden's with her for a nice free day out on a sunny spring day recently. I'm quite interested in the medicinal uses of plants and how they've been used in the years gone by and we have quite a history of it here in Wales so it was nice to learn a bit more about that. Overall though its just a beautiful old house with this gorgeous garden. The community has spent a lot of time and energy on these gardens and it shows. Nice spot to visit on an afternoon.

Feeling unwell? Excessive indulgences? Need a quiet, relaxing, herbaceous respite? Cowbridge Physic…read moreGarden might be just the place. On a warm sunny day, relax and sit on one of the benches taking in the colour and fragrance of the gently swaying herby garden plants. The central beds (for flowers, not hung-over recoverees) contain plants specific to a part of the body or particular illness, so those with over-exuberant nightly imbibing activities might naturally gravitate towards the ones relevant to the kidneys. The perimeter areas are devoted to medicinal and soothing plants. Only plants found in Britain before 1800 are included in the garden. On a not so warm and sunny day, a couple of shelters at either end of the garden provide hiding places from the weather. Not a huge garden, so not necessarily for a special day trip out but definitely worth a visit if in Vale of Glamorgan area. Open from 10.00 am to 6.00 pm in summer and 10.00 am to 4.00 pm in winter (except Christmas day and special events [the gardens are used to host private events on occasion]). Recommended for all, not just the queasy. Hope this is helpful.