The Colchester Arts Centre is without a doubt the culture heart of Colchester. The intimate venue…read moreis in an old church, which is situated in the center of the town and easily accessed by both bus and train. The venue accomodates a range of shows including music, comedy, plays, film screenings, childrens days with activities and popular clubnights. The staff are very friendly and helpful with any queries you may have, and the security staff are strict but fair. The arts center often has widely-known music acts playing there including the killers, the strokes and placebo, and it is well worth keeping an eye on the website for upcoming shows whether you are local or not It is usually well worth the journey to see your favourite band or comedian in such an intimate and beautiful venue, particularly when the usual ticket price is so cheap!

The arts centre is a very lively place to go. I have only been to the music nights but they played…read moregreat music. It was good to go somewhere for individuals as opposed to the main clubs in Colchester so if you a bit different or older this is the place for you!

The Horsebridge is a great community centre for Arts, entertainment and a huge array of classes and…read moreactivities. The ground floor acts as an everchanging gallery with new and establised artistic talent showcased. Entry to the gallery is free and makes art accessible to all. Upstairs the Horsebridge has a cafe with blacony seating which allows a great view of whitstable. The Horsbridge is also home to a number of day and evening claases including yoga and children's french and drama lessons.

An unbelievable mill that is over 8 centuries old, and to think that a mill stood on this site over…read morea longer period of time. As they say, mind boggling. First impressions were that entrance fees were really affordable and this came with an interesting booklet. We decided to just wander around and take everything in at our own speed. There was a wonderful guide who, obviously, knew so much about the mill because he was followed by a group of people but there were so many informative panels throughout. For the younger generation there were various, educational, puzzle boards. Actually, without children around it gave we older clientele a chance to have a go ourselves without being shown up. Good to see that money has been spent on the upkeep inside and, also, a nice walkway outside to see the reservoir that is filled at high tide. A wonderful hour or two spent reading, viewing and absorbing information. Thank you.

Small mill museum with the rarity of being a ride miss. A working model demonstrates the operation…read more Staff are enthusiastic and helpful. Very interesting and important heritage site.

This is a lovely little craft centre, just outside of Great Dunmow town centre (off the old A120)…read more Here you will find a range of barns were you can browse around and purchase a whole range of crafts and gifts, such as dolls house items, clothing, jewellery etc. If you want to sit down for a drink or a bite to eat, timbers is a lovely little pub/ cafe/ restaurant serving a range of snacks, drinks and food. For a little entertainment you will find a crazy golf course and in the summer you can get lost in the amazing, original maize maze! A great day out for all the family!

The cafe cum restaurant is quite large and with a big menu. It's a bit old-fashioned and stuffy…read moreinside. The prices are a bit steep.

The Barbican is an area you can explore with a library, conservatory, rotating art installations,…read moreand miscellaneous events. You should check when the events are, because it could interfere with the areas being available for a visit. There was also a beautiful outdoor area that would have been amazing to sit at the café outdoors and admire the scenery, but unfortunately it was raining at the time of our visit and it would not have been as enjoyable to sit outdoors here. Would definitely come back to explore more, and hoping the weather will be better in the future.

Very disappointing experience. I'll start with the good. The front desk staff was incredible,…read morevery friendly and very helpful. Unfortunately, the concierge was probably the worst ever. I received a package via Amazon and showed him the details from the Amazon email. He condescendingly asked me where it was on his list, where it wasn't printed, and stressed that if it wasn't there they did not get a package. I cannot put into words how condescending he was. I left for dinner worried the package was lost or misdelivered. When I returned, he was no longer there so I asked the great front desk staff if they had received a package for me. They remembered getting something and checked a few places, long story short is they found the package. Again, kudos to the front desk who went the extra mile for me, but why was the concierge so negativistic and self assured. Another positive was the fitness Centre, which had some great equipment, including a nice rower and treadmill. Unfortunately, the smell in the hallway leading to the fitness centre almost made me sick every day. A couple other challenges from the property. The room is what I would have imagined a jail cell. A small mattress just thrown into a corner. Also, the door to the bathroom slammed every time I went in, I am sure not very pleasant for my neighbors. Also the fire alarm went off at 7 am my last night, the cherry on top.

Shakespeare's Globe is a reconstruction of the Globe Theatre, which was completed in 1997. I…read morevisited with my husband on a recent trip to London earlier this month and had a great time. There are a couple of ways to experience the Globe. You can attend a performance (they typically have 1-2 performances per day at a range of rates) or you can tour the theater. The performance times didn't work well with our schedule (such a short trip), but we were able to fit in a tour, which was great. Our tour guide was wonderful. We started the tour inside the attached visitor/admission center, where he provided some context. Then we walked over to the theater itself and sat on each of the three levels to get a sense of the different individuals who attended Shakespeare's plays and how they would have experienced the performances they attended. We learned that the theater was built in 1599, when there was only bridge connecting Bankside and London. People either took barges across the river or - if they didn't have the money for a boat - walked to and across the bridge. We learned how much a performance cost for people sitting in different sections of the theater. We learned that the Globe burned down during a performance of Henry VIII in 1613 (the theater was rebuilt the following year but closed by 1642 and torn down in 1645). The modern recreation you can visit now is close to the original site (you can find the original site just a few steps away) and based on historical drawings and designs. It's as close to Shakespeare's Globe as we can get, and it's an incredible thing to see and experience. If you can fit in a performance, I'm sure it's amazing. But the tour was pretty great, too. I learned a lot about Shakespeare, the Globe, and London. We had a pretty tight schedule due to it being a shorter trip, and a tour of the Globe was a great way to take in such a historic and important site.

Even if you're not planning on seeing a show here, do the tour!…read more William Shakespeare's company built The Globe Theater very close to this spot in 1599. This is a replica of Shakespeare's theater which was built in the late 1990s. Originally, the idea was to mostly perform Shakespeare plays during the summer months, demonstrating exactly how those plays might have been seen in Elizabethan/Jacobean London. So, all-male casts, no modern technology, etc. Nowadays they make a lot more concessions with the aim of putting on enjoyable shows, but this is still an outdoor venue with a courtyard "groundlings" area that has no seats. The outer ring is covered and has wooden bench seating, with cushions available to rent. If you're a tourist who has spent the day hoofing it around this great city, you should probably make sure you have a seat. Furthermore, you might consider that a back-row seat would allow you to lean back, which you can't do in the other rows. This is very much a true professional theater experience. It's not just a gimmick; the original artistic director was no less than Sir Mark Rylance so you know you are going to see a high-quality production. However, the expertise on hand regarding the history of William Shakespeare makes for a very informative tour. I've done it multiple times and always loved it. But the production I saw of A Midsummer Night's Dream was lots of fun, easy to recommend. They involve the audience a lot, even bringing people on stage during actual scenes. Anyone who considers themselves a theater nerd owes themselves a visit. I strongly recommend the tour, and if you can make it to an actual show, you won't regret it. There are concession stands with a decent selection of snacks and drinks, alcoholic and otherwise. And there's a very large gift shop which was closed at the end of the show I went to, sadly. I would have bought something. But that's normal. NOTE: a second stage has been added to this complex, the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse. It's a traditional indoor theater. If you're booking tickets, you might want to make sure you know which stage it's on, as that greatly impacts the experience. ANOTHER NOTE: I spoke to some people who believed the final scene of the movie Hamnet was filmed here. Although that might sound right, it is incorrect. That sequence was all done at Elstree Studios in Hertfordshire.