Countryside
Both genteel and wild, there’s nothing quite like the English countryside for rural escapes with its patchwork hills, dramatic dales, ancient woodlands and winding country roads. All well and good, but what is there to do in England’s countryside exactly? Quite a lot, actually. Admire the grand interiors of a stately home before catching a play in the surrounding gardens, travel back in time with visits to ancient stone circles and crumbling castles, or step into a chocolate box of quaint villages and market towns and live like a local, trying farmhouse cheeses, cream teas and real ales along the way.
Uncover Cliveden's unique past
Discover a country house in Berkshire with a chequered past.
Location: Maidenhead, Berkshire
Sample over 800 years of Surrey’s history
Come and discover Surrey’s history, including the open meadows of from the internationally-know Runnymede and Hampton Court Palace.
Location: London, Greater London
Uncover a political scandal at Cliveden House
Pay a visit to the stately home in Buckinghamshire where John Profumo met Christine Keeler.
Location: Taplow, Buckinghamshire
Follow in the footsteps of 18th Century tourists at Stowe
Explore Capability Brown’s first major commission incorporating over 40 historic monuments.
Location: Stowe, Buckinghamshire
An Italianate country house in the Chilterns
West Wycombe Park is 45 acres of landscaped park in the Chilterns countryside and home to the Dashwood family for over 300 years.
Location: West Wycombe, Buckinghamshire
Fall in love with your loved one again…but don’t lose your head
Sneak away to Hever Castle, where one of history’s greatest love affairs blossomed when Henry VIII courted the young Anne Boleyn.
Location: Hever, Kent
Full steam ahead on the Kent and East Sussex Railway
Bring out your inner Casey Jones by stepping onto the footplate and heading out across the stunning Kent countryside.
Location: Tenterden, Kent
Experience Victorian family life at Audley End House and Gardens
Experience a real life period drama as you explore life above and below stairs at this decadent mansion.
Location: Saffron Walden, Essex
Visit the oldest recorded battlefield in Britain
Viking raiders used Northey Island as a base during the Battle of Maldon in AD991. Today it’s a lot more tranquil...
Location: Northey Island, Essex
Lose yourself in England’s hottest garden
Experience the Isle of Wight’s incredible microclimate firsthand at the exotic Ventnor Botanic Gardens.
Location: Ventnor, Isle of Wight
Trip-trap along the Red Squirrel Trail
This family-friendly cycle and walking path encompasses an exciting trail of artwork, sculpture and trolls under bridges.
Location: Newport, Isle of Wight
Travel across Hampshire’s countryside on the Watercress Line
Witness the sights, sounds, smells and magic of steam travel from a bygone age and journey through Hampshire’s countryside on a restored steam train.
Location: Alresford, Hampshire
Uncover history and heritage at Blenheim Palace
Home to the 12th Duke Marlborough & birthplace of Winston Churchill, Blenheim is a super family day out.
Location: Woodstock, Oxfordshire
Ride on down to the Didcot Railway Centre
Enjoy a trip to Didcot Railway Centre, whose magnificent restored engines will take you steaming through most of the Oxfordshire countryside.
Location: Didcot, Oxfordshire
How did the leopard get his spots? Visit Rudyard Kipling’s home
Explore Bateman's, the 17th century home of the Jungle Book and The Just So Stories author, nestled in the leafy Sussex Weald.
Location: Burwash, East Sussex
Follow in the footsteps of William the Conqueror
The Battle of Hastings in 1066 changed the course of English history forever. Explore the site and learn about history’s most famous date.
Location: Battle, East Sussex
Explore the picturesque Mottisfont House and Garden
What’s better than a summer’s stroll amid ancient trees and rolling lawns? Enjoy the splendour of one of Hampshire’s greatest country houses –Mottisfont.
Location: Test Valley, Hampshire
Explore Nymans estate
Commanding great views from atop the rolling hills of Sussex, Nymans stands proud as one of Britain’s top gardens.
Location: Haywards Heath, Sussex
Enjoy countless attractions with one ticket at Beaulieu
Set in the heart of the New Forest, Beaulieu is an award winning day out where one ticket grants access to many of the village’s attractions.
Location: Beaulieu, Hampshire
See flowers in bloom at The Savill Garden
Enliven your senses with a walk around one of Britain's finest ornamental gardens.
Location: Windsor, Berkshire
Visit the tranquil Sissinghurst Castle Gardens
Sissinghurst is known to green-fingered enthusiasts the world-over as the epitome of an English country garden.
Location: Sissinghurst, Kent