Warwick: What To Do When You Visit Warwick

Warwick is the county town of Warwickshire and is situated on the banks of the River Avon. You're within a short driving distance of places like Stratford upon Avon (birthplace of Shakespeare), Birmingham, Leamington Spa and many other towns. Certainly this is a town which makes an ideal base for exploring not just the town of Warwick but the many attractions that are located relatively close to it. Below we look at a few of the attractions worth visiting during your stay in Warwick.

Warwick Castle – This is more than just an attraction for you to wander around the towers and ramparts you should allow a full day to take in everything. The hands-on displays mean you can feel just how heavy a sword was or what it would have been like to be a foot soldier getting ready for battle. They'll even let you wear a battle helmet. Then after all this excitement take time out to visit the State Rooms with their lavish decoration and see how the household prepares for a party taking place in Victorian times.

Shakespeare's Birthplace – The house in which Shakespeare was born is 8 miles from Warwick in the town of Stratford Upon Avon. This half timbered house was where William Shakespeare was born. The exhibitions that you walk past teach you all about his life including his writing. You'll be drawn into the reconstructions complete with noisy sound effects along with the original artifacts mean you'll be transported back to his lifetime.

The house is reached through an English country garden. This has been planted with many different species dating back to Shakespeare's day. It is thanks to the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust that this house has been restored to its former glory very carefully to ensure that many of its original features have been retained.

Anne Hathaway's Cottage – Just a short trip from Shakespeare's birth place is Shottery where his future wife spent her formative years. Although it is called a cottage today at the time when Anne lived in it and where Shakespeare came to court her it was a large farmhouse. Anne Hathaway's descendents lived here until the late 19th Century when it was purchased by the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.

Although the cottage itself dates from the 16th and 17th centuries there are two curved oak beams which were erected in 1463. As you wander inside the cottage you will find that little has changed and not just the original open hearth fireplace, which is still in location in the living room, but paneling as well. All the rooms within are decorated with furnishings from the period and including the 4 poster Hathaway Bed.

Lunt Roman Fort – Well before the construction of Warwick Castle, as its name suggests this was a Roman Army fort. After painstaking research the site now features a faithful reconstruction of the original fort. As you wander around this wonderful attraction one can get a feel for what life was like in the Roman army when in Britain. The various archaeological digs here have contributed many of the museum's pieces along with a model of what the fort would have looked like in 64AD.

When you decide to stay in Warwick, you can choose your Warwick accommodation here.