Cheshire

Near Trevor Hall

Trevor Hall is a significant historic house in Wales set within 150 acres of private woodlands and gardens. Visitors can enjoy both indoor tours of the house's unique collections and extensive outdoor walks, including part of the Offas Dyke path, with stunning views of the Dee Valley.

2 miles from Tatton Park

Tatton Park is a historic estate in Cheshire featuring a neoclassical mansion, extensive formal and natural gardens, a large deer park, and a working farm showcasing rare breeds. Visitors can enjoy indoor tours of the mansion, outdoor exploration of gardens and parkland, and family-friendly activities including a children's playground and various events throughout the year.

3 miles from Wet Felting Workshop: The Japanese Garden with Tour

16 Oct (next Friday)

Participants learn wet-felting techniques and create a landscape image inspired by Tatton Park’s Japanese Garden, with expert tuition and a tour of the garden.

3 miles from Lyme

Lyme Park is a large estate in Cheshire managed by the National Trust, featuring the largest house in Cheshire with Elizabethan and Palladian-Baroque architecture, extensive formal gardens and deer park, and historical indoor exhibits including the Lyme Caxton Missal. It also serves as a filming location and offers food facilities on site.

3 miles from The Trees of Lyme Park and Their Fungal Associates

12 Oct–7 Nov (next week)

Explore an exhibition about five tree species at Lyme Park and their fungal associates, then follow a self-guided trail around the Top Lawn. On 17, 24 and 31 October, the exhibition curator will be available to answer questions and discuss the research.

Near Nerquis Hall

Nerquis Hall is a historic 16th-century house featuring an original farmyard and Great Barn, available for exclusive use but requiring paid entrance for Historic Houses members. It served as a film location and offers an indoor historic experience.

2 miles from Combermere Abbey

Combermere Abbey is a historic former Cistercian monastery turned Tudor manor and Gothic-style house set in 1,000 acres on the Cheshire/Shropshire border. Visitors can enjoy guided tours of the house including significant restored rooms, explore extensive parkland and gardens, and join special owner-led tours. The venue requires pre-booking and entry fees apply except for Historic Houses members.

3 miles from Blue Planet Aquarium

The Blue Planet Aquarium in Ellesmere Port is the largest aquarium in North West England, featuring extensive marine and freshwater tanks including a 4 million liter main tank with a 71m underwater shark tunnel. It offers themed habitats showcasing diverse aquatic life and interactive experiences.

3 miles from Chirk Castle

Chirk Castle is a historic Grade I listed castle and stately home in north-east Wales, built in 1295 and managed by the National Trust. Visitors can explore both the castle interiors and extensive formal gardens and parkland surrounding the site. The estate also features notable landscape elements such as Offa's Dyke and has historic significance dating back to the Marcher Lords and English Civil War periods.

3 miles from Brynkinalt

Brynkinalt is a Grade II* historic house in Wrexham, home to the Trevor family since 942 AD. Visitors can enjoy guided tours of the formal rooms and learn about the family's rich history, as well as explore the formal gardens and woodland on their own. The site offers scheduled tours and group visits by arrangement with refreshments.

3 miles from Bugs and Beasties Detective Trail

12 Oct–1 Nov (next week)

Follow a detective trail through Lyme House to find bugs and beasties, learn how insects affect the historic collections, and investigate damaged objects in the Long Gallery.

Located in Whaley Bridge

Whaley Bridge is a historic market town in Derbyshire located on the River Goyt, known for its scenic canal basin, prehistoric sites, and vibrant local festivals. It offers walkable streets, rail and bus transport, and serves as a gateway for hikers exploring the nearby Peak District.

Located in Leek

Leek is a historic market town in Staffordshire known for its Victorian architecture, cultural festivals, scenic parks, and proximity to the Peak District National Park, attracting tourists for its natural and cultural heritage.

3 miles from Iscoyd Park

Iscoyd Park is a historic family home near Whitchurch, Shropshire, dating back to 1737 with parts from 1630 and medieval origins. Visitors can explore the restored Georgian house, converted outbuildings, and gardens through guided tours led by the family. The estate has a rich history including use as a WWII hospital and POW camp before restoration.

Near Abbeywood Gardens

Abbeywood Gardens offers extensive woodlands, diverse gardens, and a wildlife walk set in Cheshire, complemented by a cafe serving local food. Access is free for RHS members on select days.

3 miles from Y Fferm

Y Fferm is a 17th-century small manorial farmhouse retaining much of its original sub-medieval details, open to visitors by pre-booked appointment during selected dates.

2 miles from Potteries Shopping Centre

Potteries Shopping Centre is a large indoor shopping mall in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, featuring over 90 stores, a historic market hall, and an adjacent outdoor leisure complex with restaurants and a cinema. It offers a comprehensive retail and leisure experience for visitors.

2 miles from Sandbach Crosses

Sandbach Crosses are two elaborately carved 9th-century Anglo-Saxon stone crosses located in the marketplace of Sandbach, Cheshire. They are outdoor historic monuments known for their religious and Celtic carvings, historically and artistically significant as Grade I listed structures and scheduled ancient monuments.

3 miles from Wandering Wolves

7–11 Oct, 14–18 Oct…

A free spotter activity at Little Moreton Hall invites visitors to look for the wolf on the Moreton family crest and find wolves hidden around the hall and courtyard.

2 miles from Plas Coch

Plas Coch is a retail and educational area in Wrexham, Wales, known for its Roman farm settlement history, prominent retail park, university campus, and the nearby Racecourse Ground stadium. It combines commercial, historic, and educational interests primarily in an outdoor setting.

Near Little Moreton Hall

Little Moreton Hall is a historic 16th-century half-timbered moated manor house near Congleton, Cheshire. It features well-preserved Tudor architecture, extensive gardens, and a famous Long Gallery. Visitors can explore the restored house interiors, enjoy the gardens, and dine in the on-site restaurant, making it a comprehensive historic and outdoor experience.

Near Design Detective

7–11 Oct, 14–18 Oct…

Visitors can use a free spotter guide to explore the wall paintings and protective marks at Little Moreton Hall, learning about Tudor interior design and how conservators care for historic paintings.

Near Quarry Bank Mill

Quarry Bank Mill in Cheshire is a well-preserved historic textile mill from the Industrial Revolution, featuring working waterwheel machinery, factory and worker village tours, and exhibits on industrial heritage and child apprentices. It is operated as a museum by National Trust.

2 miles from Explore Quarry Bank with HistoryScapes

7 Oct–1 Nov, 4–8 Nov…

Explore Quarry Bank using the HistoryScapes app, which brings the history of the historic landscape to life through an outdoor trail. The pilot project aims to help visitors discover more about the site’s history.

Located in Wilmslow

Wilmslow is a historic market town in Cheshire known for its quaint town centre, rich cultural heritage, access to railway services, local festivals, and a variety of shopping and dining experiences including luxury car showrooms.

2 miles from Arley Hall

Arley Hall & Gardens in Cheshire is a historic family home offering indoor tours of its intricately decorated interiors alongside access to one of Britain's finest gardens known for its vitality and variety. Visitors can enjoy a café, shop, and facilities for children, with the venue mostly wheelchair accessible and pet friendly.

2 miles from The Market Shopping Centre

Crewe is a historic railway town in Cheshire, England, known for its major railway junction, Bentley car factory, and the expansive Queen's Park offering recreational facilities including a children's play area. Cultural attractions include the Lyceum Theatre and Crewe Heritage Centre featuring a miniature railway.

Located in Crewe

Crewe is a historic railway town in Cheshire, England, known for its large railway junction, Bentley car factory, theatres, parks, and vibrant retail and cultural scene.

3 miles from Cheshire Oaks Designer Outlet

Cheshire Oaks Designer Outlet is the largest outlet shopping centre in the UK offering 145 stores with discounted brand goods, a leisure park with cinema and bowling, and various dining options. It also hosts seasonal events like a winter village.

2 miles from Erddig

Erddig is a historic country house and estate in Wrexham, Wales, featuring a unique collection of servant memorabilia, 18th-century furniture, and extensive formal gardens. Visitors can explore both the house interiors and the landscaped outdoor parklands including remnants of Norman and medieval earthworks. The estate provides a distinctive insight into the life of an 18th-century Welsh country squire and his household, with on-site amenities including a café and activities suitable for children.

2 miles from Stonyford Cottage Gardens

Stonyford Cottage Gardens is a family-owned informal garden featuring wetland areas, a tranquil lake, and a diverse range of shade and moisture-loving plants with scenic views and woodland walks. It offers facilities like parking, refreshments, and welcomes dogs.

2 miles from Biddulph Old Hall

Biddulph Old Hall is a historic Elizabethan mansion and medieval hunting lodge with guided tours covering its rich history, gardens, ruins, and former uses as an artist's home and Buddhist retreat. Visitors can explore both the house interior and extensive grounds, enjoying seasonal gardens and refreshments.

2 miles from Don't go into the cellar presents- Confessions of Sweeney Todd

15 Oct (next Thursday)

A one-man performance of the classic penny dreadful tale of Sweeney Todd, featuring an audience with the infamous Demon Barber of Fleet Street. The show is not a musical.

Near Dee Estuary Parkgate

Dee Estuary - Parkgate is a nature reserve featuring extensive saltmarshes with diverse birdlife and scenic landscapes, ideal for wildlife observation especially at high tide. It offers outdoor experiences with parking, picnic areas, and nearby eateries, welcoming visitors free of charge year-round.

3 miles from Bramall Hall

Bramall Hall is a historic Tudor Manor House with origins back to the Middle Ages, featuring unique architectural and artistic details inside, set within 60 acres of picturesque Victorian Romantic parkland with woodland walks, brooks, and lakes. Visitors can enjoy guided tours, facilities including a café, and a family-friendly environment.

3 miles from Bridgemere Show Gardens

Bridgemere Garden Centre in Cheshire features a six-acre garden showcasing 15 unique themed gardens including RHS medal winners and a Japanese-inspired garden, with plant sales and refreshments available. It is accessible, dog friendly and features the famous Isaac Newton’s Apple Tree.

3 miles from Bluebell Cottage Gardens

This 1.5-acre RHS Partner Garden near Warrington offers a tranquil outdoor experience with diverse planting areas including a wildflower meadow, gravel garden, and an exotic garden with a pergola walk. It features accessible paths, plant sales, refreshments, and wildlife-friendly gardening practices.

3 miles from Coombes Valley

Coombes Valley is a woodland nature reserve in Staffordshire ideal for nature lovers and families, offering wildlife viewing, nature trails, a seasonal visitor centre café, and outdoor play areas. Dogs are not permitted except assistance dogs, and some rugged terrain limits full wheelchair access.

3 miles from Eliseg's Pillar

Eliseg's Pillar is an ancient early Christian monument from the 9th century, located on a Bronze Age burial cairn in Wales. Visitors can explore the historic outdoor site featuring a weathered cross shaft with inscriptions that tell the story of the kingdom of Powys and its rulers. The site is accessible via a short walk from nearby Valle Crucis Abbey car park.

Near Mow Cop Castle

Mow Cop Castle is an 18th-century folly built to resemble medieval ruins, located on the border between Cheshire and Staffordshire. It stands on a historic ridge known for ancient quarrying and offers scenic views. The site is owned by the National Trust and is free to visit.

2 miles from History of the Chinese Garden at Biddulph Grange

10 Oct, 17 Oct…

A volunteer-led talk in the Chinese Garden explores its history, design, different elements and sources of inspiration.

3 miles from Speke Hall

Speke Hall is a Grade I listed Tudor manor house in Liverpool, renowned for its historic timber-framed architecture, ancient yew trees, and scenic views over the Mersey estuary. Owned by the National Trust, it offers visitors both indoor exploration of historic rooms and outdoor gardens with walking paths.

3 miles from The Sorceress of Speke and the Lost Familiars

12 Oct–8 Nov (next week)

Visitors follow an outdoor trail around the grounds of Speke Hall, completing five activities to discover a magic word and reunite the Sorceress of Speke with her lost animal familiars.

2 miles from New Strand Shopping Centre

The New Strand Shopping Centre in Bootle is a large indoor retail complex featuring 130 stores, including major tenants like TJ Hughes and Home Bargains. Opened in 1968 and expanded in the late 1990s, it offers extensive shopping with good transport connections and parking. It also includes facilities for children such as a creche.

Located in Crosby

Crosby is a coastal town in Merseyside, England, known for its beaches, Antony Gormley's art installation, and a vibrant suburban atmosphere near Liverpool.

2 miles from Peover Hall

Peover Hall is an Elizabethan family home with historic interiors, classical gardens, and Grade 1 listed Carolean stables. It offers tours, historical insights including WWII links, and afternoon tea, providing a varied indoor and outdoor visitor experience.

Near Biddulph Grange Garden

Biddulph Grange Garden is a Victorian formal garden featuring themed garden rooms with international plants, a geological gallery, and distinctive areas like the Chinese Garden and Egyptian Court, offering an adventurous outdoor experience for all ages.

3 miles from Castell Caergwrle

Castell Caergwrle is a historic ruined castle built by native Welsh prince Dafydd ap Gruffudd in the late 13th century. Visitors can explore outdoor grounds on a waymarked path and enjoy the heritage setting within the village. Access involves uneven terrain and steps with safety notices. The site has free entry and allows dogs on short leads at ground level.

2 miles from Helsby

Helsby is a village in Cheshire, England, known for Helsby Hill, a prominent sandstone hill featuring ancient hillfort remains and extensive rock climbing opportunities. Managed by the National Trust, the hill offers walkers scenic views across Cheshire and beyond. The nearby former quarry is now a woodland park with notable geological features.

2 miles from Biddulph Grange

Biddulph Grange is a National Trust Victorian landscaped garden in Staffordshire, England featuring a variety of themed garden areas including Chinese, Egyptian, and Italian sections. It offers year-round plant interest and is particularly child-friendly with tunnels and a quiz trail.

2 miles from Island Green

Island Green in Wrexham, Wales is a retail park located on the site of the former Island Green Brewery. The park includes shops, restaurants, and Wrexham Central railway station, repurposing historic Grade II listed brewery buildings and providing extensive parking and visitor amenities.

2 miles from Tatton Park

Tatton Park in Cheshire is a vast historic estate featuring an opulently decorated 18th-century mansion, extensive landscaped gardens including Japanese and Italian styles, a working rare breed farm, and 1,000 acres of deer park with wildlife and trails. Visitors can enjoy dining, shopping, and a variety of family-friendly outdoor and indoor activities.

2 miles from Beyond the View: Canaletto at Tatton

7–11 Oct, 14–18 Oct…

An exhibition exploring Samuel Egerton’s journey from Cheshire to Venice and his connection to Canaletto. Visitors can see rare paintings, letters and artefacts, digital installations, and Tatton Park’s Canaletto masterpieces.

3 miles from Biddulph Grange Garden

Biddulph Grange Garden is a Grade I listed Victorian garden featuring themed garden rooms with exotic plants, sculptures, and a unique geological gallery. Visitors can explore outdoor gardens including the spectacular Chinese garden and the oldest stumpery, plus enjoy indoor exhibits and a tea-room. The garden offers family-friendly woodland play and guided tours.

Near Consall Woods

Consall Woods is a large nature reserve in a steep-sided valley featuring woodland and wetland habitats. Visitors can enjoy varied birdlife along waymarked trails, picnic areas, and scenic views in a peaceful outdoor setting.

Located in Birkenhead

Birkenhead is an industrial port town on the Wirral Peninsula, known for its historic shipbuilding industry, the first publicly funded park in Britain, and cultural landmarks like Hamilton Square. It offers diverse transport links, shopping, leisure, and cultural experiences.

3 miles from Cholmondeley Castle Gardens

Cholmondeley Castle Gardens is a historic 70-acre garden with magnificent seasonal displays, a long herbaceous border, lakeside nature trail, water garden, picnic and play area, historic chapel, and diverse plant collections. Free access is available for RHS members on selected days.

2 miles from Ewloe Castle

Castell Ewloe is a native-built Welsh castle located in a deep woodland setting near the Wales-England border, known for its distinctive D-shaped stone tower and historic significance as a contested borderland fortress. The site offers an outdoor historic experience with walking trails and steps, accessible to visitors year-round with free entry.

2 miles from Metquarter

Metquarter is a boutique shopping centre located in central Liverpool, housed in a historic former post office building. Visitors can enjoy a range of retail stores, a food hall, and a cinema, with a family-friendly environment.

2 miles from Rode Hall Gardens

Rode Hall & Gardens offers a historic landscape designed by Humphry Repton featuring formal gardens, woodland walks, a rock garden, and unique plant collections including snowdrops and bluebells, alongside a kitchen garden supplying produce to onsite tearooms and markets.

Near Dorfold Hall

Dorfold Hall is a historic Jacobean mansion set in 800 acres of English countryside featuring original interiors, beautiful gardens, woodlands, and a picturesque lake. Visitors can explore both the house and extensive outdoor grounds, with accessibility features and member free entry available.

3 miles from Wrexham

Wrexham is a historic city in north-east Wales known for its medieval city centre, the remarkable St Giles Church, and its vibrant cultural scene. Visitors can explore both indoor attractions like museums, markets, and arts centres, as well as outdoor locations including parks and the National Trust property of Erddig Hall.

Located in Congleton

Congleton is a historic market town in Cheshire, England, known for its rich cultural heritage, riverside parklands, annual festivals, and accessible transport links including rail and bus services.

Located in New Mills

New Mills is a historic mill town on the edge of the Peak District, known for its dramatic gorge, textile heritage, and community cultural events.

Located in Winsford

Winsford is a historic market town in Cheshire known for its salt mining heritage, scenic Winsford Flashes lakes, and landmarks such as St Chad's Church. It offers walkable town centre amenities, leisure and cultural activities, and access by train and local public transport.

3 miles from Hare Hill

Hare Hill Hall is a Georgian country house in Cheshire with an extensive National Trust garden featuring diverse rhododendrons, a walled garden, sculptures, and scenic walking paths.

3 miles from Nature Packs

7–11 Oct, 14–18 Oct…

Visitors can borrow a Nature Pack and use it to explore wildlife and the garden, including looking for creepy crawlies, listening to woodland birds and making a den. The packs are aimed particularly at children aged three and over, though adults can join in too.

Near Salford Shopping Centre

Salford Shopping Centre is a large indoor shopping mall located in Pendleton, Salford, Greater Manchester. It features 81 stores, an indoor market, a Tesco superstore, Aldi, and KFC, offering a comprehensive retail experience in an urban setting.

2 miles from Online Talk: The Shadows of Salem – Myth V Reality in Lois the Witch and Other Tales

14 Oct (next Wednesday)

Author Livi Michael gives an online talk exploring how Elizabeth Gaskell used the Salem witch trials in her novella *Lois the Witch*, and how historical fact and Victorian fiction intersect in stories about witches.

3 miles from Chester Zoo

Chester Zoo in Upton-by-Chester, Cheshire, England, is one of the UK's largest and most diverse zoological collections, featuring over 35,000 animals from 500+ species across extensive outdoor habitats and impressive indoor exhibits. Visitors can explore themed zones like the Heart of Africa savannah, Islands exhibit, and Tropical Realm, with facilities including cafés, restaurants, play areas, and educational programs, making it a premier destination for families and wildlife enthusiasts.

3 miles from Runcorn Shopping City

Runcorn Shopping City is a large indoor shopping centre in Runcorn, England, featuring over 60 stores, multiple food outlets, extensive parking, and excellent public transport links. It serves as a central retail and social hub for the town.