The main reason for my trip to Arundel was to visit the castle. I’d seen a video online which inspired me to research more about it and once I saw how easy it was to reach by train I was sold. I will say though that as a visitor and from the ground there is no real way of seeing the whole place in its glory (other than on approach by train) as it is surrounded by trees but the gardens and interiors more than made up for it.
Another February, another Light Night event. This is a real highlight of the arts calendar in Nottingham and as ever there was so much going on that we always have to be quite selective about what we visit. We started off as we have before at Sneinton Market which had an interesting light display in a box named Geist, the design of which is based off of a neutrino or “ghost particle”.
Originally built from wood by William the Conqueror in 1068 Warwick Castle was rebuilt in stone during the 12th century. It’s been home to many important historical figures, possibly the most well known being Richard Neville who was nicknamed the Kingmaker due to his actions during the Wars of the Roses. But, learning about the history of the castle wasn’t really my purpose for visiting last weekend. (It vaguely had been but it soon became clear that Christmas at the Castle was very much its own thing and I wasn’t going to learn much about the history while there – I bought a guidebook for that!). This visit was part of an annual tradition with a friend to visit a Christmas light show or market every year. We’ve done this for a very long time, only having to cancel plans during COVID lockdowns. You can read about some of our past adventures here and here.
After exploring the castle we set off to walk around the grounds and gardens, using the free map we’d been given at the entrance to navigate. Since it was a very hot day and we were travelling with my elderly father we’d already decided that we wouldn’t do the whole three mile walk but concentrate on the nearest of the gardens to the castle and part of the woods.
Back in May we headed to Belvoir Castle in Grantham, Lincolnshire, for my birthday. Despite the fact that it’s only a half hour drive from Nottingham I hadn’t managed to visit until now.
Nottingham Castle (re)reopened on 26th June after a controversial opening after COVID lockdowns with accusations of racism and bullying amongst the staff, unjustifiably high prices for entry and generally shambolic management. (I’ve written about this elsewhere so I won’t rehash that or the history of the castle – you can read some of that here when I visited after the first re-opening). Adult tickets now cost £12 for an annual pass which is far more reasonable for what you get. There is also now no charge for under-15s.
Conwy Castle, like its fellow Welsh castles of Beaumaris and Caernarfon are World Heritage sites and looked after by Cadw. Built between 1283 and 1287 under the orders of Edward I as part of his conquest of Wales it’s an impressive medieval fortress that absolutely dominates the skyline and is very well preserved for its age, including the most intact set of medieval royal apartments in Wales.
After a fortifying cup of tea in the tea rooms I headed out to explore the gardens at the castle. Walter Speed, who became head gardener in 1862 and continued working there for an impressive 58 years, is considered the creator of the grounds and gardens. In fact the gardens were renowned as one of the top three best gardens in Britain and Speed was given the prestigious Victoria Medal for Horticulture by Queen Victoria herself.
I hadn’t realised until I arrived at Penrhyn Castle that there was a railway museum on site – it’s based in what were the stables where 36 of the estate’s horses used to call home. If you’ve been around for a while you’ll know that my dad is very much a train enthusiast and I have been dragged to all manner of train related sites throughout the country from a very young age so I was especially keen to photograph everything I could to show him.
I can’t quite remember how Penrhyn Castle came up in my research as things to do in North Wales but it ended up being my favourite destination. It’s one of those rare National Trust properties that’s easy to get to by public transport. Closer to Bangor than Conwy it’s a pleasant 40 minutes by bus from Conwy town centre (Arriva buses have a very handy app that worked well and an all day ticket covering North Wales cost me £6.50). The bus stop is right outside the entrance to the castle although there is then a gentle mile walk down the driveway to the ticket office and round to the castle itself.
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