Ludlow in Shropshire is a hidden gem - picturesque with a castle and a hotel, The Feathers, built in the early 1600's. I was quite surprised by it when I visited it a year or so ago. Not too far away is Ironbridge Gorge, with Industrial Revolution outdoor museum. A popular destination now since the Cadfael Mysteries is Shrewsbury.

Castle Combe, in Wiltshire - chocolate box perfect! Wiltshire has some other lovely villages too - we stayed in a lovely B&B in Biddestone, with a little village green with duck pond. Lacock, a National Trust village. Avebury has a prehistoric stone circle. All this is easy driving distance (commuting almost!) from Bath. We did daytrips from Biddestone.

Wells, Canterbury, and other cathedral cities.

Stourhead, a wonderful garden with a Temple of Apollo and other follies near Shaftesbury, Wiltshire.

The stately homes in the Peak District - Haddon Hall, Chatsworth , Hardwick Hall. Hiking in the Peak District - easy strolls or more challenging if you wish.

Castle Howard in Yorkshire, the location for Brideshead Revisited.

Not in England but in Wales is the Italianate town of Portmeirion. It is on the coast and seems incongruous. It is also famous for its china (I love it!) and as the location for The Prisoner, the old TV series.

Any smaller city on market day. Some of the sales people are incredible. I remember seeing a man selling knives - using a knife to the point of dullness, running it across his tongue, sharpening it and then demonstrating its sharpness again!

Frances