Warwick Castle/Stratford Upon Avon

frizz_head

Has anyone been to Warwick Castle and can give me an idea of what a visit involves? Thinking of taking the kids there for a weekend during Easter, combining with a visit to Shakespeare country. Any advice or tips?

Kids are 7 and 4.

lswwong

Was there last year for Easter. Entrance was not cheap. I can't remember the price now but it was over £10 for adults. You should be able to get a family ticket, if planning to take kids. The place is owned and run by Madame Tussauds group, hence the entrance tickets are a lot more expensive. Once inside the castle, lots of buildings to look around in. In the central green area, there is live entertainment, particularly for children. This takes place at certain times during the day. Bear in mind that there are lots of stone spiral staircases to walk up inside some of the structures, and anyone not good with heights or is not steady on their feet will find themselves with less to see and do. There are some exhibitions to see which are included in the ticket price. The gardens are large and nice to relax in. There is a pea**** garden which is lots of fun for all ages. The pea****s are tame and wander carefree amongst visitors. They jump up, down, over and across hedges as they please and are not shy with displaying themselves. I had a great time watching the pea****s, and close up as well. Make sure children are kept a close eye on as these birds can bite.

Not surprisingly, the selling of food inside the castle is a big money spinner for Madame Tussauds group. I don't remember seeing any signs or anything that prohibit visitors bringing their own food with them. So worth considering if you are a true moneysaver!

There are lots of loos, but queues are long.

Parking at or near the castle is hard to come by. It might be worth parking in a car park in town and then proceed on foot to the castle. I think car parking is free at the weekend or on bank holidays, as I did not have to pay when I was there last year. Warwick town is pedestrian and interesting to look at. You might consider taking a look at Lord Leycester's Hospital. It is a Tudor building that is still lived in by people.

frizz_head

Thanks for the info Iswwong.

P.S. Funny how your message has been edited to remove the offensive word - poor bird!!!

Sarahsaver

i'm sure that if you search for the warwickshire tourist information website, they will send you a brochure with vouchers in it for discounts, same for staffordshire.

Seesaw_2

There were Cadbury wrappers offering special days out deals one of which is Warwick castle - these are valid until May 2005, I think you may still be able to get hold of some of these wrappers, otherwise email me separately and I'll send you one or two ( The Warwick castle deal was BOGOF)

Jayde_2

Went to Stratford Upon Avon and had a really good time. The tour buses are definately a good idea, we learn't quite alot! They also do boat trips. Can get very busy, we went in summer.
Haven't been to warwick castle but in today's sun there are 2 vouchers for BOGOF. If you can't get hold of a paper I could send you them if it's of any use. They are valid until April 10th.

frizz_head

Thanks for all the info everyone. Have got the 2 for 1 from the Cadburys centenary weblink voucher offer, and don't need any excuse to buy chocolate for the promo wrappers!!!!

Once again, thanks!

lswwong

Oh, I didn't do the editing .... so "grace a qui"?

What if my surname is "Bab****" or "Wood****"?? Would I then, carry on in life, with "Bab****" or "Wood****" printed on my identification documents?

Anyway, have a lovely time in Warwickshire.

All the best.

lswwong

Okay, just looked at my posted message. It would appear that the chat forum software automatically recognises certain words which might offend people and automatically ***** them out!!!!

bylromarha

As a local, there's loads of stuff to keep you amused depending on what the kids are into.

Warwick castle I feel is only worth it when its bogof, so don't forget the vouchers. There is lots of stuff for the kids during the holidays, but it is a draining day with all the walking up and down and queueing. My 4 year old nephew wanted lots of information about all the exhibits he was looking at, while my 10 year old niece got slowly bored!

While in stratford, you MUST visit the ragdoll shop (they're the production company that make teletubbies, rosie and Jim, Boobahs, tots tv etc etc)...it's a shop which is really child friendly, having a drawing/writing area to post letters to your favourite ragdoll characters. Last time I went they had a rosie and jim canal boat to watch videos in and a teletubbies play area...all free to use. Easily kils 30 mins if your kids are into these people + gives you a quick break so they're happy for the 2nd round of shopping.

A boat trip on the Avon is good fun and cheap. there's also a shire horse centre just out of town with a rather large play park...assuming kids are into farm animals.

Cadbury world is about an hour away in Bournville, Birmingham.

If you're there on a saturday, it's well worth a trip to wellsbourne market...it's a huge place with loads of non dodgy bargains. Apparently comet, currys and dixons off load a huge amount of their stuff to traders there, who then sell it on for ridiculous prices. There was a legit reason why they don't sell the products in their stores, but I can't remember what it is!My friend basically got a freeview set for £15 and found it hard to resist the other bargains on the stall he found.

Have a lovely time, and feel free to pop in for a cuppa!

frizz_head

bylromarha, thanks for the info. As a local, can you recommend any cheap hotels or B+Bs that would be ideally located for both places?

The Ragdoll shop sounds great, will have to pop in there.