England is a part of the United Kingdom along with Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. It's thousands of years of history is for many visitors the main attraction. Stonehenge, castles and royalty make up a small part of this country’s attractions. Invaders have arrived, settled and made their mark which has resulted in England’s fascinating mix of landscape, culture and language.
Did you know?
Ireland is split into two parts. The Republic of Ireland (or Eire) is in the south and part of Europe – NOT the UK. Northern Ireland is part of the UK. It uses £ sterling for currency whereas The Republic of Ireland uses Euros.
Buckingham Palace serves as both the office and London residence of Her Majesty the Queen, as well as the administrative headquarters of the Royal Household. It is one of the few working royal palaces remaining in the world today.
Today the state rooms are used extensively by The Queen and members of the Royal Family to receive and entertain their guests on state, ceremonial and official occasions. During August and September when The Queen makes her annual visit to Scotland, the Palace's nineteen state rooms are open to visitors.
What is there to see?
One key event worth seeing is known as the ‘Changing of the Guard’. This famous ceremony happens outside Buckingham Palace and is where the Queen’s Guard hands over responsibility for protecting the palace to the new guard. You will see immaculately turned out guards executing precision drill with bands playing stirring music with the pomp and ceremony that Britain is famous for. Watching the Changing of the Guard ceremony is free and happens between 11am – 11.45am Mon, Wed, Fri and Sun - weather permitting.
The state rooms form the heart of the working palace and are lavishly furnished with some of the greatest treasures from the Royal Collection - paintings and sculptures by famous artists such as Rembrandt, exquisite examples of porcelain and some of the finest English and French furniture.
The gardens
Described as a 'walled oasis in the middle of London', the Palace garden is home to thirty different species of bird and more than 350 different wild flowers, some extremely rare.
Activity
Royal Faces. Can you name the members of the Royal Family?
The London Eye offers breath-taking views of London from high above the River Thames. See Big Ben towering above the Houses of Parliament, follow St. James Park as it sweeps down to Buckingham Palace where you can look out to see if the Union Jack is flying (this means the Queen is home).
A standard flight on the London Eye in one of the 32 capsules lasts for approximately 30 minutes, (the time it takes for the London Eye to revolve completely) and takes you to a height of 135 metres.
They are available daily from 11:00am – 6:00pm. Champagne flights are available daily, where you can enjoy a glass of chilled champagne while you take in the amazing views. You can purchase tickets online for a 10% discount or can queue at the attraction and buy tickets on the spot. Only small day size rucksacks and bags can be taken on a capsule.
The Lake District National Park is in the northwest corner of England and has over 16 million visitors each year. The area is famous for its lakes, mountains and for inspiring 19th century poets/writers such as William Wordsworth. It is England’s largest national park.
The Lake District has 16 lakes and 3,500kms of walking area. There are many activities available for tourists including walking, cycling, boating, mountaineering, hound trailing and more.
One of the major features of the national park is England’s largest lake - Lake Windermere. The lake is 18km long and 60m deep and has been one of the most popular places in England for summer homes and holidays for many years.
One of the reasons England receives so many visitors is because of its history. There are thousands of historic buildings and sites across the country. Many of them are open to the public to visit and one of the most interesting is Warwick Castle.
This 1,100 year old castle has many activities for tourists to enjoy.
Some of these include:
- Shows: The Falconer's Quest, The Bowman Show, Winter Birds of Prey, Knight School
- Castle and sea life
- History tours
- Over 64 acres of grounds and gardens to explore
- Medieval style banquets
It is one of the few castles in England that is fully accessible and has a popular interactive element – it comes to life with lots of authentic looking characters such as the knights in armour.
The castle also has accommodation options including:
- Lodges
- Glamping
- Tower Suites
Activity
Using the above information, answer the following questions.
Reference
Warwick Castle, ( 2020 11, May ) Merlin Entertainments warwick-castle.com
Wiltshire is one of England’s most interesting regions to visit and is only a 3 hour drive from London. It is home to one of the world’s most famous ancient monuments – Stonehenge – but also has many other fascinating places to see such as Avebury, and Salisbury.
Stonehenge is listed as a World Heritage site and has a history dating back 5000 years. It’s true purpose is unknown but there are many theories as to what it is used for, however the most common theory is that it was used as a way of measuring the time of the year and the seasons. Some of the largest stones weigh over 40 tonnes.
Stonehenge Direct Morning Tour
The 6-hour Stonehenge Direct Morning Tour is operated by Premium Tours. It departs daily at 8.15am from Victoria Coach Station (in London) and returns to London approximately 2.30pm.
Tour Highlights:
- Entrance to Stonehenge
- Audio guided tour at the site in multiple languages
- Professional driver and luxury air-conditioned coach
- Free Wi-fi on board
- Scenic drive through the Salisbury Plain
Fun Fact
At the time Stonehenge was created, the wheel had not yet been invented!
Reference
Stonehenge tours, (2020, 11 May) Premium Tours premiumtours.co.uk
Crop Circles
One of the best times to visit Wiltshire is in the summer from June to August. Every year strange patterns appear in the fields and these are often associated with aliens and other strange occurrences. Whilst they may not be of alien origin, they are becoming a very popular attraction, so much so that there is even a Crop Circle visitor centre in the town of Marlborough to help tourists locate the 'latest' patterns to appear in the region!
Most of them appear overnight but there are a few famous circles which have apparently appeared in broad daylight and no-one saw who did it or how they were made.
Activity
Please answer the following questions based on your knowledge obtained about England.