Warwick, Packwood, Charlecote – what a feast for the eyes!

This post is part of a series called English cities & towns

*View of Warwick Castle from Avon Bridge*

How could I follow up a great day in Stratford Upon Avon? (see link) Have a walking tour of wonderful Warwick guided by a local – my partner’s brother, of course!! And as National Trust members we were spoiled for choice for places to visit!

Packwood House – a National Trust treasure

We started off with a visit to Packwood House, a Tudor house with splendid gardens and grounds. The house which dated back to the 1500’s was still not open to the public. However the sunny morning was pleasantly spent walking around the gardens and grounds, finished off with a cream tea at the spacious restaurant.

*View of Packwood House from the garden*

Historic Warwick

Thanks to local knowledge we found a free parking space on West Street, lined by distinctive timber-framed buildings on both sides. I couldn’t think of a better way to while away a sunny afternoon than to meander around the quaint and characterful narrow streets of Warwick’s old town.

I was surprised to learn that many of these places were rebuilt in the 17th- and 18th-century after the great fire of Warwick in the 1690’s.

Walking through the West Gate up to the High Street was like opening a box of chocolates – which one to choose first! The Elizabethan buildings across the street with a raised walkway or The Lord Leycester Hospital right opposite!? The incredibly well preserved medieval building is a charitable organisation for ex-servicemen.

*Elizabethan houses opposite Lord Leycester Hospital*, *through West Gate*

Warwick Castle

I am glad I visited the well preserved Warwick Castle years ago before it was turned into a sort of theme park. I was more than contented to have a glimpse of part of it from different angles during the walk

Mill Street lined with Tudor buildings

*Historic houses on Mill Street, Warwick*

St. Nicholas’ Park

Charlecote Park – another National Trust gem

There was a chill in the air the next morning; after all it’s mid September. The sun soon appeared for our visit to Charlecote Park, a grand Tudor mansion with a landscape deer park.

The first thing I noticed as I walked along the long drive to the house were fallow deer grazing on one side of the road, totally oblivious to passersby!

It was alleged that, as a youngster, Shakespeare was supposed to have been caught poaching deer on the Charcote Estate and received a lashing as punishment! True or not, it certainly adds to the publicity of Charlecote.

I was told that this simple and rustic fencing around the park somehow manages to prevent the deer from wandering out and others maundering in!

The parterre behind the house was sadly neglected due to the lockdown. The hedging was devoid of the pretty flowers that normally filled the interiors

The grounds

River Avon runs through the back of the house where the deer sanctuary is on the other bank. Although the house was not yet reopened to the public, roaming through the extensive grounds took a few hours!