Beautiful scenery, lots to do and great fun. What wasn’t there to like about our holiday in Shropshire? Oh yes, the rain.
But let’s go back to the start. Why did I pick Shropshire for a family break? Well, I had wanted to visit Ironbridge, the famous world heritage site, for several years and planned to do so at the end of our five-day break. We began instead in the middle of the Shropshire hills, near the small market town of Church Stretton. The landscape truly is gorgeous, and on our first day, the rain actually held off. This meant we were able to walk along the River Mynd and take in the magnificent scenery. I really was overwhelmed by the beauty of the area. Within the UK, only Scotland comes near it, in my (humble) opinion.
We stayed in the kind of place which parents dream of. Mynd House is a bed and breakfast with a top floor that’s absolutely perfect for families. It consists of two delightful, interconnecting rooms (I love my 10- and 7-year old, but prefer not to share a bedroom with them) and a bathroom with its own Jacuzzi.
Mynd House also provides a slap-up breakfast. We were given vegetarian sausages, and tomato and basil muffins when we explained that we didn’t eat meat. Carnivores are also well catered for.
Church Stretton is at the southern end of Shropshire, not far from Acton Scott Historic Working Farm. This might be familiar from the “Victorian Farm” television programme, and was extremely enjoyable to visit, with beautifully preserved buildings, very cute animals and demonstrations of period skills. The demonstrations at Acton Scott are regular; there tends to be something every day.
 |
Meeting a lamb at Acton Scott
|
We then visited the Severn Valley Railway with its old-fashioned steam trains. We boarded at Bridgnorth and got out for a walk at Bewdley, an extremely pretty town, with a gem of a local museum.
As I said, the entire trip was planned because of Ironbridge. It has 10 award-winning museums, spread along the valley besides the River Severn, and still spanned by the world’s first iron bridge. As you drive past the beautiful Severn Gorge, it is astonishing to think that the Industrial Revolution was forged here. Ironbridge is about an hour away from Church Stretton, so we spent one night at the Holiday Inn, Telford. We recommend it, as children eat free and there’s also a swimming pool.
We decided we would need two days to visit Ironbridge and I think that’s wise, as there is so much to see.
For the rest of this post, please visit Britmums, which published it in full...
(We stayed at Mynd House, £140 per night for the family suite, and The Holiday Inn, Telford, which cost £69 for a family room per night).
For more on Shropshire, visit www.shropshiretourism.co.uk/
Labels: ironbridge, mynd house, Shropshire, telford
