2 Best Sights in Henley-in-Arden, Stratford-upon-Avon and the Heart of England

The eminent architectural historian Sir Nikolaus Pevsner described this as “the perfect late medieval manor house,” and it’s hard to argue with that assessment. The Tudor mansion, with its elegant Queen Anne brick bridge reaching over the moat, is like something out of a period drama. Set off a winding back-road, this grand manor dating from the 15th century retains its great fireplaces, 17th-century paneling, and three priest holes (secret chambers for Roman Catholic priests, who were hidden by sympathizers when Catholicism was banned in the 16th and 17th centuries). Admission to the house is by timed ticket, and a decent restaurant and gift shop are on-site. Upstairs rooms may be closed out of season. Baddesley Clinton is 2 miles east of Packwood House and 15 miles north of Stratford-upon-Avon.

Garden enthusiasts are drawn to Packwood’s re-created 17th-century gardens, highlighted by an ambitious topiary Tudor garden in which yew trees represent Jesus's Sermon on the Mount. The house combines redbrick and half-timbering and has tall chimneys. Exquisite collections of 16th-century furniture and tapestries in the interior's 20th-century version of Tudor architecture make this one of the area’s finest historic houses open to the public. It’s 5 miles north of Henley-in-Arden and 14 miles north of Stratford-upon-Avon. In the low season, the house may be available to visit only via guided tour.