871 Best Sights in England

With an emphasis on local archaeological finds (largely Roman and Iron Age), costumes, and history, this museum in an Elizabethan town house charts the development of the East Dorset area. You can see how residents might have lived in the house through rooms furnished in the styles of several periods, including a 17th-century hall, reconstructions of local businesses that occupied the building, and a working Victorian kitchen. A tearoom overlooks a walled garden that has heritage fruit trees and displays of agricultural and horticultural tools.

Clad in Jura stone and shaped like a ship, with a spectacular spiral staircase running from the atrium to each floor, this ambitious waterfront museum tells the story of the city from its earliest settlement in the Neolithic Age. Highlights include an extraordinary 3-D map with different perspectives of the city as you move around it, an engrossing film about soccer culture, and an interactive timeline peeling away layers of Liverpool's history. There's a children's gallery and family museum trails, too.

This wonderful old warehouse building, on a quaint cobbled quayside near the tower of Canary Wharf, is worth a visit in its own right. With uneven wood floors, beams, and pillars, the museum used to be a storehouse for coffee, tea, sugar, and rum from the West Indies, hence the name: West India Quay. The fascinating story of the old port and the river is told using films, together with interactive displays and reconstructions. Excellent permanent exhibitions include City and River, which chronicles the explosion of trade and industry that, by the mid-19th century, had transformed this district into the world's most important port. Sailortown is an effective reconstruction of the Wapping district in Victorian times, complete with period shops, a pub, spooky alleys, and costumed guides. Young kids can hunt for treasure and let off some steam in the soft play area in the Mudlarks Gallery (best to book ahead). Special events and exhibitions happen year-round; check the museum's website for details.

This fascinating museum tells the story of the Knights Hospitallers of St. John, from the order's 11th-century Crusader origins in Jerusalem to its present-day incarnation as the St. John Ambulance service. The museum is spread across two adjacent sites: the arched St. John's Gatehouse, which dates back to 1504, and the Priory Church with its atmospheric Norman crypt. An excellent interactive display explores the order's past, both as a military force and a religious institution that cared for sick pilgrims, and the eclectic variety of objects on display reflects that colorful history: from antique medicinal jars and medical equipment to a bronze cannon given by Henry VIII before he dissolved the order altogether. It's free of charge to visit the museum galleries and garden, but if you want to experience the historic rooms, the church, and the crypt, then you'll need to prebook your place on a guided tour.

This striking, glass-skinned triangle of a building includes a galaxy of footballing (soccer) memorabilia, from historic trophies, souvenirs, and shirts (many of them match-worn and signed by legends of the sport) to such near-sacred items as the ball from the 1966 World Cup—the last time England won the sport's ultimate prize. There's also lots of interactive fun to be had, like in the penalty shoot-out area.

This excellent aquarium—the U.K.'s largest—on the town's harbor presents aqueous environments, from a freshwater stream to the Great Barrier Reef and the Biozone. Don't miss the chance to walk beneath sharks in the Atlantic Ocean tank, alongside clownfish, angelfish, and cleaner wrasses in the Biozone. Feeding times are fun for the kids, and Waves Café, with its harbor views, makes a good spot for a rest and refreshment. Tickets, which are valid for one year, should be booked ahead at peak times.

The granite-and-oak-clad structure by the harbor is an excellent place to come to grips with Cornish maritime heritage, weather lore, and navigational science. You can view approximately 30 of the collection of 140 or so boats, examine the tools associated with Cornish boatbuilders, and gaze down from the lighthouselike lookout, which is equipped with maps, telescopes, and binoculars. In the glass-fronted Tidal Zone below sea level, you come face-to-face with the sea itself. Museum tickets are valid for a year.

This visitor complex with a gallery, museum, and reference library devoted to the New Forest contains displays and activities related to the area's geology, history, wildlife, and culture. The museum is packed with quizzes and other interactive elements that keep children engaged. There's also a café. It's located by the main parking lot.

The repetition is deliberate: what you see today are the remains of a Norman castle built in 1080 by the Tyne River, the original "new castle" that gave the city its name. The gatehouse and stone keep are all that remain today, providing a sense of the city's earlier status as a defensive stronghold (although the effect is somewhat diminished by the railroad viaduct that thoughtlessly separates the two). The "black gate" remains the point of entry and has a small exhibition on the surrounding area of Castle Garth, but the most interesting sights—including the impressive Great Hall, the vaulted dungeon, and the rooftop views—are in the keep.

An ideal stop between Newcastle and Alnwick, this charming, open-air country park is home to the largest human-form landscape sculpture in the world. If you could survey the landscape from high above, you would see the abstract form of a reclining woman, dubbed "The Lady of the North," which stretches for more than a quarter of a mile. Back on ground level, you can follow the paths leading around her contours, enjoying views of the lakes below and the sprawling countryside from the peaks of her head and breasts. As well as walking freely around the sculpture, visitors can explore pleasant woodland trails around the rest of the park. The whole site is free, as are the parking lot and toilets, but you can contribute with a donation or by picking up a drink and snack in the on-site café. Northumberlandia is 10 miles north of Newcastle or 26 miles south of Alnwick via the A1.

The decorated stone facade of this castle, now a museum on the hill in the center of the city, makes it look like a children's-book illustration. Dating from 1130, the castle is Norman, but a stone keep replaced the original wooden bailey (wall). The thick walls and other defenses attest to its military function. Galleries contain a somewhat eclectic mix of artifacts and interactive displays, covering everything from ancient Egypt to Norman Norfolk and even the history of teapots. One gallery is devoted to the Norwich School of painters who, like John Constable, focused on the everyday landscape and seascape. The galleries, which have significant displays, remained open while the castle was closed as part of a restoration and redevelopment project through 2024 (check on its status before visiting). Admission is £2.50 the last hour before closing.

Set over three floors, this fascinating museum tells the story of Chichester and the surrounding area over the last 500,000 years. It's built around the remains of a Roman bathhouse, so an entire floor is given over to life in Roman Chichester (or Noviomagus Reginorum, as it was known then). Explore further, and you'll delve both back and forward in time, with exhibits ranging from Bronze Age remains to 17th-century memorials. There are also excellent, regularly changing exhibitions on local history.

At this lovely spot, exotic plants collected by the gardener Ludwig Messel beginning in 1885 mingle with more homey varieties. Spring is the time to appreciate the rhododendrons and the rare Himalayan magnolias in the romantic walled garden; in summer the roses are lovely. The surrounding estate has wildflowers, woodland walks, and the remains of a 19th-century Gothic mansion. The house was largely destroyed by fire in the 1940s, although you can look around the surviving rooms, which are decorated with antiques from the 17th to the mid-20th centuries. Otherwise, it's a charmingly picturesque ruin. Nymans is near Haywards Heath, 10 miles southwest of East Grinstead.

On the riverbank a mile southwest of the town center, the jagged ruins of this Norman castle occupy a verdant site with a picnic area and woodland walks.

Visitors are allowed into the public galleries of the 16 courtrooms at London's Central Criminal Court (universally known as "the Old Bailey," a reference to the street where it's located, which follows the line of the original fortified city wall, or "bailey" in Middle English). Historically it has been the venue for many of Britain's most famous criminal trials. It was here that Oscar Wilde was condemned for "gross indecency" in 1895, where notorious gangsters and murderers like the Kray twins in the 1960s and the Yorkshire Ripper in the 1980s were convicted, and, more recently, where high-profile terrorism cases have been tried.

Originally the site of a medieval courthouse destroyed in the Great Fire, a courthouse was built here next to the grim Newgate Prison, the poor man's version of the Tower, in 1673. The building went through two more incarnations before the present Edwardian baroque building opened in 1907 (it was rebuilt again after the Blitz). Until 1868, executions were held on the street outside (a great public attraction), and you can still see the "Dead Man's Walk" along which condemned prisoners were taken from their cells to the gallows under a series of ever-narrowing arches. Note the 12-foot gold-leaf statue of Lady Justice at the top of the dome, not wearing a blindfold as she is usually portrayed.

Visitors are only allowed access to the public galleries to view trials; there is no visitor access to the rest of the building. Trials take place from 10 am to 1 pm and 2 pm to 4:30 pm. There are security restrictions, and children under 14 and overly casual dress are not allowed.

England's oldest purpose-built prison, dating from 1330, houses fascinating exhibits about the history of the borderlands, including tales of the terrifying "reivers" and their bloodthirsty raids into Northumberland from Scotland during the 16th and 17th centuries. Photographs, weapons, and a reconstructed house interior give a full account of what the region was like in medieval times. A glass elevator takes you up and down four floors, including to the dungeon.

This 15th-century building with some 13th-century features became England's first paper mill in the early 16th century and is now a hotel and atmospheric pub. It makes a pleasant destination for a 20-minute walk along Town Path southwest of the town center.

The oldest surviving example of an operating theater in Europe, this former herb garret in the attic of the 17th-century St. Thomas's Church became a medical facility in 1822 when a section of it was converted for surgical use. The English baroque church was part of St. Thomas's Hospital, which was founded in the 12th century as a monastery that looked after the sick. In 1862, the hospital moved to its present Lambeth location and the operating theater was closed. It remained abandoned until 1956, when the theater was restored and turned into a medical museum.

Today you can see the artifacts of early-19th-century medical practice: the wooden operating table under a skylight; the box of sawdust underneath used for absorbing blood; and the surrounding banks of seats where students crowded in to observe operations. On alternate Saturdays at 10 am, there are demonstrations of pre-anesthetic surgical practices incorporating the knives, pliers, and handsaws that were the surgeons' tools back in the day (not for the fainthearted or small children). An extra charge (£12) applies and access is by a 52-step spiral staircase, although access by elevator is available by prior arrangement. Next door is a re-creation of the 17th-century Herb Garret, with displays of the medicinal herbs St. Thomas's apothecary would have used.

This gorgeous, 14th-century, stone manor house with yard-thick walls, smoke-blackened beams, and an undulating slate-tile roof has been furnished with items from the 17th and 18th centuries. The walls are hung with "samplers"—embroidered poems and prayers usually produced by young girls. One room originally served as a post office and has been restored to its Victorian appearance.

Massive earthwork ramparts on a bare sweep of Wiltshire countryside are all that remain of this impressive Iron Age hill fort, which was successively taken over by Romans, Saxons, and Normans. You can still see the ruins of a castle built by William the Conqueror in 1070 within the earthworks. The site was still fortified in Tudor times, though the population had mostly decamped in the 13th century to New Sarum, or Salisbury. Clamber over the huge banks to take in the far-reaching views to Salisbury Cathedral.

This half-timber medieval building stands in the shadows of Ely Cathedral. During the 10 years he lived here, Cromwell (1599–1658) was leading the rebellious Roundheads in their eventually victorious struggle against King Charles I in the English Civil War. A hero to some, a tyrant to others, he remains a controversial figure today. The house contains an exhibition about its former occupant, who was Britain's Lord Protector from 1653 to 1658. It's also the site of Ely's tourist information center.

A 15-minute walk from the cathedral, this Durham University–owned museum displays fine art and craftwork from all parts of Asia and the Middle East. Galleries are ordered by culture, including China, Korea, Japan, Southeast Asia, and the Silk Roads. But perhaps the highlight is the Ancient Egypt gallery, which offers concise explanations of the culture's governing structure and belief systems while showcasing some extraordinary artifacts, including a 3,500-year-old wooden statue of a servant girl carrying a jar. Elsewhere in the gallery, look out for some exquisite Qing dynasty jade and lacquer ornaments, ancient tapestries and embroideries from the Himalayas, and a collection of Japanese woodblock prints from the Edo period.

To escape the traffic and have a view of Windermere, set out on foot and follow the signs to the left of the Windermere Hotel to Orrest Head. The shady, uphill path winds through Elleray Wood, and after a 20-minute hike you arrive at a rocky little summit (784 feet) with a panoramic view that encompasses the Yorkshire fells, Morecambe Bay, and the Troutbeck Valley.

Founded in 1621 as a healing garden, this is the oldest of its kind in the British Isles. Set on the river, the University of Oxford's diverse garden displays 6,000 species ranging from lilies to citrus trees. There are a spacious walled garden, six luxuriant glass houses, including insectivorous and lily houses, and interesting medicinal, rock, and bog gardens to explore. Picnics are allowed, but you must bring your own food and drinks, as there's nowhere to buy them inside.

This highly decorative Victorian Gothic creation of cast iron and glass, more a cathedral than a museum, is worth a visit for its architecture alone. Among the eclectic collections of entomology, geology, mineralogy, and zoology are the towering skeleton of a Tyrannosaurus rex and casts of a dodo's foot and head. There's plenty for children to explore and touch.

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.

Half a mile north of town, this delightful garden is a rare survivor from the exuberant rococo period of English garden design (1720–60). After 50 years in its original form, the 6-acre garden became overgrown. Fortunately, the rediscovery of a 1748 painting of the garden by local artist Thomas Robins sparked a full-scale restoration in the 1980s. Now you can view the original structures—such as the pretty Gothic Eagle House and curved Exedra—take in the asymmetrical vistas, and try the modern maze, which, unusually, has three centers you can discover. The garden is also famous for the snowdrops that bloom in January and February. 

A good place to begin a visit to Tunbridge Wells is at the Pantiles, a famous promenade with colonnaded shops near the spring on one side of town. Most of the notable buildings are from the 17th century, and the odd name derives from the Dutch "pan tiles" that originally paved the area. Now sandwiched between two busy main roads, the Pantiles remains an elegant, tranquil oasis. It's also home to the restored Chalybeate (pronounced ka-lee-bee-at) Spring. The name means "iron-rich," which becomes obvious when you taste the water, either via a "dipper" (a costumed local who serves water directly from the spring) or through a bottle of branded Royal TW Spring Water. It's available in natural, sparkling, and botanically-infused varieties from a vending machine beside the spring.