Arrival Date: 2011-04-08
Departure Date: 2011-04-10
Accommodation: Hilton, Warwick
We drove down to Warwick on the Friday night after work, arriving fairly late to the hotel. After a night-cap in the bar, we pretty much went straight to bed, ready for our adventures in the morning.
We got up first thing in the morning and had a hearty full-English breakfast which was delicious (seconds were had), then got on our way to Warwick Castle which was only a 5-10 minute drive away (admittedly we probably should’ve walked the distance).
It was a beautifully sunny day, with not a single cloud in sight, the main entrance to the castle was very majestic and impressive.
It was moderately busy, but not uncomfortably-so. There were various entertainers dressed as kings, queens, jesters, and the like. Helen tried to avoid eye contact with them so they wouldn’t involve us in their act while we were queueing.
Inside the castle walls, there’s a hill on the far side of the entrance which gave lovely views of the grounds. Lots of people were lying around on the grass basking in the Sun while we walked around.
The castle interiors, great hall, state rooms and so-on were beautiful, lots of suits of armour and ornate decorations, but sadly no photos.
After touring the grounds, we sat and watched a trebuchet demonstration, which was very cool; seeing how far it could toss a boulder on the lowest torque was scary but awesome. This was all topped off by an eagle show, with a pair of birds of prey swooping around the audience.
By this time, everyone was starting to open their picnics and we were starting to get hungry, so we left the castle to find somewhere to eat. Walking round Warwick town centre, we stopped in at a local pub for a filling late lunch and a relaxing drink. Warwick town centre was very nice, with some quaint little bookshops and wasn’t very busy at all.
With lunch finished, we went back to the hotel to unwind for a few hours before finding somewhere nice to go for dinner. We chose a restaurant in Leamington Spa where the service and food was fantastic, but I can’t remember the name of the place.
On the way home, as it was Helen’s birthday weekend, we grabbed a birthday cake and a cheap bottle of wine to celebrate in the room in the evening. The reception were happy to send us some plates and cutlery so we could chill out in the room for the rest of the night (Warwick castle was a lot of walking!).
On the Sunday morning, we woke up early again to fit in another full-English breakfast, then after checking out set off home via Redditch. Redditch was an alright town, fairly industrial, but home to a substantial indoor shopping centre.
After a fair amount of walking round and lunch at a Wetherspoons, we decided it was time to get home; arriving back in time for a late dinner.