The Story of the Great West Way: An Introduction for Businesses and Destinations CONTENTS INTRODUCING THE GREAT WEST WAY 3 Introducing the Great West Way “Inbound travellers talk a lot 4 Why choose the Great West Way? about meeting the people, Bowood House, Wiltshire seeing the country, experiencing 6 Visitor Benefits the culture.” 7 Great West Way in a Nutshell What you read here has been informed by journalists, brings the Great West Way – Our Brand Narrative VisitWiltshire has been leading on - Mangrove for VisitEngland developing a new touring route which will the expert advice of the Great West Way to life for us in a specially commissioned 8 Our Target Visitors join up many of ’s iconic destinations Steering Group, and comprehensively tested feature article. We also include example 9 Our Primary Markets and attractions along a corridor west of and sense-checked with consumers and the visitor journeys to illustrate the many London through to . This is one of a travel trade in Europe, North America and different ways the Great West Way can be 10 Our Message in International Markets number of successful projects made possible the UK. experienced and enjoyed. 12 Our Brand Model by HM Government’s £40m Discover England Fund, administered by VisitEngland 14 Great West Way Checklist To help develop a clear and motivating Thank you to all the destinations and the (www.discoverenglandfund.org). proposition, we also spoke to partners and industry along the route who have helped 16 Great West Way Route Map stakeholders across the Great West Way us develop the Great West Way experience. 18 Introducing the Great West Way This booklet is an introduction to the route. We are grateful to everyone who took We look forward to continuing to work with Experience Great West Way for tourism businesses, the time to share their advice and experience you to bring the Great West Way to life for destinations, stakeholders and the travel with us, whether individually or at a Great our visitors. 20 Great West Way – by Helen Ochyra trade. It tells the story of the Great West West Way Workshop. 26 Wandering through English Wonders Way, and is intended to be a foundation for future development and marketing activity. 30 The England of your Imagination In these pages, we describe our target visitor type, summarise the benefits the product 32 Great West Way by Rail The Great West Way is the first touring provides and present the brand model that David Andrews 34 A Weekend on the Great West Way route of its kind for England. As such it gives defines the Great West Way proposition. Chief Executive, VisitWiltshire the opportunity to present England in a new 36 Explore Further Helen Ochyra, one of the UK’s leading travel way in international markets. Anna Cake Couture, Clifton

2 3 Alton Barnes White Horse WHY CHOOSE Silbury Hill Bristol Balloon Fiesta THE GREAT WEST WAY

Choosing how we spend our precious holiday time is difficult. There are so many places competing for our attention, and so many different holiday experiences open to us all.

The Great West Way vision is to create one of The Great West Way will promote a range of product themes the world’s premier touring routes between London and Bristol. reflecting the route’s tourism assets, including heritage, food and drink, countryside, film tourism and gardens. Our Value Proposition answers the question: Why should I choose the Great West Way? What is it? What is it like? The Great West Way links London and Along the Way, everyday England rubs Bristol. It follows a 125-mile route based on shoulders with world-famous heritage “You’re never more than 10 one of the first Great Roads commissioned “I just want to get off the minutes away from a point by the Kings of England. Why should I choose the beaten trail and see other

of interest.” Great West Way? cultures, people living.” Who is it for? The Great West Way offers an extraordinary The Great West Way is for curious travellers variety of English experiences not found in searching for the real England. Those who any other part of the country. want to explore further, delve deeper and uncover the essence of England.

4 5 VISITOR GREAT WEST WAY

BENEFITS Dundas Aquaduct - Canal & River Trust IN A NUTSHELL

Our Brand Narrative The Great West Way makes it Rational Benefits: Emotional Benefits: easy for visitors to get to know Follow the paths taken by generations of You don’t have to travel far to explore further Concentrated Enrichment travellers and discover an essential and delve deeper into England. The Great our part of England. Eton Walkway On the Great West Way, travellers are The Great West Way is the best way to explore strand of England. West Way links London with Bristol through never more than a few minutes away from and get to know the English way of life. 125 miles of twists and turns and new discoveries. Explore by road, by railway or by an extraordinary attraction or an authentic Based on one of the first Great Roads waterway. Slow right down, base yourself English experience. Exploration commissioned by the Kings of England, the Every twist and turn in the Great West Way Great West Way winds its way through lush along the route, walk it or cycle it. Choice brings the satisfaction of discovering a new green landscapes filled with the The Great West Way offers an extraordinary chapter in England’s story. world-famous and the yet-to-be-discovered. Welcome to the real England. variety of English experiences. It reveals the Touch Royal Windsor, Roman Bath and timeless Stonehenge, immerse yourself in It’s England undiluted. contemporary and the historic, the cities Empathy English village life and Bristol’s city energy. and the countryside. It can be explored by To follow the Great West Way is to It’s England concentrated. train, by car or by coach, by boat, on foot understand the essence of a nation and or by bike. become an England Insider. On the Great West Way, extraordinary history rubs shoulders with everyday life. Traditional Connected pubs and inns with World Heritage Sites on The Great West Way is easy to join and easy their doorsteps, serving craft ales and local to follow. It passes by both Heathrow and “A real cross-section of farm food. Churches which have watched over Bristol airports. It’s accessible for visitors their parishes for centuries. Independent shops travelling from the Channel ports, or England. A distillation and galleries filled with contemporary designs visitors already based in London. of England.” and creations. The Jane Austen Festival, Bath The Gircus, Bath The Green, Calne

6 7 OUR TARGET OUR PRIMARY

VISITORS The three segments share a MARKETS common interest - to discover Great West Way is the best way to Our consumer testing showed a clear • Cultural Adventurers the real England. Our market research shows that link between the Great West Way Value • Lifestyle Travellers the Great West Way experience discover the real England. “It’s about links. Proposition and the needs of three • Mature Experience Seekers This is how we describe the Great West Way is particularly appealing to Honeypots are seen as VisitEngland target market segments: Of course, the Great West Way will attract in terms of this visitor mindset. visitors from: visitors from around the world and across separate destinations. the UK. But by focusing our promotional But joining them For lovers of England. • Germany effort on these three markets, we will Thermae Bath Spa together makes it For travellers with a desire to discover. • The Netherlands make sure that we get the best possible more of an adventure.” The “what’s around the corner-ers” • USA return for our joint effort and investment. and the “who will I meet today-ers”. Not the “A-to-B-ers”. These are our Primary Markets. Caen Hill Locks, Kennet & Avon Canal For travellers who believe the journey Repeat visitors to Britain from these three is as remarkable as the destination. countries want to get under the skin of England. For those who love stories - hearing They want to see the famous icons, but they others’ tales, creating and sharing their own. also want to seek out new places and meet For those who believe the everyday can the everyday England. Travelling on England’s be extraordinary. Great West Way is the best way to become an England Insider. For the curious and the inquisitive. Those who like to go deeper, to see and First-time visitors from these countries want feel and do and try and taste for themselves. an easy way to discover England. They want For seekers of the real, the authentic to see the famous sites they know from film and the very essence of England. and television, but they also want to see how English life is lived. Travelling on England’s

8 9 Clayton’s Kitchen, Bath OUR MESSAGE IN INTERNATIONAL MARKETS

Henley Royal Regatta Malmesbury Abbey The point of getting out of the city is to savour a more relaxed pace of life, so why carry on your sightseeing at England’s Great West Way Historic and Contemporary Personal and Memorable breakneck speed? When we talk about the Great West Way in England is rated very highly by our Many of our international visitors may international markets, we always make sure international visitors for both heritage and have planned their itineraries in some Tick those tourist icons off your bucket list. But go that we’re locating it carefully. That’s why we contemporary culture. We always talk about detail. But they will all welcome personal away having experienced more. Make your journey always talk about England’s Great West Way the past and the present on England’s Great recommendations. a memory more worth sharing than a photo taken in international markets. West Way. from the inside of a bus. England’s Great West Way is about the It sounds like a little thing, but we know that Our past is important. It’s what makes us local insider tips as well as the international the English experience is very important for what we are today and it has left a lasting tourism icons. We make sure that that our our visitors. We are unambiguous, and we and spectacular impression on our landscape. visitors know that there’s always something “Joining things up and taking a list of make it very clear that our visitors are going to discover around the corner – and we’re all disparate and sometimes disjointed to experience an inherently English journey. Our present is important. With so many here to help them find it. things happening along England’s Great West attractions and transforming them Way, now is always the time to visit. into a seamless product that will become awell-trodden path.” England’s Great West Way connects the historic with the contemporary and lets our visitors see how icons rub shoulders with the everyday in England.

10 11 OUR BRAND BRAND MAP Vale of Pewsey MODEL BEHAVIOURS n M tio ak ra e lo Ea At the heart of the Great West Way is the brand idea: xp sy E C PILLARS e o England Concentrated. An extraordinary variety of l n b y n attractions and experiences in a compact area — all a er C e n ov ur c E c a t within easy reach for our visitors. t i is e o D d n s The Brand Pillars are the recurring Authentic themes that should guide the The Great West Way is rooted in the development of Great West Way highways and byways travelled by ENGLAND experiences. generations and commissioned by Kings. CONCENTRATED Discovery BRAND IDEA The Great West Way lets travellers Human A uncover England and the English for u The Great West Way lets travellers t h themselves. meet England and the English. To hear n en a our stories and create their own. K t e ic m Curated e u s p H ie r The Great West Way points the way The Behaviours define the things the it o R t to a real English experience, leading Great West Way needs to do to deliver e S al te visitors through England’s story. its promise to visitors. ea Cr

12 13 GREAT WEST Bristol Docks WAY CHECKLIST

Our checklist to use when Variety Authenticity developing or communicating A Great West Way experience should The Great West Way is rooted in history. never be repetitive. The concentrated variety It follows travellers’ routes used for future Great West Way visitors will experience along the route is centuries, the routes that brought druids to experiences. a key strength. Stonehenge, drovers to market, Georgian Society to Bath and our industrial revolution To be true to the Great West Way brand Narrative to the world. idea, visitor experiences should always The Great West Way tells an important help reinforce these messages. strand of England’s story. It isn’t simply a Experience collection of places to visit. The Great West Way is about much more than the places you visit. It’s about the Independence experience of England. We are not prescriptive about how to experience the Great West Way. It works Englishness just as well for independent travellers as And finally, the Great West Way delivers for travel trade programmes. a concentrated essence of England and Englishness. Contrast The Great West Way connects England’s icons. But is also reveals everyday England.

The Royal Oak, Yattendon

14 15 GREAT WEST WAY ROUTE MAP

s rn e l t h i e C Th

owns x D sse We N o r t h

Bradford on Avon

BRISTOL LONDON

16 17 Sherston, the Cotswolds There are many different Visitors can follow the route on their own INTRODUCING ways to travel the Great or with help from an expert tour operator. West Way to discover the real Weekenders can pick a base on the Great THE GREAT WEST England. It isn’t a prescriptive West Way and explore further afield. route. It’s for free-spirits WAY EXPERIENCE and explorers. It makes Travellers can slow down and savour the extraordinary variety easily journey by car, coach or train over a week or more. Or simply discover England on a accessible for international three-day trip from the capital. and domestic visitors.

Discovering the Great West Way

18 19 Stonehenge GREAT WEST WAY

Where the world-famous rubs shoulders with the

yet-to-be-discovered. Rowers on the , Windsor Bath Artisan Market

Words by Helen Ochyra I am standing in a Dickens novel, sipping a I am exploring the Great West Way, a Then there are the waterways. There is the Travel writer, editor and broadcaster pint of ale and feeling the warm glow of the corridor that runs through the very soul of River Thames, home to some of the best rousing fire in the fireplace on my face, as I England, from the vibrant capital of London stretches of water for in the country, Helen has been a travel writer since 2006. imagine a time when this thatched house, to the edgy city of Bristol. This is a touring not to mention the , She grew up on the Great West Way, and writes for (amongst others) The Guardian, the Waggon and Horses, was a coaching inn route that is more a lattice – of paths, trails an annual festival of rowing races that Sunday Times Travel, Travel Trade Gazette, filled with weary travellers making their way and tracks, snaking across the countryside brings London society to the river’s banks, Rough Guides and the Michelin Green Guides. along the Great Bath Road. from ancient market town to quaint village. champagne glass in hand. There is also the Kennet & Avon Canal, home to the Caen Hill I am holding the tiller of a canal boat, Some of these paths are best on two feet, lock flight, one of the greatest challenges I am sitting on the grass, droplets of dew watching green and yellow fields slide past strolling around Bath’s cobbled streets in English narrowboating – 29 locks up gently soaking into my skirt. Towering above on both sides and birds settle in the trees perhaps, or rambling across the green (or down!) one very steep hill. Spend the me is a vast and ancient stone, standing that line the banks of the Kennet & Avon rolling hills of the Cotswolds, England’s day tackling that, or get in training for the tall above the grass and the nonchalantly Canal. I plot a course westwards, down largest Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. annual Devizes to Westminster International munching sheep of Avebury, solid and a staircase flight of locks and past pub Others could have been made for cycling, Canoe Race, when canoeists of all abilities stately in its place within the largest stone gardens with picnic tables and overnight the towpaths of the Kennet & Avon Canal paddle their way from the Wiltshire market circle in Europe. moorings. from the Thames to the Bristol Channel town to London. for example, or the mountain biking trails that wind through the ancient trees of the Savernake Forest.

20 21 Afternoon tea Rather ride the rails? The Great highways to be built in England, along rivers and into the countryside, so why England. You might find it in Marlborough, Wherever you choose to stay you’ll find Western Railway runs from London once called the Great Bath Road, not let two wheels take you into the city’s home to one of the country’s widest and friendly family-run hotels and boutique Paddington to Bristol, a modern and route of the world’s first mail secret corners, where you might find an early grandest high streets, lined with boutiques B&Bs. You could stay in five-star grandeur railway still following the route coach service, which ran from (there’s an app for that) or a yet-to- and cafés. at Cliveden in Berkshire, where afternoon of Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s London to Bristol from 1784. Along be-discovered fashion designer, musician or tea is served in the Great Hall, or check pioneering line. Brunel designed the way you’ll find old coaching inns artist displaying their creations? Or at the prehistoric and deeply mysterious in to Lucknam Park in Wiltshire for a it to be the longest, most level serving hearty English meals such Silbury Hill, the largest manmade mound Michelin-starred meal and a spa day that and broadest railway in Britain, as fish and chips and Sunday roast, However you choose to travel, the web of in Europe, which covers some five acres, combines a thermal soak with horse riding but travellers simply called it the washed down with local real ale – trails and tracks that make up the Great West reaches about 130 feet high and has no through the estate. ‘holiday line’, climbing aboard in their from Wadworth brewery in Devizes Way mean you can meander off the major discernible purpose. thousands to chug out to the coast perhaps, or the West Berkshire routes and find your own favourite slice of and countryside for their holidays. Brewery near Frilsham.

Climb aboard in London and in under This route, now the A4, remains an hour you can be in Windsor, a major highway, bringing you to poking your head into the rooms and Bristol from the heart of London galleries of the oldest and largest in just a few hours. And what an occupied castle in the world – said to underrated city Bristol is. Innovative, be the Queen’s favourite residence. forward thinking and vibrant, this Spend 90 minutes on board and you western powerhouse has long been could be in Bath, taking the waters at the cutting edge; a major port at the thermal baths first discovered that is home to both Brunel’s lofty by the Romans and strolling along Clifton Suspension Bridge and his Georgian streets, where every SS Great Britain, and helped to drive building is fashioned from Bath stone England’s industrial revolution. Today and glows the same shade of honey. it is a major hub that helps to drive It pays to take your time travelling English culture, from the street art along the Great West Way, walking, of Banksy (who hails from here) to cycling or narrowboating through the the contemporary art of the city’s countryside, but it is also possible independent galleries. Cycling is to drive. Take a car and you’ll find popular in Bristol, with cycle paths yourself on one of the first major on most major roads as well as Street Art, Bristol Bath Racecourse

22 23 Like gardens? Call in to Kew, where the Royal silk, to a walled secret garden with winding Church Street, seen on screen as a 1920s 100 stones here, each one weathered and This may be one of the planet’s most Botanic Gardens is home to the world’s paths that beckon you to lose yourself for Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew livestock market. Look up and you’ll see wizened into a different shape and within important ancient sites but it’s just one small most extensive and diverse plant collection. a while. The 1,000 acres of parkland here why the British TV networks love Lacock – walking distance is Silbury Hill, that ancient, part of England’s story, and of your journey Here in London’s largest UNESCO World were designed by English landscape architect or, rather, you won’t, as it’s the lack of TV mysterious mound, and West Kennet Long on the Great West Way. It’s time to head out Heritage Site you can stroll through an ‘Capability’ Brown and there are arresting aerials and phone cables that have made this Barrow, one of Britain’s largest Neolithic there and make your own memories. arboretum that is like a living library of more views at every turn – stop in the right National Trust village the perfect backdrop chambered tombs. than 14,000 trees and step into a rainforest place and you could recreate the shot from for everything from Pride and Prejudice to in the Victorian-era Palm House, a stunning Downton’s opening credits, sauntering across Cranford. And then of course, there is Stonehenge. This glass structure that shelters endangered and the grass towards the Jacobethan mansion masterpiece of ancient engineering is one of otherwise-extinct tropical tree species. that is one of English architect Sir Charles Travel further back in time and further the icons of England, and part of the same Barry’s masterpieces. west again, into Roman Britain and the UNESCO World Heritage Site as Avebury. well-preserved baths of Bath. See the original From the 19th century wind your way along Roman bathing pool surrounded by gorgeous the Great West Way further and you’ll wind 18th and 19th century buildings and don’t Avebury “However you choose the clock back too. In Wiltshire you’ll find miss taking a dip yourself, at the modern to travel, the web of trails Lacock Abbey, a Tudor family home that Thermae Bath Spa. Here the rooftop pool and tracks that make up the started life as an abbey and nunnery in sends curls of steam up above the skyline of Great West Way mean you the 13th century. You’ll almost certainly this elegant Georgian city and where you can rest your arms on the side of the pool, look can meander off the major recognise the medieval cloisters here – from Wolf Hall or Harry Potter and the up through the heat haze and stare straight routes and find your own Philosopher’s Stone – but the Abbey’s at the Victorian Gothic Bath Abbey, the work favourite slice of England.” finest hour came in 1835, when William of another great English architect, Sir George Fox Talbot captured the world’s first Gilbert Scott. photographic negative from a tiny window in his rural home. It may only be 125 miles from London to Bristol but the Great West Way can take Further west in Berkshire you could call in to you all the way back to the prehistoric. At Downton Abbey, aka Highclere Castle. It’s not Check out the photography museum then Avebury you can touch the stones of Britain’s just Downton Abbey fans who will need a full step outside – and into a film set. The largest stone circle, its ancient standing day here – there’s a dazzling array of things ridiculously picturesque village of Lacock is stones part of a sacred landscape that dates to see, from state rooms with walls made the darling of TV producers and your Downton back to around 2850BC. There are some from Spanish leather panels and French green Abbey trail continues here, on

24 25 Windsor Having collected our rental car at Heathrow, collected our car (which we were quickly recognisable monuments in the world - WANDERING our first stop on the Great West Way was getting used to driving!) and continued Stonehenge. As we wandered our way in Royal Windsor. We’d wanted to visit to Newbury, to the 18th-century former from the visitor centre to the stone circle Windsor Castle during our first trip to hunting lodge we were spending our first (there’s a shuttle bus if you want to save THROUGH England a few years ago, but couldn’t find night in. your legs), we did ponder its purpose. A the time in our schedule. But when we signal for aliens? Cemetery? Ancient healing ENGLISH finally got here, it didn’t disappoint. We Our second day on the Great West Way ground? A temple for sun worship? We were even managed to make it on a day when began with a short journey to the handsome still no clearer when we came away several the Queen was in residence, which made market town of Marlborough, set in the hours later. But the mystery is probably WONDERS the fact we could walk around so much of beautiful North Wessex Downs. We then Stonehenge’s biggest appeal, we figured. this ‘working’ castle even more special. paid a visit to Bowood House, the home of And the Changing the Guard ceremony was the Marquis and Marchioness of Lansdowne. mesmerising – and As impressive a stately home as it is, in our so uniquely British! opinion, it’s the ‘Capability’ Brown-designed gardens that really make the place. Some friends of ours told us Leaving Windsor, we made our way to the best way to see England the Georgian town of Marlow, perfectly The timing of our trip meant we were able to outside of London would be sandwiched between the Thames Valley visit the Woodland Garden, which between on the Great West Way, the and the Chiltern Hills. We took to the river late April and early June is a riot of colour for the afternoon, passing through a number historic route that connects from rhododendrons, azaleas and magnolias. of pretty villages and past the manor houses One of the gardeners we got chatting to London with Bristol. We of Bisham Abbey and Medmenham Abbey boasted proudly that it’s one of the best figured we could handle it! (a friendly crewman told us the latter displays in the whole of Britain. We certainly was recently on the market at a cool weren’t going to disagree with him. £10 million!). Our route also took us along the Henley Royal Regatta course before Our journey on to Stonehenge took us arriving at Henley-on-Thames. through a number of curiously-named, but unmistakeably English villages Having enjoyed tea and cake in the café – Clench Common, Manningford Bruce, of the , it was Netheravon and Larkhill. And then River Thames at Marlow then time for our return trip to Marlow. We we arrived at one of the most instantly-

26 27 On our way to our overnight stay in the Great West Way to the beautiful honey- Leaving Bath on the last leg of our Great As we headed back towards London, the Bath Abbey Bradford on Avon, we saw some signs for the stoned city of Bath. We’d read that the best West Way experience, we travelled north to conversation was all about the new people White Horse at Westbury, so decided we’d way to see this compact city was on foot, so Malmesbury, home to a 12th-century abbey and places we’d experienced on this trip. take the slight detour from our route to we parked the car and joined a free 2-hour that’s very much a cultural treasure off the Discovering this beautiful part of England see it. It turns out it’s the oldest of 8 white walking tour of the city offered by the Mayor beaten tourist track. The artist Henry Moore under our own steam has made us feel like horses carved into various hillsides around of Bath’s Corps of Honorary Guards. This ranked the reliefs on the abbey’s porch we’ve become England ‘insiders’. How long Wiltshire. Leaving our car at the bottom, group is made up of around 85 volunteer among the finest works of Romanesque art we can keep the Great West Way a secret it was quite a trek to the top of the hill. It guides who turn out in all weathers to take in England. A nice review for a market town from our friends, though, is another thing! was totally worth the effort, however, with visitors around the city – and they won’t of less than 6,000 people. views of the sun setting beyond the Mendip even accept tips! Our tour took in all the Hills in the west, stretching round to Bath, key sights: The Roman Baths, Bath Abbey Our final stop was in the city of Bristol, Chippenham and Devizes. All-in-all, our and the Royal Crescent, and was a perfect which has much more of a contemporary journey along the Great West Way was introduction to the city. feel than ancient Bath. We headed to the giving us an enormous sense of well-being. Harbourside, which has been transformed In the afternoon, we returned to explore the in recent decades from a busy dock to a Having had a quick wander around Bradford Roman Baths further. Nowadays visitors and modern development of attractions, on Avon after breakfast, we continued on locals alike can enjoy the waters in an open- shops, bars, restaurants and hotels. SS Great Britain, Bristol air rooftop pool with amazing views over the city. We’ll definitely do that on a return trip. We walked down to Brunel’s SS Great We might have even acquired a taste for the Britain, the world’s first great ocean liner waters by that time. Let’s just say, the taste and a masterpiece of engineering. If you is a little out of the ordinary! have a head for heights, there’s even an opportunity to climb the rigging and see “Discovering this beautiful We then spent the remainder of the the city from the yardarm! We preferred to afternoon indulging in some retail therapy. take the short ferry ride and walk through part of England under our We were impressed with the wealth of Brandon Hill Park to Cabot Tower to enjoy own steam has made us shopping options for such a small city: the views from there instead. feel like we’ve become well-known retailers, designer brands and a great selection of independent shops. England ‘insiders’.” Our day ended with us checking-in to a luxury spa hotel, for some much-welcome R&R after all that walking!

28 29 Queen’s Guard, Windsor Castle THE ENGLAND 24 hours 48 hours Windsor Castle is the oldest and largest Stonehenge is possibly the world’s most hot springs, some of the nation’s grandest occupied castle in the world and is the famous prehistoric monument and it’s a Georgian architecture and no less than 17 OF YOUR place the Queen considers ‘home’. As masterpiece of engineering. To put it in museums. well as visiting the State Apartments and perspective, scientists estimate that it may IMAGINATION Chapel, don’t miss seeing British pageantry have taken around 30 million man-hours Before heading back to London, be sure in full effect at the Changing the Guard to construct Stonehenge using the simple to spend time in one of England’s historic ceremony. tools available at the time. market towns or perfect villages. In Corsham, you’re just as likely to share The point of getting out of the city is Why not lunch at The Windsor Castle After a pub lunch on the banks of the Kennet the pavement with a peacock as you are to savour a more relaxed pace of life, (one of 24 pubs with that name in England & Avon Canal, take a couple of hours to a fellow human (They often escape from so why carry on your sightseeing at - but the only one you can actually see the discover the restored waterway on a 60ft their residence at Corsham Court!). Castle castle from!), then leave Windsor and head barge. Or, if Stonehenge has left you feeling Combe is often named as the prettiest breakneck speed? for a stately home you can nose around. curious about the sacred landscapes here, village in England and Lacock will prove you might want to head over to the sister familiar to Harry Potter fans, having Tick those tourist icons off your bucket list. But go away Highclere Castle is the ancestral seat of the site at Avebury to ponder its mysterious featured in several of the films. having experienced more. Make your journey a memory Carnarvon family, but has become better pre-historic ceremonial purpose. more worth sharing than a photo taken from the inside known as Downton Abbey, the country of a bus. pile of the Crawley family, in the hit TV Journey on to Bath and treat yourself drama. Alternatively, Cliveden, a National to an overnight stay in one of its luxury Trust property, has been noted for society spa hotels. intrigue and scandal, from a 17th-century duel between a duke and his mistress’ 72 hours husband, to the Profumo scandal of the early 1960s. Bath is the only UK city designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site, which is Continue on to Marlborough for an hardly surprising considering this compact overnight stay in one of its ancient city packs in one of the world’s best coaching inns. preserved Roman bathhouses, naturally

Highclere Castle

30 31 GREAT Friday Saturday (a day trip off the Great West Way) Sunday

WEST WAY London Paddington to Swindon Bath Spa to Salisbury Bath Spa to Bristol Temple Meads Journey time: 59 minutes Journey time: 56 minutes Journey time: 15 minutes BY RAIL (Left luggage facilities available at Bristol STEAM – Museum of the Salisbury to Stonehenge Tourist Information Centre) Great Western Railway Journey time: 33 minutes Housed in a beautifully restored Grade (via The Stonehenge Tour bus) Brunel to Banksy – The Bristol Street Art Tour II-listed building in the former Swindon and all stops in-between railway works, the museum tells the story Bristol is well-known for its offbeat, Stonehenge of the men and women who built the Great alternative character, and characters don’t One of the world’s most iconic prehistoric Western Railway. Even if you’re not a rail get any more offbeat than the elusive and sites, archaeologists have managed to work The Great West Way can be ‘aficionado’, it’s two hours well spent. downright mischievous Banksy. The Bristol out how the stones got there and even, Street Art Tour provides an insight into his experienced just as easily roughly, when. But attempts to pin down life and work, as well as the city’s street by rail as by road – thanks to Swindon to Bath Spa why they were brought here have largely culture. the Great Western Railway. Journey time: 29 minutes fallen flat (pardon the pun). The Main Line, which runs SS Great Britain Brunel designed the steam ship as a between London Paddington Roman Baths Stonehenge to Salisbury Bath is the only UK city designated a Journey time: 33 minutes transatlantic luxury passenger liner and it and Bristol Temple Meads, was UNESCO World Heritage Site, which is (via the Stonehenge Tour bus) marked the birth of international passenger engineered in 1833 by Isambard hardly surprising considering the city travel. Restored and conserved, it’s now an boasts one of the world’s best preserved award-winning heritage site and museum. Salisbury to Bath Spa Kingdom Brunel, one of the Roman bathhouses, supplied by naturally If you’re feeling brave, you can climb the greatest figures of the Industrial hot springs deep underground. Journey time: 54 minutes huge mainmast just as the Victorian sailors Revolution. had to.

Bristol Temple Meads to London Paddington Journey time: 1 hour 52 minutes Discovering the Great West Way by rail

32 33 A WEEKEND ON THE We The Curious, Bristol GREAT WEST WAY

Bath pretty much ticks all the Here are some must-dos for any break: boxes for a great weekend break. • Get to know Bath on foot. The Mayor of Its setting and architecture Bath’s Honorary Guides have been offering makes it a strong contender visitors free walking tours since 1934. for England’s most beautiful • Get lost in all things Austen – visit small city. Bath also makes the locations that inspired the novels an ideal base from which to Northanger Abbey and Persuasion. explore the Great West Way. • Explore the surrounding countryside and And nearby Bristol provides villages. Movie and TV fans will love places the contemporary yin to Bath’s like Lacock (Harry Potter and Downton ancient yang. Abbey), Corsham (Poldark) and Castle Combe (War Horse and Dr Dolittle).

Holburne Museum, Bath • If you’re travelling by train, the contemporary cool of Bristol is just a 20-minute journey from Bath, offering urban innovation, green living, street art and a legendary music scene.

Roman Baths, Bath

34 35 Cheltenham Jazz Festival We travelled on to the Georgian city of Our afternoon was spent discovering EXPLORE Bath, another World Heritage Site. Like Shakespeare’s England, taking a cruise , Bath is best explored on foot. We on the River Avon, exploring the Tudor visited Bath Abbey and the Roman Baths house in which the bard was born, and Our experience on and off BEYOND THE before heading north up Gay Street to The visiting Anne Hathaway’s Cottage, the the Great West Way brought Circus and then on to the Royal Crescent. 500-year-old thatched cottage where Shakespeare courted his bride-to-be. England to life. We will come GREAT WEST Our final morning saw us travel through the back again! In the words of Cotswolds, exploring the beautiful golden- the great bard himself: ‘Now WAY stoned villages and the region’s unofficial capital – stylish Cheltenham. no way can I stray; Save back to England, all the world’s Arriving in the UK by ferry, we used the Our first port of call was for some lunch in Our second morning saw us head away my way’. Great West Way as a base from which to a 16th-century pub right opposite Windsor from the Great West Way for a few hours explore England’s highlights. Castle. We got talking to the barman about to wander around Oxford. A short drive the history of the place. Before we knew north and we were at , a it, we were staring at a bricked-up archway picture-perfect (and pretty awe-inspiring) in the far end of the pub’s cellar, which British stately home. he said was once the entrance to a tunnel linking to the castle! It’s one of a number Returning to the Great West Way, it was of secret passageways built so the royal time to get out our bikes and explore part household could escape if of the Kennet & Avon Cycle Route. We the castle was under siege. Amazing! covered a 13-mile section that took us from Devizes, past Caen Hill – the longest The village of Ramsbury, just outside continuous flight of locks in the country Marlborough would be our base for the – to Bradford on Avon. Charming and very next two nights. We stayed in a charming English! 300-year-old coaching inn in the heart of the village. It turned out to the perfect base The following morning, we said a from which to explore the Great West Way reluctant goodbye to Ramsbury and took and to travel further afield. a route south through the countryside to Stonehenge and its instantly-recognisable Bradford on Avon prehistoric stone circle. Blenheim Palace Radcliffe Camera, Oxford

36 37 Clifton Suspension Bridge, Bristol Front Cover: Castle Combe, Cotswolds Back Cover: Kennet & Avon Canal

Thank you to all destination and industry partners along the route who have helped us develop the Great West Way.

Destination Partners & Steering Group:

Bristol Airport Royal Borough Bowood of Windsor and Business West Maidenhead Canal & River Trust SS Great Britain Cotswolds Tourism Tourism South East Destination Bristol UKInbound Easyjet Visit Bath English Heritage VisitBritain/ ETOA VisitEngland GWR Visit Thames Kennet & Avon Canal VisitWiltshire National Express National Trust

Further Information To find out more about the Great West Way, contact [email protected]

38 Kennet & Avon Canal

Great West Way and England’s Great West Way are registered trade marks