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Stratford-upon-Avon
Town in Warwickshire, England

Stratford-upon-Avon

Stratford-upon-Avon, also known simply as Stratford, is a market town and civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon District, in the county of Warwickshire, in the West Midlands region of England.

Plan a trip to Stratford-upon-Avon→From Nottingham, Leicestershire

It is situated on the River Avon, 91 miles (146 km) north-west of London, 22 miles (35 km) south-east of Birmingham and 8 miles (13 km) south-west of Warwick. The town is the southernmost point of the Arden area at the northern extremity of the Cotswolds. At the 2021 census Stratford had a population of 30,495.

Get in

Getting to Stratford-upon-Avon

The closest international airport is Birmingham Airport (BHX IATA), with many flights domestically and across Europe. Intercontinental destinations include Istanbul, Newark (New Jersey), the Gulf States, Amritsar and (who knew?) Ashgabat in Turkmenistan. Trains run from the airport to central Birmingham, change there for Stratford, and reckon 90 min.

  1. 01
    Stratford-upon-Avon

    Is half a mile west of the town centre, an easy walk.

  2. 02
    Stratford-upon-Avon Parkway

    That's at the northwest edge of town, handy for motorists on the A46, but 3 km (1.9 mi) from the centre.

See

Worth seeing

There are five sites closely associated with Shakespeare, and managed by the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust. A combi-ticket (called "The Full Story") is best value and they can all be seen in the course of an afternoon. Three are central: Shakespeare's birthplace on Henley Street is the obvious starting point.

  1. 01
    Shakespeare's Birthplace

    Probably the location of Shakespeare's birth, and definitely the home of his early years.

  2. 02
    New Place
  3. 03
    Hall's Croft

    Home of Shakespeare's daughter Susanna and her husband Dr John Hall.

  4. 04
    Holy Trinity Church

    Old Town, CV37 6BG, office@stratford-upon-avon.org.

  5. 05
    Tudor World

    Independent museum re-enacting life in Tudor England, set in an authentic Tudor building.

  6. 06
    Butterfly Farm

    Daily from 10AM; Oct-Mar till 5PM, Apr-Sep till 6PM.

Do

Things to do

  1. 01
    Royal Shakespeare Theatre

    Do see a production of Shakespeare, if you possibly can.

  2. 02
    Magic Alley

    Hoaky re-imagining of the "lost years of William Shakespeare" - he was a wizard, apparently - plus lots and lots of merchandising (but thankfully no Harry Potter).

  3. 03
    Bannatyne Health Club & Spa

    Alcester Rd, Wildmoor CV37 9RJ (3 km west of centre on A46),.

Eat

Where to eat

Stratford eating places are well geared to theatre-goers. Usually there's a pre-theatre rush at 5PM, then it all goes quiet between 6PM and 7PM before the evening crowd starts coming in. But there's not much of a late night scene, as you'd find in London's West End or in Edinburgh. Kingfisher, 13 Ely St CV37 6LW. Mon-Sat 11:30AM-1:45PM & 5-10PM. Delicious fish and chips, take-away, cash only. The One Elm

  1. 01
    Guild St CV37

    Great food all day and lovely back courtyard.

  2. 02
    Sheep St CV37

Text adapted from Wikipedia and Wikivoyage, CC BY-SA 4.0. Photograph: Wikimedia Commons (see Commons), Wikimedia Commons.