Herefordshire

Towns & Villages

BISHOPS FROME

Blacksmith's Shop - Photo: Andrew Longton CCL

This picturesque village some 10 miles from Malvern offers an interesting diversion – the chance to taste real English table wines at a local vineyard. The parish church, St Mary’s, dates from the 12th century.

BODENHAM

An important attraction here is a 156-acre ‘showpiece’ arboretum with more than 2,700 species of trees and shrubs. It has a unique, underground visitors centre and five miles of paths through dells and glades. The ‘Grand Avenue’ – still in its infancy – has been planted with beech that will not mature for two centuries. Nearby is the 110-acre Bodenham Lake Nature Reserve with riverside walks, meadows and orchards.

Hampton Court at Hope under Dinmore - Photo: Tony Bailey CCL

BROMYARD

Timber frame building in Bromyard - Photo: Rog Frost CCL

This pretty market town, surrounded by downs, boasts a teddy bear museum and many splendid old houses. Nearby stands the moated and timber-framed Brockhampton Manor with its 15th century gatehouse. Town criers gather here each year to stage a Europe-wide competition.

CRASWELL

The village of Craswell lies close to the Brecon Beacons National Park and The Black Mountains - there’s lots to see and many walks, including the long distance Offa’s Dyke Path. The ‘book town’ of Hay-on-Wye is nearby.

Black Hill - Photo: Richard Webb CCL

CREDENHILL

Cottages at Credenhill - Photo: Chris Shaw CCL

With his elder brother, Fred, and a loan of £1,000 from their father, they bought a field near Hereford and built their first cider mill.




Fred had turned down the job as tutor to the children of the King of Siam to join Percy… the same job taken by a woman named Anna who would later be immortalised in the movie and stage musical ‘The The King & I’.

Half a mile from the village is a 50-acre Iron Age settlement dating to 400BC. It is thought to have been a tribal ‘capital’ which was the forerunner of modern-day Hereford. It lies within Credenhill Park Wood, an ancient woodland and Special Wildlife Site.

Lying close to both Hereford and the headquarters of the Special Air Service (SAS), this is where the great cider company Bulmers tasted true success for the first time. It was here in 1887 that Percy Bulmer picked apples from the garden of his father’s rectory and, after pressing them using a neighbour’s old stone press, launched a company that today produces over 60 per cent of the UK’s annual cider consumption.

EARDISLAND

Bridge over the River Arrow -
Photo: Colin Smith CCL

Thanks to its unusual variety of medieval buildings, Eardisland has understandably been described as the prettiest village in the Midlands.





It boasts a number of evocative black-and-white timbered properties. These include Staick House, a yeoman’s hall dating to around 1300.

FOWNHOPE

This picturesque village on the banks of the River Wye lies in an area of great natural beauty and has become a popular watering hole with ramblers on the Wye Valley Walk.

The Heart of Oak Society also stages an annual walk in which villagers brandishing flower-bedecked sticks call at houses along the way for the odd glass of locally-made cider.

The ancient parish church, St Mary's, is one of the longest churches in Herefordshire at 119 feet. Its central tower dates to the 12th century and a major attraction is a sculpture of the Virgin and Child by Herefordshire School sculptors.

 
St Mary's Church - Photo: Philip Halling CCL

HEREFORD

Hereford Cathedral and Wye Bridge - Photo: Colin Smith CCL

Once the capital of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of West Mercia, this curious city is a vibrant merger of the modern and the rustic and is one of only a dozen English cities to be recorded in the Domesday Book. It is dominated by a magnificent 11th century cathedral which contains two important treasures - the fascinating 13th century Mappa Mundi, one of the earliest world atlases, and the world's largest chained library containing unique books dating back to the 8th century. The original cathedral was built in the 7th century by Bishop Putta but was promptly destroyed by Welsh invaders.

The city’s museum and art gallery - housed within a timber-framed ‘black and white’ building so typical of the county’s architecture - possesses many important artifacts, including a Bronze Age burial as well as finds from the Roman town of Magnis (modern-day Kentchester).

While Hereford cattle graze happily in the pastures surrounding the city, visitors can shop until they drop in the High Town area of the city or pop into Hereford Cider Museum where they can enjoy a guided tour and sample the local tipple made at the King Offa’s distillery. This is, after all, the home of Bulmers, the biggest cider-making company in the world.

'The Old House', High Town - Photo: Ruth Harris CCL

KINGTON

Church Street, Kington - Photo: Ruth Harris CCL

An important spot for hill walkers, there is much to admire about this borderland village and its splendid surroundings. It has the highest golf club in England - with magnificent views to match - and an award-winning small breeds and owl centre. Part of the earthworks of 8th century Offa’s Dyke can also be seen here and numerous walkers using the Offa's Dyke Path head for Kington for a well-deserved break. Hergest Croft Gardens has four different gardens covering 50 acres.

LEDBURY

An unspoiled market town in the lee of the Malvern Hills, Ledbury provides the visitor with a quintessentially romantic picture of olde England. It was visited by the poets Wordsworth and Browning and was the birthplace of another famous poet, John Masefield (1878-1967). Among its many picturesque charms are St Michael’s Parish Church, with its detached, 200ft spire, the 17th century, timber-framed Market Hall and the Butchers Row House Folk Museum. The town, which hosts a major international poetry festival each July, lies close to the refurbished 19th century Eastnor Castle, which is set in a beautiful park and contains numerous works of art.

The Feathers Hotel - Photo: Jerry Fryman CCL

LEOMINSTER

The Three Horseshoes - Photo: Colin Smith CCL

A delightful old market town situated in a valley on the River Lugg, Leominster’s narrow medieval streets are lined with timber-framed Tudor properties and quickly take the visitor back in time. It lies at the heart of the so-called ‘black and white villages trail’ and boasts a pre-Norman priory church famed for its three naves and a ducking stool used until the early 19th century to tame gossiping women. The Old Priory Workhouse is now a youth hostel, which acts as a base for both walkers and cyclists. The town has produced fine wool since the 13th century but is better known today for its red Herefordshire cattle, which are exported worldwide. Nearby stands the National Trust’s Berrington Hall, a Georgian mansion built by Henry Holland (in 1778-81) and landscaped by ‘Capability’ Brown.

MICHAELCHURCH

There are some breathtaking panoramic views to be found in this old village, which looks out onto the picturesque Escley Valley and the moody Black Mountains. Nearby is the book town of Hay-On-Wye. Abergavenny, Monmouth & Symond's Yat are also within range.

St. Michael's Church with original Medieval Frescos on the inside - Photo: Philip Halling CCL

MIDDLETON-ON-THE-HILL

The Church at Middleton-on-the-Hill - Photo: John Phillips CCL

Middleton on the Hill set within a peaceful corner of Herefordshire is a 'Thankful Village' where the lovely old church, which started life in the 1100's has hardly changed since.

ROSS-ON-WYE

Situated in south Herefordshire, this inspiring Georgian market town lies on a bend in the River Wye and is the key tourist centre for the Wye Valley region. It sits atop a sandstone cliff. A splendid public park called The Prospect offers fabulous views towards the Welsh hills. The garden area was provided in the 18th century by the local philanthropist John Kryle - so-called ‘Man of Ross’ - who also gave Ross its first public water supply. An old oak tree nearby was planted in the days of Henry VIII.

Ross-on-Wye from the River - Photo: Patrick Mackie CCL

St. Mary's Church - Photo: Philip Halling CCL

The town was a popular resort in Victorian times. At its heart is a 17th century market hall, which has been transformed into a heritage centre, while the local church spire is a landmark for miles around. A Plague Cross in the churchyard marks a mass grave for the victims of an outbreak of the terrible disease in the 13th century. Each year the town stages the Ross International Festival and a regatta and carnival.

The remains of 12th century Goodrich Castle - destroyed by Cromwell’s forces - lie in the village of Goodrich while at nearby Dorstone stands the remarkable multi-chambered Neolithic tomb Arthur's Stone, estimated to be 5,000 years old. The remains of a Neolithic settlement have also been found at Dorstone Hill.

SYMONDS YAT

The limestone outcrop of Yat Rock rises 500ft and is one of the most famous viewpoints in the Wye Valley. Below it is an enchanting, wooded gorge and the twin villages of Symond's Yat East and Symond's Yat West, separated by the fast-flowing River Wye. You can cross the water via a hand-pulled rope ferry, although some visitors prefer to shoot the rapids in canoes.

River Cruiser on the River Wye - Photo: Pam Brophy CCL

Symonds Yat rock and the Wye Valley - Photo: Pam Brophy CCL

The great Rock provides a natural nesting place for a number of birds, including the rare peregrine falcon. Nearby is King Arthur’s Cave, once home to prehistoric human hunters. The bones of hyenas and sabre-toothed tigers have been found here.

The Old Court Hotel in Symonds Yat West was the ancestral home of the Gwillim family. In 1782 Elizabeth Posthuma Gwillim married the soldier John Graves Simcoe who fought in the American War of Independence and went on to become the first Lieutenant Governor of Ontario in Canada. He also founded the city of Toronto. Canada’s Simcoe County is named after him.

SOLLERS DILWYN

The name of this small Herefordshire town stems from a family of Norman Knights, de Solers, who owned a large area of land from the 11th century. Other local villages places are linked to this name - Sollers Hope, Bridge Sollars, Hopton Sollers and Neen Sollers (Shropshire).

Cottages at Sollers Dilwyn - Photo: Colin Smith CCL

WEOBLEY

Cruck-built building in Weobley - Photo: Doug Elliot CCL

Lovers of traditional oak-framed, black-and-white half-timered houses will find Weobley a delightful place to visit.

This quiet little village is bypassed by the A4112 so is convenient to reach but has retained its peaceful atmosphere.