August bank holiday weekend fun in Shakespeare Country
Enjoy a fantastic fun filled August bank holiday weekend in Shakespeare Country with plenty to see and do for all the family. From mediaeval encampments to outdoor theatre performances, Tudor Olympics, a Game Fair, camping & farmyard fun, a welly-wanging championship and Tudor Hiring Fair, there is much for everyone to enjoy from the 27 – 29 August, rain or shine!
Explore mediaeval living and sleeping quarters in the authentic encampment at Warwick Castle. Watch as costumed actors undertake crafts from the past, or learn about apothecary and pagan medicines. Enjoy jousting, archery and birds of prey displays as well as the firing of Britain’s biggest Trebuchet. Tickets cost £10.66 each with a special 1066 Offer – saving 28% off walk-up prices (if you book online).
Wander around a traditional Tudor Hiring Fair at Mary Arden’s Farm from 10am – 5pm. Join in the hustle and bustle as the Tudor folk try their hand at traditional skills ranging from blacksmithing to falconry, baking to basket-making in hope of gainful employment. See the Tudors going about their daily lives including Pottage cooking, candle making, baking, basket & skep making and much more. Games, music and dancing, and a hog roast will make it a festive day out for the whole family.
Ragley Hall hosts the Warwickshire & West Midlands Game Fair from 27 - 29 August. Set in front of the majestic Hall, country enthusiasts will find plenty to see and do with arena displays, a craft fair, children’s activities and over 150 trade stands. Tickets cost £11 for adults & £4 for children with under 5’s free.
The Imagineering Fair @ AIRBASE at Coventry Airport is a fabulous day out for all the family! Packed full of fantastic hands-on engineering and technology activities, indoors and outdoors, it will keep youngsters occupied for hours - everything from robots, flight simulators and IT to mechanical and electrical challenges, aviation and automotive engineering. View up close AIRBASE’s stunning collection of iconic classic aircraft including the Nimrod, Dakota DC3 and Gloster Meteor T7, the oldest operational British jet aircraft. Tickets cost: Family of 4: £20; Adult: £10; Child 5-16yrs: £5; Under 5s: Free. Tickets valid for all 3 days.
Bring the family for a weekend of camping and farmyard fun at Hatton Country World with plenty of entertainment all included in the price. There are action packed activities throughout the weekend on the campsite including camp-fire songs and children’s disco plus included will be access to the farm village, the indoor soft play centre and Snorty’s Bouncing Barnyard where you can enjoy events, shows, activities, animals and fun fair rides!
Walk in the footsteps of Jane Austen at Stoneleigh Abbey on Sunday 28 August. A guided tour of the State Rooms takes place at 1pm with a guide dressed in period costume. Listen to tales of Jane Austen and her visit to the Abbey with her mother and sister in 1806. Tickets cost £7 per person.
Experience the atmosphere and drama of Kenilworth Castle under Norman attack on Sunday 28 & Monday 29 August from 11am – 5pm. Witness the opposing forces prepare for battle, with encampments outside and inside the castle, armour displays and an awe inspiring trebuchet in action. Experience the fear and anticipation of battle with the rallying cry of generals as they prepare their soldiers for the impending bloodshed.
Olympic fever has already hit and The Falstaff Experience Tudor World in Stratford-upon-Avon is ready to begin its first annual Tudor Olympics. Over the Bank Holiday weekend you can take part in the Tudor Olympic Torch procession free of charge!
The One Elm in Stratford is offering a Rain Cheque over the bank holiday weekend. If you pop in and have a main course and it happens to be raining, The One Elm will offer you a starter or pudding free of charge to brighten up your day!
Visit Compton Verney on the 28 & 29 August and see artist in residence Laura Ellen Bacon at her drop-in workshop and help her create a giant web. Throughout the weekend summerspace drop-in activities for the family continue. Help make a giant model of the gallery and grounds at Compton Verney and add your own collage to the giant mosaic. Pick up a nature trail backpack and explore the grounds, discovering plants, trees and wildlife.
Experience a traditional family day out at Sulgrave Manor on Monday 29 August. Children can dress as mini-Tudors, take a tour and meet Mr Washington in the school room plus run around the garden to find strange creatures and rather large ladybirds. There are plenty more activities, challenges and games to play plus tours and trails for grown-ups too!
Drayton Manor Theme Park is the ideal venue for the bank holiday weekend. Experience the new Ben 10: Ultimate Mission rollercoaster which takes you on an out of this world journey along the track before launching you backwards. Also new to the park is the acrobatic dive show which features five amazingly skilful divers who perform over 70 different dives including fire dives, clown dives, and the infamous high dive where they leap into a 3m deep pool from a frightful 25m in the air! New to Thomas Land is Blue Mountain Engines, which has introduced four new characters to the attraction!
Visit Umberslade Farm Park for its quintessentially English Summer Fete including all the usual family favourites such as face painting, pony rides, and a coconut shy with some quirky farmyard fun thrown in! Children of all ages will be able to take part in the welly-wanging championship and farmyard ferret racing. And for the adults a specially installed ‘Straw Bar’ will be serving a wide selection of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks including Pimms and real ale.
For accommodation, special offers and more information visit the official website: Shakespeare-Country.co.uk.
