11 Things To Do In Herefordshire

With parts of two National Landscapes (the Wye Valley and Malvern Hills) to its name, a peaceful rural atmosphere and a fine list of historic attractions, Herefordshire is a wonderful place to explore. Whether you’re a local looking for days out nearby or a visitor to this beautiful area, we’ve picked out some of the best things to do in the area for our list below. Covering castles, canoeing, cider and a whole lot more, there’s plenty here to keep you busy for several days, including several family-friendly outings.

For visitors, it’s also worth knowing that Herefordshire is a fantastic place for a camping or glamping break. As a predominantly rural area, it’s got swathes of fabulous scenery and a wide range of outdoor accommodation, from simple farm pitches to cosy log cabins and everything in between. Have a look at the full list below to find something that suits your holiday style.

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Queenswood Country Park and Arboretum

Wildlife spotting and a child-friendly Gruffalo Trail

One of Herefordshire’s loveliest open spaces, Queenswood has something for everybody – and it’s got free entry, too.

Stroll through ancient woodland, or take in the Arboretum’s California redwoods and Japanese maples, looking out for resident dormice, woodpeckers and butterflies as you go. Alternatively, take your pick from several waymarked trails, including a couple designed to show you the best of the autumn colours, and one scattered with huge sculptures of the Gruffalo and his friends.

There are tables and barbecue stations if you want to bring a picnic, and the park also has a lovely café.

Wye Valley Watersports

Outdoor adventures and river views in a gorgeous National Landscape

The Wye Valley National Landscape is one of our favourite places to go for a walk in Herefordshire, but it’s also got a whole lot of other activities to try out. Horse riding, climbing and cycling are popular options, but there’s surely no better way to explore than to get out onto the water. The river itself is wide and mostly fairly easy to navigate, with some lovely views and plenty of wildlife to look out for.

There are several activities to choose from, with the area around Symonds Yat being a particularly good hub to aim for. Guided kayak tours are ideal for families and beginners, while more experienced paddlers can set off on self-guided routes. Paddleboarding is increasingly popular on the quieter stretches of the river, but there are also rapids suitable for daredevils to go whitewater rafting.

The Weir Garden

Riverside garden with wildlife and children’s activities

Sitting on the banks of the River Wye, The Weir Garden is a beautiful place for a peaceful day out. This National Trust estate a little way outside Hereford is a place where you can wander through the walled garden, unearth Roman ruins and look out for butterflies, birds (including kingfishers, oystercatchers and swans) and perhaps even the occasional otter. Meanwhile, the kids can tick off things like ‘cloud watching’ and ‘making friends with a bug’ from the National Trust’s list of 50 Things To Do Before You’re 11¾.

There are several other glorious gardens to explore nearby, so if you’re keen on green-fingered outings, have a read of our guide to the best gardens to visit in Herefordshire.

Herefordshire Cider Sampling

Tours and tastings of the county’s most-loved tipple

At Pitchup we’re big believers in supporting local food and drink producers, and in Herefordshire that can only mean one thing: cider! It’s said that Herefordshire’s orchards produce around half of the UK’s cider, so this area is clearly the place to go if you’re a fan of this apple tipple. A lot of pubs and farm shops around the county have local ciders available to buy, but if you’d like to delve deeper there are several ways to do that.

You might like to start by visiting the Museum of Cider to learn all about the drink’s origins and production methods, then stop in at one of the local producers like Westons or Newton Court to tour the orchards and try the wares. There’s also the option of following one of the three cider circuits – circular cycling routes that visit several producers along with other foodie businesses.

Ledbury

Market town with black and white architecture and a passion for poetry

Ledbury is a town that really lends itself to simply wandering around and seeing where the day takes you. It’s mostly famous for its black-and-white timber-framed buildings, including the early 17th-century Market House raised up on stilts, and other historic attractions like the Painted Room and Butcher’s Row Museum. The town’s cobbled streets are also home to plenty of independent shops and traditional pubs, and the town hosts an annual poetry festival in summer – a nod to the fact that writers John Masefield and Elizabeth Barrett Browning loved this area.

For more of Herefordshire’s half-timbered architecture, make a beeline for Leominster. Here you can pick up the Black and White Trail, which takes in villages and towns like Weobley (extra points if you can locate the black and pink house among all the monochrome) and Pembridge, where there’s yet more cider to be added to your haul.

Hereford Cathedral

Medieval cathedral with a chained library and the Mappa Mundi 

Built around the 12th century on the site of an earlier church, Hereford Cathedral is a must-see for visitors to Herefordshire. This magnificent building combines Norman and Gothic styles and has a decorated vaulted ceiling, ornate arches and stained-glass windows.

The architecture is splendid enough, of course, but the jewel in the cathedral’s crown is the Mappa Mundi, a large map of the world created around the year 1300. Like the London Underground map, this one pays little heed to the size of places and accurate distances between them. Instead, it focuses on religious importance (Jerusalem has pride of place at its centre) and interesting peoples and animals, such as lynxes, camels, and – rather unusually – unicorns.

Also worth a look is the cathedral’s Chained Library, with more than 200 precious medieval manuscripts secured to the shelves by chains. These chains are long enough to take a book out for reading while also preventing it from slipping off the shelves.

Waterworks Museum

Hands-on kid-friendly exhibits in a 19th-century waterworks 

Parents who are constantly reminding their kids to turn off the tap when they brush their teeth might find that a visit to the Waterworks Museum (free for under-16s) will drive the message home once and for all. 

Housed in a former Victorian pumping station just outside Hereford, the museum includes a heritage park with exhibits illustrating ways of obtaining water through the ages. Kids can have a go at pushing the capstan pump (a job that would have been performed by donkeys or ponies) or try carrying a yoke and buckets. 

After that back-breaking work, head next door to the Hereford Society of Model Engineers for a short trip on a miniature railway or a spot of model boating.

Canwood Gallery and Sculpture Park

Indoor and outdoor art spaces with a charitable aim

If you can’t decide whether to do a cultural day or an outdoorsy one, Canwood Gallery and Sculpture Park brings a perfect solution. In a lovely spot at the north of the Wye Valley National Landscape, a series of barns have been transformed into an atmospheric exhibition space surrounded by a sculpture park. The outdoor artworks include a steel bull, a driftwood horse and several abstract shapes, all with a beautiful green backdrop, while the indoor space hosts a series of temporary exhibitions.

The gallery has been designed with eco-friendly features like solar panels and a ground source heat pump, and it’s free to visit. There’s a lovely story behind the non-profit aspect of the site – the founder drew comfort from the Tate’s artworks while in London being treated for leukaemia, and once he had recovered he was determined to create a place where the people of Herefordshire could also experience artistic inspiration for free. Any profits made by the site now go into funding the Bart’s Charity.

Eastnor Castle

Lavishly decorated interiors and a challenging maze 

If you’ve ever seen HBO’s award-winning show Succession, you’ll already be familiar with the interiors of Eastnor Castle. This opulent 19th-century building is so grand it was chosen as the location for the wedding venue and family stately home in the series. In real life, it’s also hosted numerous exclusive weddings and parties.

Don’t worry if you’ve not been invited to any of these events, as you can visit on selected dates throughout the year to visit both the castle and its grounds. Designed by Augustus Pugin, better known as one of the architects behind Westminster Palace, the castle is home to the Gothic Drawing Room, with gilded fan-shaped vaults and a painted ceiling, and both the Long Library and the Staircase Hall are hung with large, centuries-old tapestries.

As well as a deer park and a lake, the grounds have multiple play areas for kids, from a treetop walkway and mini zipwire to the Knight’s Maze, which is so challenging that those who dare enter it are given a map – just in case. 

If Eastnor’s not open, or if you just love exploring grand buildings, check out our list of Herefordshire’s best castles.

Berrington Hall

Country estate with gardens designed by Capability Brown 

Summer days were made to be spent at Berrington Hall, a late 18th-century country estate managed by the National Trust. On a visit here you can stroll through the vast parkland, stopping for a picnic in the woods or by the artificial lake, where you can keep an eye out for herons, swans and voles. The grounds were designed by Georgian-era gardener to the stars Capability Brown, who also created the walled garden with its colourful flowers and fragrant herbs. Newer additions include several play areas and a den-building area for the kids.

Embroidered silk waistcoats and satin and velvet dresses from the Wade Costume Collection are on display inside the Georgian mansion itself, which is known for its delicate plasterwork and an elegant staircase under a glass dome. Guided tours are available throughout the year to show you all the best bits.

Hellens

Fabulous artworks and fascinating history

It may not be outwardly as grand as Eastnor or Berrington Hall, but the lovely Hellens, near Much Marcle, is a fascinating place to visit. With foundations dating back to the 12th century, it’s one of the oldest dwellings in England – and plenty of interest in its history throughout the ages. The displays here include some of Anne Boleyn’s heirlooms and paintings by Goya, Van Dyck, Hogarth and Gainsborough. On a tour you’ll also see the haunted bedchamber of Mary Tudor and hear all sorts of stories of the house’s residents and visitors.

The gardens are rather magnificent, too – stretching out over 150 acres and containing a physic garden, an octagonal dovecote and wildflower meadows as well as extensive woodlands.

 

If you’re visiting Herefordshire and looking out for a place to stay, camping and glamping are great options – not only are they usually fairly affordable (with prices starting from just £10 a night), they’ll also add a sense of adventure to your trip. From cosy couples' getaways to fantastic family-friendly options, Pitchup has something for every travel style – check out the full range below.

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