The Cotswolds are a favorite among travelers Gorgeous environment and relaxed atmosphere. They are also popular with holiday makers and celebrities, with gentle hills and pristine scenery. Destination all year round. However, one Lincolnshire town has emerged as a rival to a well-known region, despite being more than 80 miles away.
According to a visit to the Lincolnshire website, Stanford has been “a long praised as a lovely stone town.” Scottish novelist and poet Sir Walter Scott called the town “the best view on the road between Edinburgh and London,” and historian WG Hoskins said “I haven't seen it yet if there were more beautiful towns throughout England.” It is a favorite of the TV producers at Stony Facade, featured in the 2005 Pride and Prejudice film, the Da Vinci Code and the Crown.
Every Friday at the market, shoppers flock to the city and want to sample local vegetables, meat, pies, bread and fresh fish.
A mix of small businesses, luxury jewellers and designer lots lined with alleys and courtyards, while quiet hideouts are available along the banks of the river that meanders through Stanford.
It dates back hundreds of years, and Stanford was recorded in a 1086 Domes Day book as “Stanford,” meaning “Stonyford,” as “Stanford,” and developed along the Roman path from London to York.
With over 600 listed buildings, Stanford also has a collection of medieval churches and a stone and slate quarry that offers stone slates on the roofs of many buildings.
At the edge of town is Burley House, an Elizabethan mansion built by William Cecil.
Cecil ruled the Crown's finances and was the Queen's important agent before his death after being buried in St. Martin's Church, the town where he resides.
This Stanford Mansion is still equipped with an original Tudor Kitchen, 18 staterooms and many major artworks.
Stanford's other grand site, Trethorpe Hall, will be hosting the Rutland Open Air Theatre, where resident Stanford Shakespeare Company performs its annual season in June, July and August.
The performance attracts more than 34,000 people from England each year around the world at the Tolethorpe site, which was built in its current shape in 1867.
Stanford is certainly a powerful option if you run out of Cotswold offerings.
