OF
STRATFORD-UPON-AVON AREA
| The City Sightseeing (Guide Friday) open-topped bus is a convenient way to see around the Stratford area.
A ticket is valid for the entire day. The buses depart every 15 minutes. You can stop off at any of the attractions en route, and rejoin a subsequent bus, or even go round the whole circuit again. The round trip takes 45 minutes. If you get off to look round Anne Hathaway's Cottage or Mary Arden's House, then you need to allow longer.
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All of the remaining pictures on this page were taken from the top of the bus.
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Some buses have a pre-recorded commentary, and some have a tour guide on the bus. Alternate buses carry live guides. |
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The principal starting point is opposite the canal basin and the Gower Memorial.
This is the view looking up into the centre of the town from the tour starting point. Although this view appears to be at street level it is in fact taken from the top of the bus. |  |
| The route first runs up Guild Street, behind Shakespeare's Birthplace. Henley Street, the site of Shakespeare's Birthplace, is a pedestrians-only street. The bus cannot pass the front of the Birthplace, so this is the best view of the Birthplace you can get from a bus. You get a good view of the garden from this side. |
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The route then passes into the Market Square, with its monument, the American Fountain. There are heraldic lions and eagles on each corner of the fountain, which represent Great Britain and the United States. This picture was taken on a Saturday, when there is a busy local Farmers' Market in progress. |  |
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The tour passes out along Rother Street, and back along Church Street.
On the right hand side is the Old Schoolroom, and just beyond on the corner, looking like a church tower, is the Guild Chapel. |  |
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A closer view of the Guild Chapel on the right.
On the left is the Falcon Inn. Straight ahead can be seen the Shakespeare Hotel. But the bus turns right at the corner just here... |  |
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As the bus swings round the corner, we see Nash's House and New Place.
The house visible is Nash's House, which was formerly next door to Shakespeare's former home. New Place, is the site of Shakespeare's former home, and is now occupied by this garden. The house that once stood here has been demolished, but was originally one of the grandest in Stratford, and was bought by Shakespeare at the height of his success. He lived here after his return from London, until his death. |  |
| The route passes down Chapel Lane, looking over the very large garden behind Shakespeare's House. |
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Travelling down Chapel Lane, Shakespeare's garden is still visible at the left, and the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre can be seen at the bottom of the road.
At the bottom of the road we turn right and then pass briefly along by the Avon (shown below), and the Holy Trinity Church, where Shakespeare is buried, though you can't see much of the church from the bus. |  |
 | We turn up Old Town road, and stop outside Hall's Croft, home of Shakespeare's daughter and Shakespeare's son-in-law. The garden behind Hall's Croft is just visible in the picture. |
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The route then leaves the town along the Alcester Road, making the short journey to Anne Hathaway's Cottage.
The road passes over the railway, with a view of Stratford Starion on the right. And shortly arriving at Anne Hathaway's Cottage... |  |
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We leave Shottery, returning to the Alcester Road, and travel further along the Alcester Road, before turning off into The Ridgeway, a country lane (shown below), which will take us to the village of Wilmcote.
The Alcester Road is the original Salt Road, dating from pre-Roman times. Its ford over the Avon gave Stratford its name. |  |
 | This lane is a ridgeway, running along high ground, and has fine elevated views, which you cannot appreciate from the picture. |
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We come to the small village of Wilmcote, childhood home of Mary Arden, Shakespeare's mother. This is Wilmcote Church. |
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And this is Mary Ardens House.
The very impressive house next door (and shown in the photo below) is frequently referred to as "Mary Ardens House", and is identified as such in many older guide books, but is now known to have been owned by a different family. |  |
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We return to Stratford along the A34, Stratford-Birmingham Road.
Off to the left of this picture lies the village of Snitterfield, childhood home of Shakespeare's father. Near the Birmingham end of this road (behind us), is the village of Sarehole, the childhood home of J R Tolkien, another writer affected by the genius of the place. More pictures of Sarehole on my Sarehole and J R R Tolkien Page. |  |
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Coming back into the centre of the town, the Gower Memorial can be seen in the centre of the picture, and the City Sightseeing terminus is just round the corner to the right.
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Before returning to the terminus, the bus turns to the left, making a detour over the Clopton Bridge and back, giving a view down the Avon, of the Tramway Bridge, with the Memorial Theatre in the background.
Current details of fares are on the City Sightseeing Website (select their Stratford Tour). There is also a detailed map of the route here: City Sightseeing Map |  |
Heart-of-England Main Page
Stratford Tourist Guide
Stratford-Upon-Avon and William Shakespeare