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Birdland (Rissington Road) – featuring many varieties of birds, totaling 500 birds, including the only collection of King Penguins in England.
Cotswold Motor Museum & Toy Collection (Sherborne Street) – a unique collection of cars you had and cars you only dreamt of owning, including the home of children’s TV star "Brum".
Model Village (Rissington Road) – the miniature village is a 1/9th replica of Bourton-on-the-Water, built from the local Cotswold stone, including a miniature River Windrush and an even smaller replica of the miniature village itself.
The Cotswold Perfumery and Exhibition (Victoria Street) – a thriving company that that has grown steadily over the past thirty years and now manufactures fragrances for some of the most famous perfume houses in the world.
Dragonfly Maze (Rissington Road) – combines a traditional Yew Hedge Maze with a Rebus Puzzle, with a central pavilion housing fabulous hand crafted automated sculptures.
Model Railway Exhibition & Toyshop (High Street) – has some of the finest operating indoor model railway layouts in the country, covering over 500 square feet, with over 40 British and Continental trains run automatically on three main displays, featuring visitor control.
Fundays Playbarn
(Bourton Industrial Park) – designed for children 12 years and under, with fantastic ball ponds,
rope bridges, bouncy bits and plenty of room to go wild! Also has a great toddler play area.
SADLY - now closed (as at April 2009). The Cheltenham one [15 miles] is still operating, however.
Bourton Lakes Fishery [Santhill Fisheries] (off Rissington Road) – offering coarse fishing on 4.86 hectares, stocked with Carp, Perch, Pike, Roach and Tench; day and member permits available. See also Cotswold Fishing website.
Salmonsbury Meadows Nature Reserve and Greystones Farm (off Station Road) – a site of special scientific interest, the meadows are a rare example of unimproved wet grassland, and including Salmonsbury Camp (a Scheduled Ancient Monument).
Walks: There lots of delightful walks to be had in and around Bourton. Maps of most of these are available in The Nook, along with leaflets, etc for many other attractions.
Fitness: Cotswold Leisure Centre (off Station Road).
Doctor: The Moore Health Centre (Moore Road, 01451 820 242).
Churches: Bourton has the following churches: Church of England (St Lawrence’s in Lansdown), Catholic (in Station Road) and Baptist (in Station Road).
Market: There is a huge market in Moreton-in-Marsh every Tuesday; coachloads of people come from miles away. Get there early for parking.
Further info can be picked up at the Visitor Information Centre in the centre of Bourton (in Victoria Street, across the bridges, and behind the first row of houses, phone 01451 820 211 – open Monday to Saturday, 10am to 4:30pm, approx.).
See also the Bourton-on-the-Water attractions website.
Cotswold Farm Park [8 miles] – a great family day out, with the opportunity to interact with some rare breeds.
Cotswold Wildlife Park [16 miles] – home to a fascinating and varied collection of mammals, birds, reptiles and invertebrates from all over the world.
Bibury Trout Farm [14 miles].
Lower Slaughter and Upper Slaughter (picturesque villages) [1.9 & 2.0 miles, by car, or easily accessible by foot across fields or on the road].
Keith Harding’s World of Mechanical Music , Northleach [5.5 miles] – an amazing collection of mechanical musical instruments and fascinating shop.
Chedworth Roman Villa [10 miles] – the remains of one of the largest Romano-British villas in the country featuring several fine mosaics, two bathhouses, hypocausts, a water-shrine and latrine.
Other National Trust attractions, eg Lodge Park and Sherborne Estate [7 miles], Chastleton House [8 miles], Hailes Abbey [10 miles], Snowshill Manor and Garden [12 miles]. See the National Trust website for opening times distances and directions (enter GL54 2PR as starting point).
Stow-on-the-Wold – huge numbers of antique shops [4 miles].
Burford – many antique shops [10 miles].
Hidcote Manor Gardens (National Trust) [18 miles] – one of England's greatest gardens, an Arts & Crafts masterpiece, with a series of outdoor rooms each with its own unique character.
Cheltenham [15 miles] – an elegant Regency city, with award-winning gardens, impressive range of stylish shops and restaurants, and festivals of horse racing (eg Cheltenham Gold Cup), music and literature.
Cirencester [16 miles] – ancient Roman city (second only to London in Roman times), home of the famous Corinium Museum of the Roman past, and now "Capital of the Cotswolds".
Stratford-upon-Avon [24 miles] – Shakespeare’s birthplace and home of the Royal Shakespeare Company (there are always good plays running, but often it’s necessary to book well in advance).
Warwick Castle [31 miles] – England’s finest medieval castle.
Kenilworth Castle [36 miles] – England’s most magnificent ruined castle.
Oxford [35 miles] – city of dreaming spires, with its internationally renowned university.
See also the Guide to the Cotswolds for lots more to see and do in the Cotswolds.
And find out how to get there, how far it is, etc using the Transport Direct Route Planner.
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http://www.alex-reid.com/Nook/index.htm
[This version dated 4-Apr-09/5-Oct-09]