Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Side Trips from Warwick
ROYAL LEAMINGTON SPA
Like other English spa towns, Leamington Spa boomed in the 18th century when
taking spring water was popularized for its medicinal qualities. In 1814 the handsome
Royal Pump Rooms & Baths
were opened on The Parade, close to the River
Leam, and a plethora of fine Georgian buildings followed in subsequent years. Today
the town makes an inviting day-trip, with the pump rooms now containing the absorb-
ing
Leamington Spa Art Gallery & Museum
(www.warwickdc.gov.uk; Tues, Wed,
Fri, and Sat 10:30am-5pm, Thurs 1:30-8pm, Sun 11am-4pm; free), a visitor infor-
mation center (
&
01926/742762;
Mon-Fri 10am-4:30pm, Sat 10am-3pm, Sun
10am-2pm), and a cafe where you can take afternoon tea. You can also stop by
Aubrey Allen
at 108 Warwick St. (
&
01926/311208;
www.aubreyallen.
co.uk), one of Britain's most respected butchers. The shop's deli section is a great
place to load up for a picnic (cheeses, quiches, cured meats) or light meals (think
curries or breakfast sausage baps).
Stagecoach
(www.stagecoachbus.com) runs regular bus services between Leam-
ington and Warwick, just 3 miles west.
KENILWORTH CASTLE
The big attraction in Kenilworth, an otherwise dull English market town 5 miles
north of Warwick, is enigmatic
Kenilworth Castle
(
&
01926/852078;
www.
english-heritage.org.uk), founded in the 1120s by Geoffrey de Clinton, a lieutenant
of Henry I. At one time, its walls enclosed an area of 2.8 hectares (7 acres), but it is
now in majestic ruins. Caesar's Tower, with its 5m-thick (16-ft.) walls, is all that
remains of the original structure.
The castle is open daily, March to August from 10am to 6pm, September and
October from 10am to 5pm, and November to February from 10am to 4pm. It's
closed January 1 and December 24 to December 26. Admission is £8 for adults,
£7.20 for seniors, £4.80 for children 5 to 16, and free for children 4 and under; a
family ticket goes for £21. Entry includes the excellent audioguides.
Stagecoach buses X17 and 16 (www.stagecoachbus.com) connect Kenilworth with
Warwick, Leamington Spa, and Coventry.
COVENTRY CATHEDRAL
Thirteen miles northeast of Warwick is Coventry, the second largest city in the Mid-
lands, and an industrial center with few tourist attractions save one—it's remarkable
cathedral. Coventry's fine medieval center was totally destroyed by German bombers
during the Coventry Blitz in 1940, and postwar planners replaced it with brutalist
shopping malls and concrete buildings. Coventry's 14th-century St. Michael's Cathe-
dral was also destroyed by the bombs; only the tower, spire, outer wall, and the bronze
effigy and tomb of its first bishop survived. In 1962, Sir Basil Spence's controversial
replacement was consecrated. Today
Coventry Cathedral,
7 Priory Row (
&
024/
7652-1200;
www.coventrycathedral.org.uk), is considered one of the most poignant
and religiously evocative modern churches in the world.
Outside is Sir Jacob Epstein's bronze masterpiece,
St. Michael Slaying the Devil.
Inside, the outstanding feature is the 21m-high (70-ft.) altar tapestry by Graham
Sutherland, said to be the largest in the world. The floor-to-ceiling abstract stained-
glass windows are the work of the Royal College of Art. The West Screen (an entire
wall of stained glass installed during the 1950s) depicts rows of stylized saints and
prophets with angels flying among them.
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