Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
children, £12 family ticket. House open Mar-Oct 11am-5pm; closed Nov-Feb. Gardens open Mar-Oct
daily 10am-5pm; Nov-Apr daily 11am-4pm; park open daily 8am-8pm.
Moyse's Hall Museum
MUSEUM The building dates back to 1180 and is one of
the last Norman houses left in the U.K. It has had many uses, including the town
gaol and a pub, and became the local museum in 1899. The Medieval Gallery focuses
on the abbey and has a locket containing Mary Tudor's hair.
Cornhill.
&
01284/706183.
www.moyseshall.org. Admission £4 adults, £2 children 5-15, £9 family, free
for children 4 and under. Daily 10am-5pm. Closed bank holidays.
Suffolk Regiment Museum
MUSEUM One of the finest regimental collections
in the U.K., housed in the former officers' mess. The rhino-horn powder flask of Tip-
poo Sultan of Mysore is among the medals, badges, uniforms, flags, and more.
The Keep, Gibraltar Barracks, Newmarket Rd.
&
01284/769505.
www.suffolkregiment.org. Free
admission. Open 1st and 3rd Wed of each month and 1st Sun of each month 9:30am-3:30pm.
Theatre Royal
THEATRE The best way to experience the intimacy of the only
surviving Regency theatre in the U.K. is to see a show, but you can also tour the build-
ing, which opened for business in 1819. Tours vary, so contact the theatre for details.
5 Westgate St.
&
01284/769505.
www.theatreroyal.org.
West Stow Country Park & Anglo Saxon Village
HISTORIC SITE Six miles
outside Bury St. Edmunds off the A1101 you'll find this reconstructed village on the
site of an Anglo-Saxon settlement. There are historic re-enactments and guided
walks. The village is set on 50.5 hectares (125 acres) of country park (free admission),
which has nature trails, woods, a river and lake, play areas, a shop, and a cafe.
West Stow.
&
01284/728718.
www.stedmundsbury.gov.uk Admission village £6 adults, £4 children,
£18 family ticket. Tickets allow 5 additional visits or entrance to Moyse's Hall (see above). Village daily
10am-5pm. Country park daily 9am-8pm (closes 5pm in winter).
Entertainment & Nightlife
The
Theatre Royal
(see above) has been entertaining the people of Bury St. Edmunds
for several centuries, but now there's also
The Apex,
Charter Square (
&
01284/758100;
www.theapex.co.uk), where you can see concerts and live bands. The modern enter-
tainment venue is in the new Arc shopping center a few minutes from the center of
town. There are plenty of traditional pubs in town, but one you should see is the
Nut-
shell,
at the Traverse and Abbeygate Street (
&
01284/764867
), the smallest pub in
England. If that's looking a bit full, try the 17th-century
Dog & Partridge,
29 Crown
St. (
&
01284/764792
), where the bar scenes from the BBC detective series
Lovejoy
were filmed. The
Masons Arms,
14 Whiting St. (
&
01284/753955
), has a family
atmosphere and welcomes children, with home-cooked food and a patio garden. The
award-winning
One Bull
pub, Angel Hill (
&
01284/848220;
www.theonebull.
co.uk), serves superior pub grub in a relaxed but contemporary atmosphere, while its
sister pub,
The Beerhouse,
1 Tayfen Rd. (
&
01284/766415;
www.burybeerhouse.
co.uk), sells real ales and plans to open a micro-brewery.
Where to Eat & Stay
Angel Hotel
Ivy covers the grand Georgian facade of what was originally a
smaller 15th-century coaching inn overlooking Abbey Gardens and the cathedral. It
aims for an upmarket, home-away-from-home atmosphere with both contemporary
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