Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Exploring the Town
There are plenty of antiques shops and lovely cafes.
Timbers,
High Street
(
&
01787/247218
), houses 24 antiques and collectibles stalls, selling books, toys,
military artifacts, glass, porcelain, and more. It's open daily. One of the most interest-
ing cafes is
Tickled Pink Tearooms,
17 High St. (
&
01787/249517
), in a historic
timber-framed house built in 1530.
Church of St. Peter and St. Paul
CHURCH This cathedral-sized church was
finished just before the Reformation. Work started in the late 1400s, and among the
architects who worked on it was John Wastell, who was involved with King's College
Chapel and Great St. Mary's in Cambridge, as well as the church at Saffron Walden.
Master mason Reginald Ely, who worked on King's College Chapel, was also involved.
Some of the carvings inside depict half-human, half-animals, and the main porch is
also richly decorated.
Church St. (A1141, the Hadleigh-Bury St. Edmunds Rd.) Admission free. Open daylight hours.
Lavenham Guildhall
HISTORIC SITE The exhibitions inside this marvelously
creaky old building explain how the textile industry once brought wealth to the area,
but in the 19th century mechanized mills in the north produced cloth more cheaply
and, like most of Suffolk, Lavenham had to fall back on agriculture. It caused poverty
for generations, but it did save Lavenham and other villages from redevelopment, and
in the last quarter of the 20th century many of these villages were transformed into
pretty tourist destinations. The Guildhall's walled garden still houses the tiny village
gaol. There's also a half-timbered tearoom with outside seating in fine weather.
Market Place.
&
01787/247646.
www.nationaltrust.org. Admission £4 adults, £1.70 children 5-15,
£9.70 family ticket. Guildhall, shop, and tearoom late Mar-Oct daily 11am-5pm; early Mar Wed-Sun
11am-5pm; Nov Sat-Sun 11am-4pm. Shop also Nov-Dec Thurs-Sun and Jan-Feb Sat-Sun. Tearoom
Dec Sat-Sun.
Where to Eat & Stay
Great House Hotel
This is a boutique hotel with an award-winning restaurant.
Although there are oak beams and an inglenook fireplace inside, its Georgian facade
distinguishes it from other buildings in the marketplace, and four of its five rooms are
suites with separate lounges, all stylishly decorated. The
restaurant,
listed in Brit-
ain's top 100 by
The Sunday Times,
serves French cuisine using local produce, for
instance belly of Suffolk pork confit. A two-course lunch is £18; dinner is a la carte.
Market Place, Lavenham, Suffolk CO10 9QZ. www.greathouse.co.uk.
&
01787/247431.
Fax 01787/
248007. 5 units. £115-£225. Breakfast £10-£15. AE, MC, V. Free parking on street.
Amenities:
Restaurant.
In room:
TV, Wi-Fi (free).
Swan Hotel
Just over the road from the Guildhall is this distinctive, half-
timbered hotel, one of the oldest and best-preserved buildings in the village. The
rooms are all charmingly unique, with a mix of contemporary and antique furniture.
Some of the rooms have four-poster beds, others look out onto the cloistered court-
yard and gardens. You can eat in the historic
Airmens Bar
(U.S. Air Force men were
stationed at Lavenham Airfield during World War II), in the gardens, or in the
Swan
Brasserie.
More formal meals are served in the
Gallery Restaurant,
where a two-
course lunch costs £15.
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