Foliat Cottages are close to the world famous Sherwood Forest, and in an area known as the Dukeries because of the large number of ducal seats locally (the estates of Welbeck, Clumber, Thoresby and Rufford). The rolling countryside is a mixture of farming and woodland, interspersed with a traditional villages of red brick and pantiled cottages.
The remnants (about 400 acres) of Sherwood Forest are now a country park, complete with visitor centre. Robin Hood's hide-out, a massive centuries old tree known as the Major Oak, can still be seen on way-marked walks through the forest. Sherwood Pines Forest Park at Clipstone offers off-road biking through the forest and 'high wire' tree-top adventure at Go Ape.


                               

                  Clumber Country Park                                                The Major Oak


Clumber (the seat of the Dukes of Newcastle) is now a National Trust owned country park of over 3000 acres. Although the house was pulled down before the second world war, the stables, church and garden area survived, together with a large lake, and so the park is a very popular destination for walking, cycling etc. Rufford (seat of the Saviles) is owned by the County Council and is also a very popular country park, with a national renowned ceramics centre.

Other heritage venues include Newstead Abbey (ancestral home of Lord Byron), Hardwick Hall (home of Bess of Hardwick), Bolsover and Newark Castles and (on a smaller scale) the terraced cottage home of D.H.Lawrence at Eastwood. Laxton Village is the only surviving example of medieval strip farming in Europe, and has its own visitor centre. There is a working windmill at Tuxford, and the county's only working water mill at Ollerton. Papplewick has a much admired late Victorian waterworks, with working steam engines.  

 

                                   

                                                                     Newstead Abbey
 
 

click to enlarge

how to find us
 

click to enlarge

how to find us - closeup
 

For children, there is the White Post Farm Centre, which aims to house every example of farmed livestock today. Across the road is Wheelgate Adventure Park where family fun includes a maze, rides, and indoor play centre. Not far away at Clipstone is the Sherwood Forest Farm Park, which is a centre for rare breeds as well as fun for children. There is the fascinating Vina Cooke Museum of Dolls and Bygone Childhood at Cromwell, and the most visited attraction in Nottinghamshire is Sundown Adventure Land (at Rampton) - a theme park especially for children.

                                       

                          Sundown Adventure Land                          Market Square, Nottingham


The Pilgrim Fathers originated in North Nottinghamshire, where there are many connections, and the Civil War is associated particularly with Newark and its impressive castle which was besieged. Newark also has a fine market place and an air museum just outside the town. It has become a centre as well for modern pine furniture, and hosts several international antiques fairs each year. Nottingham is world famous for its shopping area, which is one of the very best outside London!