Visit Shropshire

Shropshire Tourism information

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Though today Shropshire is set in the West Midlands of England, it was not always so. In the 5th Century the area was a part of the Welsh Kingdom of Powys; and it was not until the 8th Century that the area was annexed by King Offa and added to the Saxon Kingdom of Mercia. This switch was not entirely peaceful however, as you would expect, and it was from this period that a defensive ditch, 'Offa's Dyke' named after King Offa, running intermittently for 150 miles long from the Dee estuary to the river Wye, was built.

In addition to the Dyke, which today the dyke roughly follows the current English – Welsh border and in places is 65 ft wide and stands 8ft high, due to it's historical proximity of the Welsh border, and the enemy kingdoms there, the county has a proliferation of medieval fortifications, many of which can still be visited today.

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More interesting facts for when you visit Shropshire

To the West and South of the County hills rise dramatically towards wild heathland and moors; and it is here, so legend would have it, atop the 1,700ft high Striperstones that devils gather on Midwinter night to choose their leader.

This area is dominated by the limestone ridge of Wenlock Edge, where the river Corve winds through the beautiful Corve Dale with it's abundance of attractive 15th and 16th Century manor farms.

In the North of the county are to be found the county town of Shrewsbury - ornamented by its pink sandstone castle, the new town of Telford, and the Ironbridge Gorge, to some, the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution. Even further to the north of Shrewsbury is a broad level plain and the winding river Severn and its many tributaries, where lie many charming villages with their distinctive black and white timbers and which reflect the prosperity of centuries long past.

Holiday and Travel News and offers from around the UK

26 October 2011
Visitors to several towns in East Sussex were treated to a rare phenomenon yesterday as a water spout formed off the coast at a little after 4pm. Local residents have stated that the water spout was visible for several minutes during a thunderstorm. One expert has said that if you want to see a waterspout that October was when water spouts were most common.

24 October 2011
Two buildings that have been on the English Heritage at Risk Register have the possibility of a new lease of life.
Croome Court is the location of the first where the Grade 1 listed Red Wing has been bought by the Croome Heritage Trust who intend to begin a programme of repairs and who will then lease the building to the National Trust.

The fate of Ditherington Flax Mill in Shrewsbury is less certain with regeneration being dependent upon funding being raised from the Heritage Lottery Fund by the Flax Mill Maltings Group.

21 October 2011
Funds to provide a facelift to the diplay of the Nigg cross-slab have been secured from a combination of the Heriatge Lottery Fund, the Scottish Government, and the European Community Highland Leader Fund.br />The Nigg cross-slab is an intricately carved Pictish stone depicting snakes and monks who are receiving bread from a raven.

18 October 2011
The Cairngorms National Park is getting a facelift. A string of electricity pylons are being removed, covering around 33 miles in total, with the hope that this will improve the overall scenery of the area.

17 October 2011
It's a Happy Birthday today to the Transporter Bridge in Middlesbrough. This iconic feature of the Middlesbrough skyline is a grade II listed structure and although only 16,000 people crossed on it in 2010, in its heyday a whopping 5.1 Million crossings were made.

14 October 2011
Visitors to Jersey will soon be able to enjoy the Millennium Town Park, located in St Helier, which has been 13 years in creation due to many postponements due to cost over the years. The park is finally due to open on Saturday the 29th of October.

13 October 2011
More flights out of the Highlands and Islands of Scotland have proved a tourist success according to Highlands and Islands Airports Ltd. Increased flights to the area's ariports to various UK destinations as well as to a new route to Amsterdam. All of which is good news for people wanting to visit the area for its spectacular beauty, getting here just got a whole lot easier.

12 October 2011
The toads have it. Forty giant toads on display in Hull to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the poet Philip Larkin has won this years Tourism Event of the Year award. Yorkshire has done particularly well this year, with in addition to the toads, Rudding Park in Harrogate won the Hotel of Year award and Cannon Hall Farm won the Tourism Experience of the Year award.

11 October 2011
Offa's Dyke is once again the meeting place for people from England and Wales, but this time rather than meeting with weapons, in a fight over territory, it is a friendly meeting of various groups to help promote the area, and in particular the Dam and the walks available along it. So keep an eye on the Walking with Offa Project and when it complete you too will be able to enjoy the walks, views, and history, EVEN more than you can at the moment.

10 October 2011
If delegates from Lincoln get their way then finding your way to the City could soon become easier. They are advocating that the Department for Transport erect 4 'brown' tourism signs on the A1 to advertise Lincoln and its offerings to passing motorists to promote the city.

07 October 2011
The importance of the tourism industry in the UK and in Keswick in particular has been amply shown recently by the announcement from United Utilities that they would delay work on the high street until the 31st of October to avoid the holiday period. This decision was taken after concerns were raised with United Utilities by local people and businesses.

Shropshire information ideas

What would you like to see made available? Recently we added to the town and county pages a static map feature to show nearby towns (if any) and for the town pages the local weather for that town; and we are shortly going to look to make the map interactive.

We are also looking at the best ways to show where the local restaurants, bed & breakfasts, theatres etc that we have listed on the same map - without either over complicating the site or flooding you with information.

But we are always looking for ways to provide you with even more useful information, the sort of thing you don't get on other similar sites - so if you have some ideas, why not let us know; and if we can use it we'll give you full credit on the site for the idea.

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Map of Shropshire