Top 5 Magnificent Places In England | England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom (UK). It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, while the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separate it from continental Europe. Most of England comprises the central and southern part of the island of Great Britain in the North Atlantic. The country also includes over 100 smaller islands such as the Isles of Scilly and the Isle of Wight.England’s terrain mostly comprises low hills and plains, especially in central and southern England. However, there are uplands in the north (for example, the mountainous Lake District, Pennines, and Yorkshire Dales) and in the south west (for example, Dartmoor and the Cotswolds). The former capital city of England was Winchester until London took over in 1066. Today London is the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures.England’s population is about 51Â million, around 84% of the population of the United Kingdom, and is largely concentrated in London, the South East and conurbations in the Midlands, the North West, the North East and Yorkshire, which each developed as major industrial regions during the 19th century. Meadowlands and pastures are found beyond the major cities.
There are a few places that you should visit when you come to England.
1)Â Eden Project
In the middle of a disused clay pit in Cornwall, five giant bubbles lie wedged in the ground. They are the Eden Project’s ‘biomes’ – massive greenhouses containing thousands of the world’s plant species within their iconic, slightly steamy walls.
While the Mediterranean biome takes you on a road trip, from the olive trees of Europe to California, the hotly anticipated Rainforest biome awaits next door. A huge waterfall tumbles in the background as you walk through Tropical South America, West Africa and Asia, alongside the trees and plants responsible for keeping the world cool.
Next, head up to the new 165-ft jungle canopy for a spectacular view, which at 90% humidity, is not for the faint hearted.
And a quick tip to whoever’s paying the bill: arrive after 3:30pm on foot, bus or bike, and you’ll get reduced admission – and crowds – to what is one of Britain’s most impressive eco-attractions. Money aside, this is a must see.
2) Windsor Castle
All the famous royals have made their mark on the interior and you can take in 1,000 years of history by exploring much of the castle and 13-acre grounds. Take a guided tour around the medieval Great Kitchen with its many gleaming pots and pans during the summer months and climb to the top of the Round Tower for views over Windsor Great Park.
The best place to begin though, has to be at St George’s Chapel in the castle’s Lower Ward, the final resting place of 10 British monarchs including Henry VIII and Charles I. Then move on to the Semi-State Rooms – the lavish private apartments created by George IV. Finish off with a nose around the art collection, which would put many a national gallery to shame. Among others, you’ll see works by Rembrandt, Rubens, Canaletto, Holbein, Van Dyck and Gainsborough alongside rare and delicate English and French furniture. Thomas Crown would have a field day.
The vast park that surrounds the castle is also fit for royalty and there’s no better way to experience it than clip-clopping along in a horse-drawn carriage past ancient oak trees and frolicking deer.
3) Museums ( Arts & Culture)
From toys to taxidermy, and fashion to Vikings, England has museums for almost any subject. Best of all, though, is that many of them are free.
As you’d expect, London has some real big hitters – the V&A, the Natural History Museum and the British Museum being just a few – but the smaller, off-the-beaten track establishments are worth a visit, too.
In Shoreditch, East London, for example, you’ll find the Geffrye Museum – a row of beautiful old alms houses that have been decorated to reflect England’s changing interior design trends, from Elizabethan times to the 1950s. And just down the road in Bethnal Green you’ll find the V&A’s Museum of Childhood , which has a rather cool selection of children’s toys (don’t miss the giant dolls’ houses).
4) Underground England
While England has so much to offer atop its rolling green fields, along its stunning coast and within its ancient and modern cities, there’s another whole side to the nation that many people miss. Where is this hidden land you ask? Underground, that’s where. From natural caves and subterranean netherworlds, to man-made dungeons and secret bunkers...
Wookey Hole, in Somerset, is probably a good place to start. Here a river flows out of the deep earth, providing of shelter for the early cavemen and a source of pagan and Christian legends since the Iron Age. Today Wookey Hole offers an educational and entertaining experience, with the Wookey’s resident witch always on hand to illuminate the mysteries of the caves.
5) Steamboat Ride on Coniston Water
Most people associate Coniston Water with the speed record attempts made (and broken) by Donald Campbell in the Sixties, but there’s a much more relaxed way to get out on the lake.
Step aboard the good ship Gondola, an original Victorian steamship built in 1859, and you’ll experience what it was like to travel in 19th-century style. She may be old, but Gondola is in rather splendid nick having been fully restored by the National Trust and its band of helpful volunteers.