If you’re coming from Bath or Bradford on Avon, park for free right in the centre of town in the car park by the river. First you’ll come across the flea market, with loads of stalls selling vintage clothes, homewares and collectables. Retro Magpie is great for picking up some mid century bits.

As you leave the flea market, you’ll find an array of food stalls serving everything from woodfired pizza to churros, pulled pork rolls to Greek wraps. Moving onwards through town, the Farmers Market has all sorts of delights to take home – there are some particularly tempting cake stalls.

Take a wander up Catherine Hill, where artisan producers display their wares and many of the quirky independent shops are open – Mary Kilvert is great for gifts.

On market day the whole town has a really vibrant, friendly atmosphere quite unlike anywhere else. It’s enough to make you want to move!

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This annual festival sees around a dozen private gardens opened to the public, giving visitors the opportunity to see the town from an entirely different perspective. From tiny courtyards to grand lawns, a wander round these usually hidden parts of town makes for a perfect Sunday afternoon, and you can usually pick up a few plants or pause for some home made cake along the way. Tickets are available from the town’s Information Centre in Westbury House Gardens.

The middle week of July also sees Lynchetts hosting Bradford on Avon’s Sculpture Garden for the second year running. Showing pieces from around twenty local artists, the exhibition makes perfect use of the garden’s different areas, from the wildness of the orchard to the formality of the stone terraces.

Sculpture Garden at Lynchetts 2013

Sculpture Garden at Lynchetts 2013

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For younger children, a bus or train trip is an adventure in itself, and Bath is easily reached from Bradford on Avon by either means. The train takes around 12 minutes, the bus just over half an hour, both travelling through the beautiful Limpley Stoke valley and offering a stress free alternative to negotiating Bath’s traffic and parking.

Bath is full of beautiful green spaces, from the enormous Victoria Park with its extensive playpark, to the sedate Parade Gardens which is a great spot for a picnic lunch. You can get right down to the river’s edge – watch out for the hundreds of fish hovering in the warm currents. A favourite park with children is Sydney Gardens – the train track runs right through here and the drivers will often give a wave and a hoot of their horn. The Holburne Museum in the centre of the park has a lovely cafe and runs regular family events, while the little kiosk by the park gates serves fantastic ice-cream. There’s also a small playground tucked away in a corner.

From Sydney Gardens you can step straight out onto the Kennett and Avon canal towpath, perfect for a level walk and easy with pushchairs or bikes. Turning left from Sydney Gardens takes you out into tranquil countryside – you can often spot herons and kingfishers – while turning right brings you towards Bathwick and Widcombe, where elegant Georgian villas have boats moored at the end of their canal-side gardens.

Bath’s sports centre is looking a bit grimy round the edges, but the leisure pool keeps children happily entertained with a shallow sloping area for little ones and two waterslides for older ones. There are two cinemas, both offering children’s clubs on a Saturday, while the Egg Theatre has various productions for children aged 3 upwards. The Egg also has a very family friendly cafe, with plenty of space for pushchairs.

A favourite destination for the under fives is My Small World, a magical toyshop where children are actively encouraged to play with the toys. It now has its own wonderful cafe, with more toys to play with and delicious cakes, snacks and lunches.

If you’re visiting the area with children, we can accommodate babies up to around 2 (or as long as they’re happy in a travel cot) at the Studio, while Hollyhocks is perfectly suited to a family of four with its double and twin rooms.

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Hollyhocks is a pretty two bedroom cottage in Bradford on Avon, around 5 minutes walk from the town centre. It has a cosy living room with comfortable sofas and an open fire, a sunny kitchen/dining room, two bedrooms (one with king sized double; one twin), and a bathroom with corner bathroom and shower over. Outside you’ll find a lovely level, south facing garden, perfect for sitting out and enjoying a glass of wine or a barbeque.

Hollyhocks is fully equipped with oven, microwave, fridge and freezer, but if you don’t feel like cooking, the highly recommended Castle pub is a short walk away.

The cottage sleeps 4 plus a cot, and is the perfect base for two couples or a family wanting to explore Wiltshire, Bath and the Cotswolds.

For prices and booking information, you can visit the website www.stayathollyhocks.co.uk or find us on Holiday Lettings.

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If you planning to come to any of these events and looking at our calendar only to find we’re fully booked, fear not! We have just opened a new property in Bradford on Avon – a two bedroom cottage with open fire and a pretty garden. Do get in touch if you’d like more information, or watch this space for details.

Our new property Hollyhocks, a two bedroom cottage in Bradford on Avon

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So how might you spend a day here? First, enjoy breakfast in one of the town’s cafés, perhaps some classic French patisserie at the Ale and Porter, or a full English up at the Castle Inn. Find out more about Bradford at the Town Museum, tucked away above the Library. Take some time to browse the shops along Silver Street, the Shambles and up Market Street – you will find ladies’ designer clothes, kitchenware, gifts, jewellery and an excellent toy and childrensware shop.

If you follow Market Street up past the shops, and turn left along Newtown, you will find various paths and steps leading up to Middle Rank and Tory. These lovely weavers’ cottages are worth exploring, not least for the amazing views they offer across the town to Westbury White Horse. If you follow Tory along to the end, you will find the wonderful Chapel of St Mary’s which occupies a tranquil spot above the town. Heading back down into town, don’t miss the Saxon Church, dating from the early 11^th Century.

If you’re still feeling energetic after lunch, Bradford-on-Avon is the starting point for many beautiful walks. We particularly recommend the Two Valleys walk, which takes you through Iford – don’t miss the Italianate gardens if you’re visiting between April and October. If, on the other hand, you’d prefer something more relaxing, how about visiting the spa at Woolley Grange Hotel? The Hotel is a 20 minute walk from the Studio, and offers a range of treatments, as well as the opportunity to enjoy afternoon tea in a cosy sitting room or extensive gardens.

After all that, you’ll probably want a quiet evening in, and we have lots of books, DVDs and records for you to enjoy. Bradford-on-Avon has some great takeaways including Italian and Indian, so you needn’t bother cooking. Just relax in front of the woodburner with some delicious and unusual wine or beer from fantastic independent off-licence Ruby Red.

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An undoubted draw is the Bath Christmas Market, which runs from 22^nd November to 9^th December. The streets around the Abbey are lined with little wooden chalets, selling all manner of crafts and gifts. The best time to visit is early evening, when the lights are twinkling and it would seem rude not to indulge in a mulled wine or two.

On Saturdays during the Christmas Market, there will be regular carol services at the Abbey. The services only last 20 minutes but offer a great escape from the market crowds and a few moments of peaceful reflection.

New for this year is the ice rink, which will soon be in place in front of the Royal Crescent. This must be one of the loveliest settings for an hour’s skating, and there will be a café serving hot chocolate and other snacks to keep you going. It’s expected to get very busy, so if you can, book ahead.

Even without the Christmas specials, Bath is a wonderful place for shopping and for searching out unusual gifts. Head away from the chains of the Southgate Centre and explore Milsom Street, Broad Street and Walcot Street – we rarely pass a Christmas or birthday without buying at least one thing from Shannon, a paradise for lovers of Scandinavian design.

If all the shopping gets too much, there is no shortage of places to stop for coffee and cake. Current favourites are The Society Café, a relative newcomer but already extremely popular thanks to its stunning interior, great coffee and cakes, and friendly staff. For serious coffee drinkers, Colonna and Smalls shouldn’t be missed.

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