On the way over from Bristol to break up the trip to Windsor, we’d decided to swing by Stone Henge. As it’s about £60 for a family ticket and we’d just paid for the castle, we wondered if you could cheekily see the Henge for free. On Googling we found that you could. Great.
Plugged Fargo Rd, Amesbury into the satnav as instructed, with a vague plan of looking for a gravel path when we got there.
Fargo road is quite long. We drove past some military barracks then into some kind of housing estate. Interest was waning in the whole plan. We drove up and down a few more times only to find there were several gravel paths but most of them instructed us to, “Get off my land,” or words to that effect. We chose one at random without the, “You are trespassing,” sign on it and, contrary to all expectation and much like a spiritual vision, the Henge came into view.
The missing part of our instructions was that you are looking for the junction of Fargo and Willoughby Road
A 15 minute walk takes you past some hippy campervans to a National Trust emblem (never felt so welcome) indicating a perfectly permissible walk though a small field to the stones. You stand on the other side of a knee-high wire fence to the fee paying crowds. I’d say there was a 50/50 split of freeloaders and fee payers. Now obviously you don’t get the full historical picture but last I heard the historians hadn’t worked out its secrets yet anyway. You can practically stand on the metal marker showing the sun’s solstice path, and is it perfect for a flying visit. (You could always make a charitable donation online if you are feeling bad about being a robber by omission.)
After struggling to find the stones, no one was really up for an hour’s diversion to fail to find a white horse so we popped that idea on a shelf for next time and set off for the hotel in Windsor.
Ha! I love the compare / contrast with Lego builds and real-life holidays! I always have mixed feelings about Legoland, the queues are insane but the rides are fun, we love the miniland and it’s just about the kids favourite place to go. We’ve yet to go to Windsor, which is ridiculous because it’s only 45mins drive away from us!
I know what you mean about the queues getting in the way of the fun. I feel the same about Disney. On balance though I think it’s worth it – especially at the minute while it is a bit more empty. ( I did love seeing a pub I had recently been to depicted in Lego.)😊
Ahh I loved visiting Legoland when I was younger! Such a fun day out! Whilst I don’t have kids myself, I really enjoyed the humour in this post! I want to explore Windsor Castle myself and hopefully I can get to the bottom of what happened to the King and Queen of Hawaii! 😂
I think Lego is for everyone don’t you? Yes, not a happy end for the Hawaiian royal family. I really should investigate further myself.
Some great options for Windsor with the family! We love Legoland and it is good to see they are putting in precautions in the current climate! Thanks for keeping us updated!
It did feel pretty safe I have to say. The lack of crowds was great for distancing and just general enjoyment.
What a fun experience. It always amazes me to see all the amazing things you can create with Legos. I also still need to go to Windsor and had no idea you could go to Stonehenge for free! So good to know!
The Stonehenge free visit was a new one to me too. Very handy to know. (Also – Lego is great isn’t it?)😊
I have taken exactly the same photo of the garden at Windsor Castle, just horizontal. 🙂 Windsor is such a nice place to visit. Reading your post, I see that there are quite a few attractions around as well.
That’s funny! It is very photogenic! I really want to go back for a boat trip and maybe walk the long drive.
I haven’t been there and it looks so much fun – and Lego is just too great in so many ways, right?! 🙂
What is it about Lego that is so pleasing? It just is.😊
Ha Legoland looks so fun, although it’s interesting to read about their precautions as I’ve read about Alton Towers being really good with cleaning the rides etc – but the person writing that may not have been as observant, or cared whether they were doing it every time, so it might have been exactly the same. Also I had no idea you could visit Stonehenge for free!! I might have to check that out, I’ve only seen it once when I’ve driven past. Sorry to hear the birthday meal didn’t go to plan – so hard to plan anything at the moment, yet so hard to be spontaneous as well!
You are so right about planning at the moment. I have learnt the meal lesson and booked a restaurant for our upcoming London trip – but with no idea whether they will be locked down again by they I can’t book any trains or tickets for events. (I’ve gone for the V and A as it’s free.) Hope you get to stop at Stonehenge next time you swing by, we used to drive straight past too.
I love Windsor so much to see and do
Legoland Windsor looks like a lot of fun. We’ve only been to Legoland Denmark and loved that one.
I think the whole family would love to go to Demark, home of Lego.😊
I have so many happy memories from visiting Legoland as a child. It really is a great themepark!
I only found it as an adult but loved it as much as the kids. Especially the mini Lego cityscapes.
Amazing tip about seeing Stonehenge for free! I found the ticket to be quite pricey when I visited. Thanks for sharing your experience about visiting Legoland during the pandemic.
Glad the Stonehenge tip was useful. Yes it is quite pricey – we have used Blue Peter badges in the past to get the kids in free. I think Tesco’s also allow point to be turned into prizes. There were pretty good deals offered by Legoland website itself when I was booking this time.
So fun! The park looks similar to our Legoland here near San Diego, yet somehow more impressive?? Windsor Castle looks gorgeous, and is definitely on my list!
Did not know they have Legoland in America! Hope you make it to Windsor one day – it is fab.
I didnt know you could see stone henge for free, hopefully you find it next time!!
Thank you for such a thorough, informative post. The tip about Stone Henge is really handy, I’m all for supporting National Trust but £60 seems a little excessive!
Katrina x
#MischiefAndMemories
My kids love Legoland. I would add that as soon as you get n head straight to the other end of the park and do those rides before the queues get huge. Then work your way back. We love the shows they put on too. Last time we went my youngest has been in hospital with a virus. Although he was on the mend he was wiped out. There was no way he could have walked round the place. We no longer owned a buggy, but we hired one of theirs for the day and it was a lifesaver. #mishciefandmayhem
We live half an hour from Windsor but have only been to Legoland once (it was great and we’d love to go again now that our youngest is older so can go on more rides). We have been to Windsor several times though to visit the castle and museum. Thanks for linking up with #mischiefandmemories
We haven’t been anywhere like this since Covid & I think it will be a long time before we do – the kids love Legoland #mischiefandmemories
Loving the tip for seeing stonehenge! My kids have been pestering endlessly to go back to legoland as they love it there. As soon as it opens again I am sure we will be heading back again.
#MischiefAndMemories
I love that tip about Stonehenge! What a giggle and it’s great to hear that you did actually manage to get a brilliant view. The £60 ish ticket for a family is a huge amount really to be honest – so this is going to help so many families. Thank you for sharing these fab tips over on #MischiefAndMemories xx
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