Holiday apartment in Nottingham: culture, caves and nature

Nottingham combines a layered urban history with unusual underground sites, museums and expansive parkland. Nottingham Castle Museum & Art Gallery presents 1,000 years of history. The museum and galleries at Nottingham Castle cover fine art, lace, Robin Hood and the history of Nottingham Castle.

Culture and history

The National Justice Museum is also closely connected with the city’s past: it is located in Nottingham’s former Shire Hall and County Gaol, where criminal and civil courts were previously held. The Lace Market recalls Nottingham’s role as an industrial centre where intricate lace was produced and became known around the world. Nottingham Playhouse stages theatre productions throughout the year, including classics, family productions and newly commissioned works. In front of the theatre stands Anish Kapoor’s Sky Mirror, which has a diameter of six metres. The sculpture weighs more than 10 tonnes and was installed in 2001.

Another distinctive feature of the cityscape is Green’s Windmill & Science Centre. The restored and operational nineteenth-century tower windmill is also a museum and science centre in Nottingham. At the Science Centre, visitors can experiment with light, electricity and magnetism and learn about the history of George Green. Admission to Green’s Windmill museum, shop and community garden is free. Admission to the exhibitions at Nottingham Contemporary is also free. Expert staff offer building tours there covering Nottingham’s history and the history of Nottingham Contemporary, as well as providing behind-the-scenes insights into the gallery. Nottingham Contemporary is a three-minute walk from the Lace Market tram stop.

Nature and collections

Wollaton Hall adds a Grade I listed Elizabethan mansion set amid 500 acres of natural parkland. The Natural History Museum at Wollaton Hall displays zoological, geological and botanical collections comprising a total of three-quarters of a million specimens. The minerals gallery presents 5,000 rock and mineral specimens, as well as huge ammonites.

Nottingham Arboretum is Nottingham’s oldest public park and is home to an important collection of more than 800 trees. It also offers orienteering with a prepared map and control points. Martin’s Pond is a refuge for wildlife as a Local Nature Reserve.

Underground urban history

Subject to cave availability on the day, Nottingham Castle offers guided tours of Mortimer’s Hole or King David’s Dungeon. The underground history extends even further at the City of Caves: it is the largest publicly accessible part of Nottingham’s extensive underground cave network. The City of Caves includes air-raid shelters from the Second World War and a medieval tannery. Beneath the pub Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem are cave cellars that were used for storing ale for centuries and contain an old cockfighting arena.

Getting around the city centre

The Nottingham Trail is an approximately one- to two-hour circular walk taking in attractions in the city centre. Its stops include castles, caves, pubs, prisons and masterpieces. Nottingham city centre is largely pedestrianised and compact. In addition, Nottingham Express Transit connects shopping, leisure and visitor destinations in Nottingham and the surrounding area; there are five stops in the city centre, including Nottingham Station.

Ice skating and active experiences

The National Ice Centre offers various ice-skating sessions during the week, including family skating, club sessions and foam parties. The lessons programme includes ice hockey, Tots skating, figure skating or ice dancing, as well as speed skating. The National Ice Centre also has its own Tots Zone, where children under five can ice skate for free.

Included services, individual price components, and booking and cancellation conditions may also be important for making a personal decision. This keeps the choice aligned with your own preferences, without having to assume the location, facilities or availability in advance.

Further destinations: Nottinghamshire, Rutland, Derby, Leicester, Northamptonshire, Leicestershire, Derbyshire, Lincolnshire

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