12th Nov 2024
With plenty of open countryside and great venues around Linmere, half-term week offers the chance to get to know the places around Linmere. We’ve picked out 4 venues that show Bedfordshire at its finest, whatever the weather. Wrap-up warm and enjoy!
Vets in Action – ZSL Whipsnade Zoo – Half-term week
6 miles from the Farmstead
A trip to ZSL Whipsnade is a must any day of the year. This is Britain’s largest outdoor zoo, set in 600 acres, with adventure playgrounds, fantastic eateries, and stunning views across the Chiltern hills.
Vets in Action gives families a peek into working life at the zoo. A specially created animal hospital, attended by vets and nurses, will take visitors to the heart of the action. The role-play will be coupled with family talks and demonstrations, to open minds on a career in zoology. Sessions run daily from 10:30am and 1:30pm. Access is included in your entry ticket.
Visiting Whipsnade is subject to an entry fee, with tickets required to be booked in advance (using the link below). ZSL members and Under 3s go free.
Located at Whipsnade, Dunstable, LU6 2LF. Entry tickets can be booked using the link here.
Tremendous Trees – Dunstable Downs Visitor Centre
4.5 miles from the Farmstead
Dunstable Downs, situated very close to Linmere, is the highest point in Bedfordshire at 243 metres. It offers outstanding views across the Chiltern Hills, with red kites and gliders souring across its vast skies, best enjoyed from Dunstable Downs View Café.
The Dunstable Downs team are running a trees trail, from the visitor centre, all half-term week, and the weekend. Learn about how you can look after trees and what threats they face. Get your name on newly planted trees and then take a seed to plant at home to grow your very own tree.
Running daily from 10:30am with no booking required. Trail sheets charged at £2 each.
Located at Whipsnade Road, Dunstable, Bedfordshire, LU6 2GY. For more information, prices and entry fees, use the link here.
Make History at Wrest Park
9 miles from the Farmstead
Wrest Park is a country estate, including a Grade 1 listed country house and 92 acres of gardens. The gardens are simply beautiful and set against the extraordinary house, it feels like a piece of Versailles, only a few miles from Linmere.
Make History week gives visitors a chance to join characters from the past, with live performances and a Roman archaeological trail to discover ancient artefacts, coins, and weapons!
Visiting Wrest Park is subject to an entry fee, with discounts tickets available on this link here.
Wrest Park is in Silsoe, Bedfordshire, close to the A6. Access via Barton Road exit to Silsoe from the A6.
Rushmere Country Park
10.5 miles from the Farmstead
Rushmere offers 400 acres of woodland, heathland, and meadows to enjoy the beauty of Bedfordshire in late winter / early spring. With a choice of walking and cycling trails, sculptures, visitors’ café, and a viewing area to watch nesting Herons, this is a perfect place to disappear into nature.
Charges for parking and cycling passes apply. For more details, use the link here.
Rushmere Country Park is in Heath and Reach, close to the A5, not far from Leighton Buzzard.
Linmere is designed to be a place for communities that embraces the natural environment, and where all generations can enjoy a great quality of life. This exciting new collection of leafy and walkable neighbourhoods, situated north of Houghton Regis Bedfordshire, located close to M1 Junction 11a. Nestled into verdant surroundings, its first homes completed and inhabited in 2021. The Land Trust will maintain and preserve these spaces on behalf of Houghton Regis Management Company.
