Top Things to do in Carlisle
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Top 10 Things to do in Carlisle, England
Discover the best top things to do in Carlisle, United Kingdom including Carlisle Cathedral, Tullie House Museum & Art Gallery, Solway Aviation Museum, Watchtree Nature Reserve, Talkin Tarn Park, Hadrian's Wall, Scaleby Hill Vintage motor bike museum, Bitts Park, Cumbria's Museum of Military Life, Carlisle Castle.
Restaurants in Carlisle
1. Carlisle Cathedral
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 1,528 reviews
Discover 900 years of faith and history the heart of Carlisle at one of The Border City's most visited attractions. Discover rare treasures, medieval paintings, stained glass and stunning architecture... Discover the turbulent story of the Borderlands - of kings, queens, bishops and rebels... Discover worship and music beneath our heavenly starlight ceiling... Discover peace and tranquility in the city centre... Discover more... Treasury exhibition, Gift Shop, expert Guides and Welcomers, and a treasure trail for young explorers. Free entry. Open daily.
Reviewed By frankart_10 - Lymington, United Kingdom
I love visiting cathedrals. I love the architecture, the magnificence, and the peace that they bestow upon the visitor. This is something a bit different. It's a very small cathedral, as cathedrals go. I'm not sure if it qualifies as being the smallest, but it will be thereabouts. It has an exceptionally fine painted ceiling, beautiful choir stalls of carved oak, and a wonderful organ, with majestic organ pipes. One might imagine, with all the stops out, the blast and vibration this makes must totally fill this small cathedral. There is good stained glass, a goodly collection of statues and monuments, and plenty of decorative silverware on the high altar and elsewhere. It's set in very pleasant grounds and adjacent to the cathedral is the old Abbey, currently undergoing a modern extension to provide a refectory snd learning centre. That I think is a good idea, but I"m not totally convinced by the design. The cathedral is pretty much in the heart of the city. Carlisle is not a large city, so it's walkable from almost any point in the town, and it's well worth a visit.
2. Tullie House Museum & Art Gallery
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 871 reviews
Reviewed By TurkeyTwizzlerMark - Sunderland, United Kingdom
Tullie house is a fantastic little museum, Roman section is excellent and very informative, the staff on reception desk are welcoming and very informative, interactive areas for children around the museum are well thought out and keep the children interested. Cafe is also worth a visit, I left my reading glasses in the cafe during my visit, rang the museum the following day and they posted them to my home address as we were heading home that day. All in all a informative museum with friendly and dedicated staff, well worth a visit.
3. Solway Aviation Museum
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 419 reviews
The Museum is open from Easter until the last weekend in October on a Friday & Saturday. We are also open on the Bank Holiday Mondays. We have some exciting new exhibits demonstrating the close ties that existed between the RAF and the City of Carlisle. We're also home to a collection of aircraft, aviation artifact's and displays some reflecting Britain's position as a world leader in aircraft design and innovation and the main developer and manufacturer of a reliable jet engine. The museum's primary objective is the preservation of our Aviation heritage, its display and interpretation. Take a nostalgic journey back to Wartime Cumberland or climb aboard a Vulcan Bomber and experience the conditions the crew faced that would have had to deliver Britain's nuclear deterrent in the 60's. The museum is a Registered Charity and is run by a dedicated team of friendly and enthusiastic volunteers who give up their free time to painstakingly restore many of the exhibits. Through their love and knowledge they are preserving aviation history for generations to come.
Reviewed By PWMcC - Newtownabbey, United Kingdom
Visited here with a friend and my 9 year old son. There is an excellent variety of civilian and military aircraft including a Vulcan which is impressive. You can access to the inside of the Vulcan which I would recommend. There is also an indoor exhibition and the staff here were extremely helpful explaining things to my curious 9 year old. There is also a cut away section of a BA trident where you can see the cockpit of this classic aircraft.
4. Watchtree Nature Reserve
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 121 reviews
Reviewed By Madturkey - Edinburgh, United Kingdom
Visited this nature reserve twice on a recent holiday to Carlisle. The wide open, flat and well surfaced paths, based on the runways of a WW2 airfield, are perfect for pottering about on bikes with younger children, especially as you can hire bikes for a very reasonable price. We also hired a two-seat kart for our non-cycling youngster so he could keep up with his older brothers (while I did the pedalling!). I found it very theraputic to listen to the noise of the wind-turbines too, which I'd never heard close up before. There are various information boards dotted around the site which explain the history and also some of the wildlife you may see. You're not just restricted to the cycle paths as there are a few tracks that head off to allow a more sedate experience. On-site local burgers and sausages were deliciious too.
5. Talkin Tarn Park
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 728 reviews
Reviewed By JOHNTY49
Enjoyed a lovely walk around the tarn earlier this week, the colours were fantastic, it was great to walk and kick the leaves. We were so looking forward to having a hot drink at the snack bar before we left but found that they only took card payments, and my card was in the car so we decided not to bother. Cant wait to go back, I will take my card next time.
6. Hadrian's Wall
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 678 reviews
Discover Lakeland provides bespoke guided tours along Hadrian's Wall. All tours are personalised to your interests and requirements. Transport and baggage transfers can also be arranged.
Reviewed By SarahC186534 - Glasgow, United Kingdom
Well signposted locations and excellent facilities at Birdoswald Roman Fort! Parking areas along the way to view features of the Wall.
7. Scaleby Hill Vintage motor bike museum
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 70 reviews
Reviewed By Vincent1951
What a gem of a place, from the outside it looks so small but when you go inside its like a Tardis. The owner is passionate about everything on display and will answer any questions you may have with enthusiasm. There are gardens for the kids to play and some animals for them to meet { weather permitting } If you have any interest at all in old motorcycles, old memorabilia or just interesting things this place is defiantly worth a visit.
8. Bitts Park
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 141 reviews
Reviewed By C3869NUsamantham
We came here on our way to solway holiday village to let the kids have a play before continuing our journey. We were surprised at how good it was. There was a lack of seating but we sat on grass as weather was good. The children enjoyed the range of equipment and the sand pit. We saw a sign for toilets but we didn’t use them as we weren’t sure if they were open or how far we’d have to walk to get them. We walked across road (1 minute) to toilets at indoor market. We paid for 2 hours parking at £2.40. This place is handy for walking into Carlisle town centre and seeing Carlisle Castle which you can see the wall from park. We also took a wander across over road bridge and saw the Abbey and Cathedral. I would highly recommend a visit here for 3-4 hours to see if all .
9. Cumbria's Museum of Military Life
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 193 reviews
'Ordinary people doing extraordinary things' Cumbria's Museum of Military Life is a new interactive visitor attraction for all ages located in Carlisle Castle. The Museum tells the 300 year story of the history of The Border Regiment and its successors through audio/visual displays, artefacts, photographs and interactive environments. The Museum also facilitates research enquiries.
Reviewed By I8870SPdarrenb - The Royal Town of Sutton Coldfield, United Kingdom
Went today, 27th July, having visited 10 years ago, we were thoroughly surprised by the new and improved Museum, the layout of through the ages military history especially with the exhibits that lie close to the heartbeat of the local area and surroundings is of particular interest - well worth a visit as part of the Castle tour / admission
10. Carlisle Castle
Overall Ratings
4.0 based on 1,285 reviews
Reviewed By negativecamber - Broadway, United Kingdom
Carlisle Castle is such an interesting place to visit and has had such a turbulent history being so close to the Scottish Border. Mary Queen of Scots was kept prisoner there Bonnie Prince Charlie also had connections there and the Borders Reivers raiders who were around from 13th to 17th century. There is also a very interesting museum of Military Life dedicated to the Border Regiment their history right up to today. The museum is an extra cost on top of the castle entrance, but English Heritage members go in free the same as the castle
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