Here are some ideas of historical places to visit in our area.

Queen Elizabeth Hunting Lodge here you can explore Tudor History here, the lodge was built for Henry V111 in 1543 , he was a frequent visitor as he loved to hunt deer in Epping Forest. The lodge was renovated by order of Queen Elizabeth 1. Admission is free or you can arrange a private tour for £5 per head.

At the lodge you can:

• Find out how the building was constructed, and hunt down mysterious marks left by the carpenters who built the lodge nearly 500 years ago.
• Learn about Tudor food and clothing.
• Relax in the garden where there is plenty of seating or visit the Butler’s Retreat for refreshments.

The Gunpowder Museum, Beaulieu Drive, Waltham Abbey, EN9 1JY Telephone 01992 707 370.

The Gunpowder Museum will be open on Sundays from Easter, over winter it is open for special events so sign up and they will keep you updated on what is planned.

This is a great place for families to visit, you will find out all about gunpowder, explosives and rocket propellants, women at war and armouries. There is lots to see as well as films to watch. Travel back in time and find out more.

There is also a café serving teas, coffees, ices, biscuits and cakes.

Imperial War Museum Duxford, Duxford, Cambridge CB22 4QR

IWM Duxford This is a bit further away but a great day out. One of our Care Professionals, Kevin, has, on several occasions, taken clients here for a special trip out and they have always enjoyed it. Open daily 10am -4pm. Entrance £26.35.

It is Europe’s largest air museum with lots of aircraft to see close up and personal stories to find out about. There is so much here. Time here looking at everything just flies by(!)

My mother went last week and had an amazing time. The staff are all so friendly and knowledgeable. There are lots of WW2 aircraft plus more modern craft and there is even Concorde which you can go inside and see the cockpit.

From one end of the site to the other is over a mile so there is a hop on and off transport for you to use. There are also wheelchairs available and easy access to all areas.

There is a café by the visitor centre, the Armoury Café offering snacks and refreshments. The restaurant, the Workshop Restaurant is closed until April 2023.

Epping Ongar Heritage Railway, Station Approach. Ongar CM5 9BN Telephone 01277 365200

The Epping and Ongar Railway is a great place to visit. Special events planned throughout the year incorporating vintage buses, heritage steam and diesel hauled trains. Sign up for their newsletter to have details of what is on when. A great way to travel in a way of a bygone era.

Tickets (concessions) are usually £12 for the whole day.

I took my children and grandmother on the Halloween Special last year it was great fun for all of us! We dressed up with a liberal amount of face paint as a result of my daughter’s input! I think it was the first time my grandmother had had a green face and she is 88 years old! My grandmother was particularly interested in the day out as her own father had worked on the railways all his life.