See some of the world’s best digital works of art as a V&A touring exhibition makes its first stop in Chester, and immerse yourself in Sven Werner’s audiovisual dreamscape at its global premiere at Storyhouse. See Susie MacMurray’s captivating new textile installation, ‘Gathering’, at Tatton Park, and travel back to the days of the industrial revolution at Ellesmere Port on patrol with a night watchman. Read on for more fascinating ways to investigate how our world works.
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The Silk Museum |
Tatton Park |
Anderton Boat Lift |
Lion Salt Works |
Macclesfield
*Reopening 17th September 2020*
From cocoon to loom, find out how this old market town shot to global manufacturing fame at the Silk Museum and neighbouring Paradise Mill.
Reopening Thursday 17th September on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays 10am - 4pm.
Visitors will need to pre-book hourly slots which start at 10am with each hour slot having capacity for up to six visitors. This means that there’s plenty of space to explore and enjoy the collections in our largest ground floor gallery – the Red Room. Pre-book your tickets through the Macclesfield Museums website, or through Art Tickets.
Macclesfield once hummed with the sound of silk looms, music to the ears of the mill owners that prospered here in the 19th century.
Admire Europe’s largest-known collection of Jacquard silk handlooms and learn the secrets of these unique textile machines on a tour with an expert – their workings are thought to have been the crucible for computer programming. Pore over the remarkable collection of more than 1,000 pattern books, see stunning costumes made of the finest silk, and study an outstanding collection of Ancient Egyptian artefacts, including Tutankhamun’s ring, gathered by the daughter of one of the town’s leading families.
Macclesfield is still a place where fabric-making flourishes – at the Makers’ Place get expert insights from today’s craftspeople and pick up a truly special souvenir.
Knutsford
**#1 National Trust Garden in the UK 2020**
**Team of the Year Award Winner 2019**
**#1 National Trust Garden in the UK 2020**
**Team of the Year Award Winner 2019**
Tatton Park’s Parkland, Stables take-away and Housekeeper’s Store will remain covid-safe and open under new national lockdown rules from 6 January 2021, in line with Government guidelines permitting local outdoor exercise, food shops and take-away food. Please check Lockdown regulations before travelling and stay local.
The Gardens, Farm, Mansion, Gardener’s Cottage Tea Room and Gift are currently closed until further notice.
The winter season brings many fantastic things to see an fresh air to inhale in Tatton park’s 1,000 acres of Parkland. Discover numerous walking trails, spectacular views and observe wildlife in their natural habitat. Look out for the two types of deer (Red and Fallow) and see what birds you can spot on your outdoor adventures.
Little explorers will love our Winter Scavenger Hunt, available to download from tattonpark.org.uk or pick up a copy onsite and enhance your winter adventures outdoors with tracks to hunt for, birds to search for and winter wonders to enjoy.
Read Tatton Park’s latest covid-19 update for details on what is open and what to expect on your visit/
**Experience of the Year Award Winner 2019**
Marvel at the miraculous feat of Victorian engineering they call the ‘Cathedral of the Canals’. No wonder it won Visit England’s 2018 Large Visitor Attraction Of The Year - Take a 30-minute boat ride up or down the lift to get the inside track on its workings. If you’ve got a head for heights, try Walking The Lift; venture out along the aqueduct to see the former control room and machine deck, then climb to the very top of this impressive structure for wonderful panoramic views. Little ones will love the new Let’s Play outdoor area, complete with a mock-up of Anderton’s bridge, control house and mooring area, and, inside the Visitor Centre, a lift-themed craft area where young imaginations can fly. Check out, too, the fascinating exhibition about this unique spectacle.
Northwich
Cheshire’s salt – the precious mineral on which this county sits – has been prized since Roman times.
It’s a story brilliantly told at the Lion Salt Works, one of the last open-pan sites in the world, an intriguing warren of stove, boiler and pan houses renovated to reveal how salt was extracted from the underground brine lakes and transformed into a coveted commodity. Immerse yourself in the high-tech wizardry of Salt Pan 3, which recreates the steamy and dangerous conditions where bare-chested men toiled over great vats of the boiling brine. Stand at the bar in the old Red Lion pub, where the workers were once served refreshing pints of beer with a replenishing pinch of salt. Spot the worker’s boots encrusted with salt crystals and the sardine tins that, curiously, wages were paid in. Then step out on the towpath of the Trent & Mersey Canal, where salt was once hauled to Liverpool’s docks, the gateway to the world.
From | To | Distance * (metric) |
---|---|---|
The Silk Museum (53.25754,-2.12736) | Tatton Park (53.33615,-2.38866) | 17.52 |
Tatton Park (53.33615,-2.38866) | Anderton Boat Lift (53.2745,-2.52763) | 10.36 |
Anderton Boat Lift (53.2745,-2.52763) | Lion Salt Works (53.2752,-2.49549) | 1.93 |
Total Distance * | 29.8 miles | |
Estimated Journey Time | 58 minutes |
* Approximate distance by road