Dear Stratford, we love you!
With your history and culture embedded in the town there is much to fall in love with.
Indeed, love is all around thanks to William Shakespeare, Stratford’s famous son and our greatest poet and playwright whose plays and sonnets have the theme of love running through them and to whom the town dedicates so many of its landmarks.
But we love so many other things about Stratford. It stands proudly on the banks of the River Avon with beautiful gardens and historic buildings such as Holy Trinity Church, Shakespeare’s Birthplace, New Place and Hall’s Croft. The Welcombe Hills, Anne Hathaway’s Cottage and Mary Arden’s Farm are just outside the town.
The 2.5million visitors who come to Stratford each year also love the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, the Butterfly Farm, the MAD Museum and the Guildhall as well as boat trips up and down the river.
A plethora of excellent cafes, restaurants, bars and pubs are dotted around the town, often housed in old buildings, some dating back to Tudor times, and many with views of the river and theatre.
There are shops-a-plenty, both independent and high street chains, offering everything from clothing and footwear to gifts, food, beauty, antiques, art and homeware.
Stratford can be enjoyed all year round thanks to its theatres, cinema, regular markets, a Victorian evening at Christmas, funfairs and Stratford Literary Festival.
It is therefore beloved of those looking to make it their home, with a multitude of properties of different styles and sizes, suitable for young and old.
In the Old Town there are period homes lining narrow streets but go a bit further out and you will find bigger houses, flats and bungalows, old and new builds, offering something for everyone no matter what the budget.
With so many reasons to fall in love with Stratford – what’s your favourite?