Best Nature and Parks (RV, National, Dog, etc) in St Helens

"Calderstones is filled with such a vast number of little pleasantries and surprises that you just can’t help but love it. Their Reader Café offers books for customers to read while eating, there are plenty of open spaces upon which to kick back and enjoy a beer, while the Storybarn - an interactive story-centre aimed at getting children to embrace a love of reading - is nothing short of inspired. There’s a model railway, too."

"Historic Calderstones Park is set in 126-acres of lush woodland, offering the perfect expanse of green and leafy goodness, including the 1000 year-old, Allerton Oak tree. Enjoy exploring the beautiful Japanese and Old English botanical gardens, and while you’re visiting, you can grab a coffee, snacks and ice cream from recently re-opened Reader Café between 12pm-5pm. Further details here"

"Calderstones Park is a stunning 94-acre park in South Liverpool boasting woodland, lake and fields, with botanical and historical interest. This park is in fact named after its ancient megaliths. Also home to a 1000-year-old oak, look out for its hollow trunk and branches supported by stakes."

"Kids from age four are going to enjoy exploring this property on 32 acres of picturesque parkland. It offers an ideal space for picnics, kickabouts, and there are bouncy slide and trampolines, pitch n putt, and other outdoor activities that will keep the children busy. Also available for exploration in the garden is the children’s zoo, where they will meet parrots, shetland ponies, ferrets, chipmunks, rabbits, Herdwick sheep, chickens, pygmy goats, red squirrels, geese, guinea pigs, and ducks."

"A treasured monument and attraction in Warrington, Walton Hall is a Jacobean Revival mansion, built in the 1830s for Sir Gilbert Greenall, an MP who had a 45-year career at the House of Commons. The house has been owned by the council since 1941 and hosts chamber music concerts and can be hired out for weddings and other events. Immediately outside the house is a formal garden, while there are ample facilities for families in the park."

"Fletcher Moss Park is a wide network of paths around the area around the Gardens, through Stenner Woods, round Millgate Fields, and along the river Mersey. Much of the area is a Local Nature reserve and there is a variety of wildlife to see and vistas to enjoy. At first, finding your way around can be a little confusing, and a map of the area might help."

"Fletcher Moss Park is located in Didsbury and is a great place to go if you really appreciate nature. The pathways take you through some lovely scenery, making it an ideal place to take a long, relaxing walk. There’s also a café on-site for when you’re feeling a bit peckish, and you could get a little picnic going with your household/bubble."

"If you’re going to be visiting Legoland, be aware that Manchester’s SEA LIFE centre is located right next door and a joint ticket can be purchased for both destinations. You can roam the centre, walking through tunnels of exotic fish and coming face to face with sharks and stingrays; your kids can also have a go at diving in the immersive sea trek experience. Anyone can participate in this fantastic activity (the only one of its kind in Europe), wearing a special breath-easy helmet and a wetsuit to ensure that they are safe and comfortable during the ten-minute dive into the deep."

"While the country house at Hare Hill Hall is privately owned, the garden is cared for by the National Trust. The star here is the walled garden, a blaze of colour in early-summer when the rhododendrons and azaleas burst into flower. There are also uncommon varieties of poppy, iris, lupin, phlox and echinacea."

"Lunt Meadows Nature Reserve is a place brimming in an abundance of the many wildlife that you can find in this area. A nature reserve consisted of wetlands and tillable land, this is certainly the best place to be closer to nature with the thriving population of different birds and water voles. From spot marsh harriers, barn owls, sparrowhawks and peregrine falcons, as well as, lapwings, redshank, dunlin and oystercatchers you would certainly feel amazed exploring the place and the wildlife known in the area."

"Nestling alongside the River Alt, Lunt Village is home to this peaceful haven of wildlife and tranquility. You’ll find an assortment of inhabitants at this bird-watching site; from water birds to barn owls, geese and kestrels, as you make your way around signposted paths at this wonderful wetland nature reserve. Further details here"

"A post shared by Miš Lov (@mish_lov) on Jul 16, 2018 at 8:07am PDT. Lunt Meadows is a little-explored, quiet wetland reserve perfect for kids, walkers, and twitchers. There’s even a chance to explore an active archegonial site, woodlands, and go for a stroll along the banks of the River Alt."

"When the Princes Dock tower is completed, it will slot into third in the list of Liverpool’s tallest structures, which is currently occupied by the Liverpool Cathedral. The Anglican Cathedral stands at 101 metres tall (331ft) - thanks to its beautiful bell tower, which visitors can go up and take in a stunning view of the city."

"Anglican Cathedral is the largest cathedral in England, but its Catholic Metropolitan counterpart is just as impressive. Apart from that, museums, galleries and stunning parks guarantee a fantastic experience."

"84 Plymouth Grove is known now as Elizabeth Gaskell's House, a small museum dedicated to Victorian literature and life. The Grade II listed neoclassical villa was once the residence of William and Elizabeth Gaskell, Manchester's most famous Victorian writer, and the rooms have been preserved to showcase her life. There is also a scenic garden, which has been planted to detail the sort of garden the Gaskells would have had back in the day."

"What’s boss about Liverpool’s brewery scene is the sheer scope of it. You’ve got your microbreweries and then you’ve got a renovated rubber factory transformed into an 18,000 hectolitre brewery capable of producing more than three million pints. The latter goes by the name of Love Lane Brewery and houses a family of beers and gins under one roof, designed to keep the city’s rich brewing heritage alive."

"If you care about craft beer, you care about the process of it being made. Love Lane Brewery is a Liverpool bar that lets you enjoy your drink right in the heart of it all with an on-site brewery and kitchen. With delicious meals and an open layout, there's nothing to close you off to this awesome spot."

"Contact Theatre will be heading out across Manchester this summer for a series of outdoor performances. Contact is an Oxford Road theatre and performing arts venue creating and producing its own shows, as well as hosting tours from the world’s best theatre companies. Contact will be heading out across the city this summer, delivering a series of outdoor performances before its building reopens to the public in September 2021."

"Situated on Seel Street – one of the best streets in the city for bars and venues – Hot Water Comedy Club is Liverpool’s only purpose-built comedy venue and comes highly recommended. With comedy shows seven nights a week, this is up there with the best for catching the next big thing in the comedian world. Promoters at Hot Water are also regularly bringing the best comedians to shows in The Wirral, Manchester and at Edinburgh Fringe Festival."

"A post shared by Hot Water Comedy Club (@hwccliverpool) on Jan 1, 2017 at 6:57am PST. As Liverpool’s only purpose built comedy venue, Hot Water Comedy Club is the place where you’ll find live a good laugh 7 nights a week; come rain, some shine. It’s an independent comedy club in the Ropewalks areas of the city, run by two brothers, which originally began as a weekly comedy night to round off the weekend on a high, and it grew from there."

"One of the best outdoor restaurants in Manchester, The Ape & Apple is an ideal pitstop after a long day of exploring the city. With friendly locals, monthly-changing ales and a secret terrace out the back, this place ticks all of our alfresco dining boxes."