Until November 1, 10.30am to 5pm

Small Breeds Farm Park and Owl Centre, Kington

For the foreseeable future all the centre’s animals will be displayed outdoors - when it rains, they will have ample cover and comfortable straw beds. As it is not possible to allow visitors to congregate in enclosed spaces, all buildings will be closed. A numbered one-way system is in operation around the Owl Centre and the Farm in order to encourage natural social distancing. No booking required to go and see the pygmy goats, miniature horses and donkeys and, of course, the owls...

owlcentre.com

July 21 to August 20

Oaker Wood Leisure

Multi-Activity Days for children aged 7-12. Full days of fun and adventure running around in the wood and experiencing a wide range of Adventurous Activities - Zip Wires, Climbing, Assault Course, Outdoor Pizza Making, Camp fires and much more.

Quad trekking for family and friends - just for your family or group of friends so no problem with social distancing. Sessions for up to five people.

Activity days for 11-16 year olds

High ropes - 9.30am-12 noon: Activities will be taken from a selection of Oaker Wood’s challenging High Ropes activities.

Paintball - 12.45- 3.30pm: Three hours of running around in the woods playing some fantastic Paintball scenarios.

For full details, including pricing, and to book, visit oakerwoodleisure.co.uk

July opening hours, Wednesday to Sunday, 10.30am to 5pm

Hampton Court Castle

The majority of the gardens and grounds are now open again to visitors, with the situation constantly under review. Areas open are the Kitchen Gardens; formal gardens; river walk (all following a one-way system); the Dutch Garden, castle grounds and The Orangery Cafe. The maze, sunken garden, play area, gift shop and castle tours are closed. Follow Hampton Court Castle on Facebook and Instagram for up-to-date information.

hamptoncourtcastle.co.uk

July 22 to August 31, 10.30am to 5.30pm.

Eastnor Castle

Summer holiday opening - all facilities and attractions, except the maze, will be open from Wednesday, July 22 to Monday, August 31 (Wednesday to Sunday every week, plus August Bank Holiday Monday)

Tickets are limited and you’re asked to book online where possible. Booking opens on Friday, July 17.

eastnorcastle.com

Ralph Court Gardens

Twelve unique gardens to explore - from Italy to Africa, via Japan and down the rabbit hole with Alice, transport yourself around the world and beyond into a mythical-fantasy world.

With a surprise around every corner, the gardens are for all ages and wheel-chair friendly.

“What a magical and imaginative place it was. We thoroughly enjoyed our stay and wish to thank you for the pleasure it gave us.”

ralphcourtgardens.co.uk

Queenswood Country Park

The Arboretum and woodlands are open to walk in but you’re asked to follow government guidelines on social distancing and advised to keep dogs on leads throughout the site.

The playground has re-opened with the advice that no more than six children enter the play area at one time, with one adult per child. If demand is high, you’re asked to limit your child to 30 minutes’ play and no food or drink are to be consumed within the play area.

queenswoodandbodenhamlake.org

National Trust properties - Berrington Hall, Croft Castle, Brockhampton Court

The gardens, parkland, car park and toilets at Berrington Hall are now open, but you’ll need to book tickets before you visit. Members can book for free, while non-members will need to pay when booking. Tickets will be released every Friday, but note that you will be turned way if you arrive and have not booked. The National Trust’s Weir Garden remains closed.

nationaltrust.org.uk

Go Ape

Forest of Dean Mallards Pike and Beechenhurst, and Wyre Forest

After many weeks indoors, Go Ape is now taking bookings.

Choose from the Treetop Adventure (4+), available at Beechenhurst; or Treetop Challenge available at Mallards Pike and Wyre Forest, for thrill seekers who love canopy high tree-to-trees crossings, free-fall Tarzan Swings and riding super-fast, very long zips.

goape.co.uk

Battlelands, Ewyas Harold

A family run activity centre based in the Herefordshire hills offering three great activities; Paintball, Laser Clay Shooting and Splatmaster. New this year is Viking Games, a fantastic range of viking inspired group activities. Take part in one or all of our six traditional Nordic games. Try your hand at Axe Throwing, Archery, Bullrings, Kubb, meaning bowler in Swedish, is played with wooden blocks and is great fun. Requires precision and tactical gameplay, Molkky, a highly addictive game, originating in Finland, it is similar to skittles but with an exciting twist, or Stige, a fun and simple game from Norway that is always an instant hit. Come and test your ability and agility to see whether you have what it takes to become a true Viking warrior. battlelands.co.uk/thevikinggames.co.uk

Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, Slimbridge

From birdwatchers to families there is plenty to discover all year round at Slimbridge, where you can enjoy amazing wildlife up-close. Now open and looking forward to welcoming visitors back but please note that everyone needs to book their visit in advance. Some of the Slimbridge experience, however, is restricted or closed. Bookings open every Wednesday morning at 9am for the following week, and you need to book before midnight the day before you’d like to visit. wwt.org.uk/wetland-centres/slimbridge/bookings/

Get Walking

Get Walking is Herefordshire’s home of feel-good walking, where you can record your walking, track your achievements, and turn your everyday walking into virtual walking adventures. Sign up now and you’ll be whisked away on a fascinating tour of the showbiz city, the legendary Los Angeles. Stroll along incredible beaches, visit the world-famous tourist attractions, seek out the hidden gems of the city, and find out more about the culture and history of the City of Angels. Every step you take here at home will transport you around this fabulous virtual tour. Get Walking is totally free, you can join in at any time and we love to see lots of new walkers looking to get active. Visit herefordshire.gov.uk to sign up for Get Walking.

Discover the county on foot or two wheels

Herefordshire offers an extensive choice of walks - choose from circular routes, ranging in distance from two to ten miles. These are clearly waymarked walks and take in local heritage features such as rivers, hills and sites of historic interest. The Brian Hatton trail was devised in 2016 by Robin Thorndyke to mark the centenary of Herefordshire artist Brian Hatton’s death. It is a five-mile, figure-of-eight trail in Breinton. Or try something more challenging like The Wye Valley Walk, which runs for 136 miles from the slopes of Plynlimon in mid Wales (near the source of the River Wye) to Chepstow (where the Wye joins the Severn Estuary). The walk enters Herefordshire at Hay-on-Wye and leaves the county after 57 miles, just north of Monmouth. You’ll also find details of a wide selection of cycling routes on the website. herefordshire.gov.uk

August 17, 7pm

The Lion King - Open Air Film and Chill

Hereford Racecourse As a cub, Simba is forced to leave the Pride Lands after his father Mufasa is murdered by his wicked uncle, Scar. Years later, he returns as a young lion to reclaim his throne. Note this is the 1994 animated version, not the computer animated 2019 remake of the classic. openairfilmandchill.com

September 4 and 5

Hereford River Carnival

The annual celebration of all things river, scheduled for May, inevitably fell victim to the coronavirus pandemic, but organisers have re-scheduled the event, in a slightly amended format, for early September. rivercarnival.org.uk

Pedalabikeaway

As lockdown measures ease, we all want to get back to exercising as near to ‘normal’ as possible, escape the local area and may be even get back to our ‘weekend warrior’ riding! Pedalabikeaway is now back open every Thursday – Monday 9.30am – 4pm, but it’s not quite business as usual. Bikes must be pre-booked and with no first aid on site, you’re advised to download an app so that you always know exactly where you are. pedalabikeaway.co.uk

Noakes Farm Riding Centre, Bromyard

The riding centre is open and offering hacks for groups of up to four clients, or on a one-to-one basis and private lessons. Semi-private rides are available for members of the same household. The centre can provide hats, boots and body protectors that will be disinfected between each use, but riders are encouraged to wear their own. Clean gloves must also be worn and P.P.E at your own discretion. noakesfarmridingcentre.co.uk

Sunday, August 30, 3pm to 11pm

Stadium Music Festival

Hereford FC Football Stadium Edgar Street A rare event this summer as Edgar Street football ground hosts “the very best in Pop, Dance and live bands for a family friendly music festival”. skiddle.com

August 22 and 23

Hellens Garden Festival Reimagined

With restrictions still in place, the physical weekend festival has been transformed into an online, creative digital event. This exciting new format will feature live forums, a variety of informative, topical and engaging short films, plants workshops, a virtual tour of Hellens gardens and grounds and much more! To complement HGF’s online presence, we will also be curating a new Sculpture Trail in the gardens and grounds and an Art Exhibition in the Great Barn for a month, starting on Wednesday, August 24. hellensgardenfestival.co.uk

Eastnor Pottery

The pottery has received its ‘Good To Go’ certificate from Visit England, which verifies that they have met Government guidelines to make your visit to Eastnor Pottery a reassuring and enjoyable one. They’re now taking bookings for their weekend and day Potter’s Wheel courses, their 1.5 hour introduction to the Potter’s Wheel Classes and Clay Modelling projects. Fired pieces to be picked up by arrangement. To book, call 01531 633886, email admin@eastnorpottery.co.uk or visit the website at eastnorpottery.co.uk