The town plays host to one of the country’s foremost food festivals in September, as well as a less sophisticated spring festival that serves up beer in the medieval castle.
Ludlow has found fame as a gourmet capital of Britain, playing host to one of the country’s foremost food festivals in September and claiming a crop of distinguished restaurants to boot.
Once a year, however, it also gets to indulge its slightly less sophisticated palate at its Spring Festival – a weekend event that sees beer and sausage vendors set up shop in the grounds of Ludlow’s medieval castle. More than 150 varieties of real ale from across the west of England and Wales are represented, sporting macho names like Rampart, Thunderbird and Warrior – not to mention artisan producers peddling everything from ginger beer to asparagus underneath the battlements.
The Ludlow Spring Festival runs from 12–13 May. Direct trains run to Ludlow from Manchester and Cardiff (from £25). The 40-room Feathers Hotel in Ludlow is famed for its ornate Jacobean frontage (from £105).
This article was published in partnership with Lonely Planet Magazine.