Woburn is a wonderful place for a weekend break – not only does the picturesque village have lots of antiques shops to browse, but Woburn Abbey is one of the UK’s most impressive stately homes and Michelin starred Paris House is right next to it. Here’s what to see with 48 hours in Woburn, to help you get the best from your trip.
A Weekend in Woburn, Bedfordshire
This charming Bedfordshire village is easily reached from London. Close to Center Parcs Woburn Village, it boasts some fascinating tourist attractions and antique shops.
1. Paris House
Once you’ve checked in to your accommodation, we recommend lunch at Paris House. It’s the only Michelin starred restaurant in Bedfordshire and an utterly spectacular building.
Paris House was built in 1878 for The Paris International Exhibition by William Cubitt & Son. It was based on the half-timbered architecture of the Cheshire region of England and erected in prefabricated sections.
The 9th Duke of Bedford saw it and liked it so much he had it dismantled after the exhibition and shipped piece by piece to the grounds of Woburn Abbey.
You enter the grounds of Paris House via this impressive stone gate.
There are lots of deer in the grounds, we spotted some relaxing in the shade right after the gate. The house was originally used for accommodation and during the second World War, there were many famous guests including King George VI and General de Gaulle.
Executive chef Phil Fanning has successfully modernized the building and created a comfortable, light filled space which is a complete surprise, given the historic exterior. He was awarded a Michelin star just 11 months after opening in 2010.
We opted for the 6 course tasting menu, which is actually more like 8 courses if you add these innovative complimentary appetizers and optional petits fours with tea or coffee. Having said that, portion sizes are reasonable so you won’t leave feeling unpleasantly full.
We really enjoyed the delicate vichyssoise with leek, potato and dill, as well as the sea trout that was beautifully offset by the tangy goat’s yoghurt, rhubarb and beetroot.
My favorite dish was probably the ham, egg and chips – not your average one though, this was composed of smoked ham hock, pig’s ear, quail egg and pineapple. I wasn’t expecting to like the pig’s ear but it all worked well as a whole.
Paul opted for a tender suckling pig with carrot and green olive as his main course, whilst I went for the hake with a flavourful dark beer, smoked onion juice and raw apple vinegar sauce with cuttlefish.
The first of our sweet courses was a moreish mango, passionfruit and white chocolate sherbert, followed by another star dish, the lemon drizzle cake with blueberry and lemon balm. We couldn’t resist petits fours on the terrace, not that we were hungry at this point!
2. Woburn Abbey and Gardens
Take a look at the kitchen garden where many of the herbs and vegetables used in the menu are grown, as well as the chef’s table which is located right in the kitchen. There’s also a spacious private dining room upstairs. After lunch, head for Woburn Abbey and Gardens, a few minutes walk away.
This Palladian manor house is the family home of the Duke of Bedford and surrounded by a beautiful deer park and landscaped gardens. Close by, there’s Woburn Safari Park and a miniature railway, also part of the Woburn Estate.
There are 9 species of deer in the park, and it’s one of the most historic collections of deer ever brought together. Woburn helped to save the critically endangered Père David’s Deer from extinction in China, thanks to a reintroduction of deer from Woburn to China in 1985.
There’s an exhibition celebrating this and the important conservation role that Woburn plays, with 1,200 deer in all. Visitors can book onto an off road deer park tour for a supplementary fee.
You can’t take photos inside the house but the interior is lavishly decorated with many priceless artworks. There are lots of interesting sculptures in the grounds including these ones doing headstands.
A visit to the maze is a must, its not hard to find your way to the centre and there’s a lovely Chinese pavilion to relax in.
The rock garden is home to another picturesque Chinese building.
Look closely at these flowers and you’ll see that they’re actually made of wood.
3. Woburn Abbey Afternoon Tea
Woburn Abbey afternoon tea is in high demand as afternoon tea as we know it was actually invented here! Duchess Anna Maria, wife of the 7th Duke of Bedford, complained of a “sinking feeling” mid afternoon, but that soon disappeared once she started to take afternoon tea.
Make sure to reserve beforehand to avoid disappointment. Afternoon tea at Woburn Abbey also includes entry to the gardens.
Allow an hour or two to visit the pretty village of Woburn itself and to browse the antiques stores.
With all this walking, you will have worked up an appetite for dinner in Olivier’s, the Woburn Hotel’s stylish restaurant.
We were seriously impressed with the quality of the food, friendliness and professionalism of the waiters. Just look at the presentation, utterly mouthwatering.
4. The Woburn Hotel
We chose The Woburn Hotel for our stay – with 4 AA stars and a 2 AA Rosette restaurant it’s one of the best hotels in Woburn and we knew we were in good hands.
First impressions on arriving are excellent, there’s ample parking to the rear of the property and a pleasant outdoor seating area.
Once inside, we were warmly welcomed and given the keys to our suite, the stunning Racing Room. There’s a strong connection with riding in the area.
The 5th Duke of Bedford established a stud farm at Woburn Abbey and was a succesful breeder and owner of racehorses. As you can see, the bed is completely unique and fits the racing theme, as do the jockey silks cleverly displayed above the bed.
The adjoining living room was spacious and I loved the purple accents as well as the horse theme. There was a separate TV for his and hers viewing and a good selection of White Company toiletries with a beautiful roll top bath and a powerful shower.
We had a wonderful stay at The Woburn Hotel, visiting Woburn Abbey and Paris House and I highly recommend it for a relaxing break. As you can see, there are many fun things to do in Bedfordshire. Have you ever been?
You might also enjoy:
- Best Things to Do in South Devon, England
- Best Things to See in Somerset, England
- The Best Types of Tea
- What to See in the Scottish Highlands
Read all our UK travel articles here.
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Looks absolutely fabulous, and I love your red dress!!!
Have a fabulous Wednesday!
XOXO, Vanessa
www.WhatWouldVWear.net
Thank you Vanessa, I’ve been wearing that dress a lot! Hope your week is going well
Ah bath looks amazing!
Candice Beauty Candy Loves
The bath was lovely, so relaxing after a day walking around Woburn!
What a nice hotel and intersecting hotel! The village is beautiful!
www.spring2spring.com
It’s a really pretty village, definitely worth a visit
Woburn is beautiful I love the safari. The hotel and food looks wonderful. The gam eggs and chips is quite the modern interpretation Lucy x
I’d love to return to Woburn to visit the safari park. Have you been, Lucy?
What a charming place! And that hotel is so impressive, I love the clever racing details incorporated in the room, especially the bed. While I was reading (and hadn’t scrolled down yet) I was a littler perplexed how you could even do something like that with a bed, but, there is was. Gorgeous!
Sxx
www.daringcoco.com
The bed is amazing, it was handmade and really fits the theme of the room
Wow, this looks incredible!
Melanie @ meandmr.com
You’re right Melanie, it was
Wow, the food looks so good, and I love all the deer on the property…amazing! Beautiful photos!
There are so many deer, it’s a lovely sight
Incredible place!
kisses…
Zapatos Rojos
Glad you liked it Alejandra
I don’t remember ever visiting Bedfordshire. Looks like you had the perfect stay! The room looks great and so does the food.
www.LUXESSED.com
It’s a charming county, definitely worth a visit if you get the chance Anouk
Totally besotted with this place!!! Love your red dress!
Kisses, Paola.
Expressyourself
My Facebook
Thanks very much Paola, have a great day
I think the only time I#;ve been to BEdforshire was for a rowing regatta I took part in haha. This hotel looks lovely though (as do you in your red dress!)
The hotel is great, casual but very funky – the rowing regatta must have been fun
I went to Woburn safari park when I was little 🙂 That’s my last memory of going there! The hotel looks gorgeous and I love the look of the food.
Lots of love,
Angie
SilverSpoon London
I’ve never been, would definitely like to visit it if returning to the area though!
The selection of toiletries in the bathroom are fabulous and I adore the purple accents in your suite. How sweet that the bears caught Mr Luxe’s eye – I hope you brought one back with you! 🙂
Gabrielle | A Glass Of Ice x
It was tempting to bring back a bear but not sure where I’d put one! The purple accents were very funky
I haven’t heard of Woburn (poor Geography when it comes to the UK). It looks rather quaint. The food at the restaurant looks really fab. xx
Zoe | Love and Limoncello
It’s pretty close to London so a great place for a weekend break, Zoe
What an awesome weekend! Love these shots!
-Ashley
Le Stylo Rouge
Thanks Ashley, I took so many of the deer and the gardens it was hard to whittle it down to these
This looks like a beautiful place for a break, thank you for sharing 🙂
Camille xo
www.cococami.blogspot.co.uk
My pleasure Camille, hope your week has gone well!
What a cute place, I love all of the deer
xo
www.laurajaneatelier.com
I was amazed at how many different varieties of deer they have there, most of them from Asia
Beautiful! What a perfect weekend x
It was a blissful weekend, that sunshine seems like a long distant memory!
Looks like you had such a quality time in Woburn!
http://beautyfollower.blogspot.gr/
It was brilliant and we didn’t waste any time driving around, it was all so close by
What a lovely way to spend time!
You’re right Cheryl, it was a great way to spend a leisurely weekend
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