Stamford

Our location

You’ll find Old Bank Apartments on the corner of the High Street and Maiden Lane, directly opposite the old St Michael’s Church. There are plenty of car parks close by on St Leonard’s Street, Wharf Road, North Street, Scotgate and Sheep Market – so simply drop your bags, park your car and start exploring! Parking is only £4 a day. 

Direct trains to Cambridge and Leicester run from Stamford station and Peterborough is only a ten-minute journey to access the East Coast mainline to get you to London in just 45 minutes.
Shopping and eating
Stamford is popular with weekend shoppers. The High Street is home to high-end names such as The White Company, Joules, Space NK, Jack Wills and Crew, while parallel St Mary’s Street is lined with independent boutiques selling jewellery, clothing and gifts. The town is also known for its secondhand bookshops, art galleries and antiques centres where you can happily browse away an afternoon.

When it comes to wining and dining, Stamford has it all, from award-winning real ale pubs to wine bars, cafés and fine dining restaurants. Fancy a pint? Stamford’s historic hostelries include the timber-beamed Tobie Norris and King’s Head pubs, famous former coaching inn The George Hotel, or trendy Paten & Co. on cobbled Red Lion Square. 

The town’s numerous cafés include Scandimania, just opposite The Old Bank, where you can start the day with artisanal coffee, juices and pastries, or try the cosy Kafae behind St George’s church. For lunch, head to Turkish deli Medish for gourmet salads to take away then to Café Black for a delicious ice cream. Craft beers and vintage wines are available from Adnams, café-cum-wine cellar No 14 St Mary’s Hill and the Stamford Cheese Shop on Cheyne Lane. Close to The Old Bank are Cook, Tesco and Marks & Spencerswhich offer an array of ready-made dishes for easy dining in. There are also several independent butchers and bakeries within a minute’s walk, including the award-winning Hambleton Bakery and Grasmere Farm Shop.
Stamford and surrounds

Dubbed by Sir Walter Scott as the ‘finest stone town in England’, Stamford is an extraordinary place that seems to have reached the 18th century and simply decided to stop there; a genteel and elegant snapshot of the past, conserved for the present and the future. The town has many independent shops lining its ancient streets, as well as 11 churches, around 30 pubs and restaurants and more than 600 listed buildings, from hunting lodges to medieval almshouses. Stamfordbecame the country’s first Conservation Area in 1967 and its exquisitely preserved Georgian buildings have appeared in many films and TV series, including the BBC’s Middlemarch, Top Gear and the 2005 film of Pride and Prejudice starring Keira Knightley. 

The town’s beautiful architecture provides a fabulous backdrop for leisurely walks or picnics on the riverside meadows. Town tours are available from the Arts Centre just down the lane where the Tourist Information Centre is situated, and a potted history of Stamford is found in the tiny museum inside the Library opposite the apartments. Stamford holds a bi-annual Georgian Festival in September, the Lent Fair every March and numerous other events on the meadows, such as an annual Antiques Fair in early summer. 

Voted the best place in the UK to live by the Times in 2013, Stamford has much to offer, with the banks of the River Welland a short stroll from the apartments and the free-to-enter grounds of magnificent Burghley House only five minutes’ walk. This grand Tudor mansion was built by Lord Burghley, Treasurer to Queen Elizabeth I, and its lakeside parkland was redesigned by Capability Brown. The car-free path to the House is ideal for cyclists and walkers. Burghley offers a full calendar of events throughout the year, including the Battle Proms concert in July, the famous Horse Trials at the beginning of September and the increasingly popular (but mad!) Rat Race endurance event in May. The grounds are a delight at any time, and the estate has developed some wonderful attractions, with the Garden of Surprises and the Sculpture Gardens both well worth a visit. Burghley hosts a calendar of events throughout the year, including:
 
NGS Open Gardens
Land Rover Horse Trials
Fine Food Markets
Classic Car Rallies
Summer Proms Concert
The Rat Race 
Halloween and Easter Trails
Christmas Fair
 
Other historic houses in the area include Belton House, with its miniature railway, maze and adventure playground; Belvoir, Rockingham and Grimsthorpe Castles, all set in beautiful grounds, and Woolsthorpe Manor, childhood home of Sir Isaac Newton. If you visit in July or August, there’s surely nothing more refined than a picnic and an outdoor performance of Shakespeare in the grounds of medieval Tolethorpe Hall. All lie within a short drive of Stamford.

If getting out in the countryside is your thing, we’ve got it covered. Bring your bike and you can store it securely on the ground floor then follow one of the many trails that start right outside the front door. The surrounding villages are some of England’s prettiest, their cottages and churches built from the same honeyed limestone as the Cotswolds but without the crowds and high prices. We can advise on walks and cycles to suit all abilities, including where to hire bikes.

Want to picnic? Let us know and we will arrange everything you need for a perfect day out. Rutland Water, the country’s largest reservoir, is a short drive (or modest cycle) away and attracts thrill-seekers, families and nature lovers to its water sports, birdwatching and cycle hire centres. Venture aboard the genteel Rutland Belle to spot osprey and red kites on a boat tour or get active on the water with sailing, windsurfing, fishing and kayaking. A popular attraction in summer is the huge inflatable water park at Whitwell, splashy fun for all the family, or you can spend a pleasant afternoon cycling around the reservoir on the family-friendly circular route, pausing at bird hides or for an ice cream along the way.

We could go on and on about beautiful places to visit in the area – you could stay for a month! If you need any more information please just ask: we’re here to make your stay as easy as possible.

Below are some useful links to help you enjoy your stay.
 

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