Shrewsbury and Dorrington (Shropshire)
Most of our homes in this region are in Shropshire, many at Dorrington, a village about 15 minutes south of Shrewsbury on the road to Church Stretton. Shrewsbury sits in a loop of the River Severn, with Tudor timber-framed streets, the abbey and an indoor market hall. Church Stretton is the base for the Long Mynd, with Carding Mill Valley for easier walks. Trains from London Euston take around two and a half hours.
Best for: A walkable county town with the Shropshire Hills close by
Not for you if: You want to walk to the pub every night: Dorrington's houses are in countryside south of town.
Ludlow and Bridgnorth (south Shropshire)
Ludlow is a market town with a ruined castle, streets of Georgian and timber-framed houses and a name for good food, with markets several days a week and a food festival in September. Bridgnorth is split into High Town and Low Town by a sandstone cliff, joined by a cliff railway. The Severn Valley Railway runs steam trains from Bridgnorth to Kidderminster. Ironbridge Gorge, the World Heritage Site, is about 20 minutes away.
Best for: Food, castle towns and steam railway days
Not for you if: You want to arrive by train in Bridgnorth: its only line is the heritage Severn Valley Railway.
Stratford-upon-Avon (Warwickshire)
Shakespeare's Birthplace on Henley Street and the Royal Shakespeare Theatre by the river are the main draws, and Anne Hathaway's Cottage is a walk out across the fields at Shottery. Warwick Castle is about 20 minutes away by car, and the northern Cotswolds, around Chipping Campden, about half an hour. Chiltern Railways runs trains from London Marylebone in around two hours, some direct.
Best for: Theatre, Shakespeare's houses and Cotswolds day trips
Not for you if: You want quiet streets in summer: the centre is busy with coach parties and day visitors.
Birmingham and Coventry
Birmingham's canal towpaths run from Gas Street Basin past Brindleyplace, and the Jewellery Quarter, the Museum and Art Gallery and Cadbury World at Bournville fill a few days. Coventry has two cathedrals side by side, the bombed medieval ruins and Basil Spence's 1962 replacement, plus the Coventry Transport Museum. Trains from London Euston reach Birmingham in about an hour and a half and Coventry in about an hour.
Best for: City breaks with museums, canals and fast trains
Not for you if: You want countryside: these are city bases, with rural Warwickshire a drive away.
Stoke-on-Trent (Staffordshire)
Stoke-on-Trent is the Potteries, and its factories and museums tell the story: the Gladstone Pottery Museum, the World of Wedgwood at Barlaston and Middleport Pottery, where Burleigh ware is still made. Trentham Gardens, with its lake and monkey forest, is on the southern edge. Alton Towers is about half an hour away, and the southern Peak District a little further. Trains from London Euston take around an hour and a half.
Best for: Pottery history, Trentham Gardens and Alton Towers
Not for you if: You want a pretty market town: Stoke is a sprawling former industrial city made up of six towns.
