20 Attractions to Explore Near Shillingford Bridge

Brightwell Vineyard was first planted in the late 1980’s and acquired by its present owners in 2000. It covers 16 acres and grows 8 varieties of grape including Bacchus, Chardonnay, Huxelrebe, Dornfelder and Pinot Noir. White, rosé, red and sparkling wines are made in the on-site winery employing natural, minimum intervention methods.

Wallingford Museum is a colourful, delightfully intimate and family friendly local history museum on two floors of a medieval building in the heart of Wallingford. The museum has an extensive collection relating to the town's history. Displays include archaeology, Wallingford Castle, and the town in mediaeval and Victorian times. A free audio tour is available.

Wallingford Castle was an important royal fortress on the banks of the River Thames. It was begun around 1067 by a Norman baron named Robert D'Oilly, on the orders of William the Conqueror. It was built on the west bank of the River Thames, guarding a historic crossing point, and at its peak in the late 13th century consisted of a raised keep surrounded by the inner bailey, protected to the north, west and south by three successive, partially moated curtain walls.

Dorchester Abbey is not only one of the finest monastic buildings in Oxfordshire, with a history going back to AD 635, but is also the parish church of the village of Dorchester. It is a popular tourist destination, educational resource and, as the largest public building in south Oxfordshire, a much-sought after venue for concerts and other major events.

The Cholsey and Wallingford Railway is a 2+1⁄2-mile long standard gauge heritage railway in the English county of Oxfordshire. It run steam and diesel trains on the historic ‘Bunk’ line linking Cholsey with the market town of Wallingford. Trains run on selected weekends and bank holidays throughout the year and, where available, are steam hauled.

Wittenham Clumps are a pair of wooded chalk hills in the Thames Valley, in the civil parish of Little Wittenham, in the historic county of Berkshire, although since 1974 administered as part of South Oxfordshire district. The Clumps are made up of Round Hill and Castle Hill. Enjoy a figure of eight walk around the hilltops or head between them.

The Aston Martin Heritage Trust is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation that manages the Aston Martin Museum an automobile museum presenting the history of Aston Martin cars. It is located off Dorchester Road in the village of Drayton St Leonard, South Oxfordshire, England. The collection ranges from the oldest surviving Aston Martin car, No. 3 to a Vanquish Volante pre-production model dating from 2013.

Pendon Museum, located in Long Wittenham near Didcot, Oxfordshire, England, is a museum that displays scale models, in particular a large scene representing parts of the Vale of White Horse in the 1920s and 1930s. The museum's main feature is one of the world's finest landscape model of parts of Oxfordshire and Berkshire as they were around 1930. It includes exact models of buildings, of railways and other transport. The entrance fee includes an audio guide. Family trails are available too.

Didcot Railway Centre is a former Great Western Railway engine-shed and locomotive stabling point located in Didcot. It has a fine collection of over 20 locomotives, passenger coaches and freight wagons. Visitors will be able to take a trip behind one of the Great Western Railway’s steam express engines on the Centre’s demonstration line at weekends and Wednesdays.

Harcourt Arboretum, in the village of Nuneham Courtenay, has the best collection of trees in Oxfordshire set within 130 acres of historic picturesque landscape. The arboretum itself is located six miles south of Oxford on the A4074 road, near the village of Nuneham Courtenay in Oxfordshire and comprises some 150 acres. Professor Simon Hiscock is the Horti Praefectus (Director) of the botanic garden and arboretum.

Nuffield Place was the home of William Morris, Lord Nuffield, founder of the Morris Motor Car Company. Despite his wealth, Morris chose to live simply and gave away much of his wealth to a variety of philanthropic causes. The house is furnished as Morris and his wife left it, in attractive yet unpretentious 1930s Art Deco style.

The Abbey Gardens are a charming stroll with flat, easy paths and wide gates. Amongst the planted flower displays can be found Victoria’s statue and the ruins which have fooled many a visitor into thinking they have seen the remains of Abingdon Abbey. It has won the Green Flag award for parks and open spaces for ten years in a row.

The Thames Path National Trail is a wonderful way to explore the River Thames. This long distance walking route starts at the source of the river in a field in the Cotswolds and follows the banks of the Thames for 184 miles (294km) through several rural counties before entering the City of London and finishing at the Thames Barrier in Greenwich.

Abingdon County Hall Museum’s aim is to present the history of Abingdon and the surrounding locality in the most informative, exciting and accessible way possible. It housed a courtroom on the first floor, raised on arches above a market space. It is now home to the Abingdon County Hall Museum, and there are fine views from the rooftop overlooking the market square.

The Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust (BBOWT), is a wildlife trust covering the counties of Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire in England. There is a wide variety of all ages and types of woodland within the reserve. More than 450 species of plants have been recorded, including 15 species of orchid, an incredible 900 species of fungi and the rare plant Soloman's Seal.

Iffley Lock was built in 1632. It was one of three to be built in the 17th century – the others are at Sandford, and Swift Ditch. The original lock was built by the Oxford-Burcot Commission in 1631 and the Thames Navigation Commission replaced this in 1793. The lock has a set of rollers to allow punts and rowing boats to be moved between the water levels.

Aston Rowant National Nature Reserve is located on the escarpment of the Chiltern Hills and a large part of it is a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest. A wide variety of habitats have allowed a huge number of butterfly, flower and bird species to flourish at this reserve. As well as chalk grassland, the reserve contains woodland with beech, yew, and juniper. Overhead, reintroduced red kites are resident.

Basildon Park was built in 1776-83 by John Carr of York for Francis Sykes who made a fortune in service with the East India Company. It is owned by the National Trust and is a Grade I listed building. Designed by John Carr in the Palladian style at a time when Palladianism was giving way to the newly fashionable neoclassicism. Today, Basildon Park is as notable for its mid-twentieth-century renaissance and restoration, by Lord and Lady Iliffe, as it is for its architecture.

Beale Park is an outdoor wildlife park within 30 acres set against the River Thames in Berkshire. A home to an exciting mix of animals and attractions. With fun, adventure, animals, gardens, activities and play on the banks of the beautiful River Thames, there will be something for everybody in this wildlife park and gardens.

Basildon Park is made up of 400 acres of parkland and woodland. There are four way-marked trails that you can follow around the property. The house was built between 1776 and 1783 for Sir Francis Sykes and designed by John Carr in the Palladian style at a time when Palladianism was giving way to the newly fashionable neoclassicism. Thus, the interiors are in a neoclassical "Adamesque" style.