Explore Wiltshire
Your Itinerary Planner
Welcome to the Itinerary Planner. Use this tool to build your own journey or choose from an exciting range of specially selected tours.
Free Things to do in Wiltshire
Caen Hill Locks
This flight of 16 locks is part of a longer 29-lock flight on the Kennet and Avon Canal in Devizes, all within 2 miles. The Lock Cottage Tearooms at the top of the flight provides refreshments and a spectacular view.
Avebury Stone Circle
Originally erected 4,500 years ago, Avebury is the largest stone circle in Europe. Many of the stones were re-erected in the 1930s by Alexander Keiller. The Circles and henge encircle part of the village and the area is now part of a World Heritage Site.
Swindon Designer Outlet
With over 90 stores, this centre is one of the best examples of retail regeneration in the UK after 40 million pounds was spent on developing the centre in keeping with the heritage of its site - the former Great Western Railway Works. If you enjoy shopping you will find everything you need here under one roof, including a wide range of eating places.
Lydiard House and Park
Lydiard House is the delightful yet little known ancestral home of the Viscounts Bolingbroke and lies in beautiful 18th Century parkland. There is a charge to visit the House but entry to the Park is free. It is open every day except Christmas Day and there is an excellent children's play area within the grounds which is also free of charge.
Woodhenge
Woodhenge is a neolithic monument, dating from about 2300 BC, with concrete markers replacing six concentric rings of timber posts, once possibly supporting a ring-shaped building. It forms part of the Stonehenge World Heritage Site.
Kennet and Avon Canal
The Kennet and Avon Canal runs right across Wiltshire from Bath, through such delightful towns as Bradford on Avon and Devizes. A walk along the towpath is an enjoyable way to spend a day and it won't cost you anything unless you get tempted by the tea shops along the way!
The towpath is also an excellent cycle path and it provdes 56 miles of flat cycling through lovely countryside, perfect for the whole family. In 2010 the Kennet & Avon Canal will celebrate its bicentenary further deatails are on the K&A 200 website www.waterscape.com/k&a200
Athelstan Museum
This museum is located in the Town Hall in Malmesbury, England's oldest borough, and here you will find exhibits of local history including coins minted in Malmesbury, costume, a lace-making display, an early fire engine, an early tricycle, and collections of early drawings. Admission is free so this is an excellent way to spend a few hours, particularly suitable if the weather is poor.
Salisbury Cathedral Close
Admission to Salisbury Cathedral is by donation, but you can stroll around the Close for free. The Cathedral is surrounded by eight acres of lawns where you will find a wonderfully tranquil atmosphere as well as a number of very beautiful historic houses and a few museums. The Cathedral Cloisters are also free, with access to the excellent Refectory Restaurant and a gift shop.
Lacock
A visit to the National Trust village of Lacock is like a step back in time. It has been used as a location in a number of films and television programmes such as Pride and Prejudice, Lark Rise to Candleford and The Other Boleyn Girl. Lacock Abbey was also one of the locations for the first Harry Potter film.
You can spend a morning wandering round the village, visiting the quaint bakery and several other shops and there are several pubs and tea shops if you get hungry. If you want to explore the countryside round the village you can download a fairly short easy walk from our walking page by following this link and downloading Walk 2.
Westbury White Horse
There are 8 white horse chalk figures around Wiltshire and the oldest is the one at Westbury. The first Westbury white horse is believed to have been cut to celebrate the defeat over the Danes in the Battle of Ethandium in 878AD. The site is now owned by English Heritage and there is no charge to visit it.
Trowbridge Museum is recognised as perhaps the major museum 
documenting the development of the Woollen Industry in the South West, and is one of the most popular museums in the county. Because of its appeal to children, it is also widely used by Wiltshire schools and even some from Bath. It is also free! The museum has also won the Association of Industrial Archaeologists award for 'best site visited' in 2008.
Trowbridge Town Trail
Explore the rich architectural heritage associated with the woollen trade from the 18th century onwards.
Wylye Valley Arts Trail
The Wylye Valley Art Trail is a vibrant festival of visual arts and crafts; following a meandering trail through some of the south west's most beautiful landscapes, country lanes and market towns, including: Hindon, Mere, Tisbury, Warminster, Westbury and villages in between. It takes place for 9 days in early summer at the end of May to early June. The next trail is being planned for 2013.
