Day Trips from Manchester

 In Brief. The Bridgemere Show Gardens  bring together a collection of gardens that have been developed for, and that have often won prizes at, garden shows, such as the Chelsea Flower Show . In total there are 15 diverse and compact gardens located around several lawns.  The gardens are designed to be at their best at different times of year, so not all of them will be in top form at a single visit, but in June many were colourful, and the variety is refreshing. This is all attached to the largest garden centre I have ever seen, so if you have a garden project in mind, there are plenty opportunities to go home with more than you brought. The cottage garden. What's Here? My first surprise on arriving was the scale of the carpark; think theme park more than country house or garden. It quickly became clear that most people do not visit for the Show Gardens, and that the intimidatingly large garden centre (or perhaps the other shops, the cafe or the restaurant) is the main draw.  Ever

In Brief. Harewood is an imposing country house in West Yorkshire, designed, furnished and landscaped by the best 18th century architects, furniture makers and garden designers that money could buy. The result is impressive, with the carefully balanced house overlooking restrained formal gardens and rolling parkland. Inside, the interiors are grand without becoming too showy, and include sensitively displayed artworks, old and new. All this good taste was funded off the back of sugar plantations in the West Indies, as is reflected on explicitly inside the house and in some artworks. Harewood House from the Terrace. What's Here? Harewood house is surrounded by a variety of landscaped gardens.  Immediately to the rear of the property is the terrace (pictured), which is fine in itself, but perhaps most noteworthy for its wider views over rolling countryside. The terrace cafe provides a civilised location for taking it all in. However, there are also a variety of walks to other parts