Historical Houses and Fairytale Pubs

Once you’ve picked up your vehicle from St. Albans Car and Van Hire, depending on which direction you are driving in, there are a few buildings of interest which might cause you to take a short detour before setting off on your journey.

If it’s historical buildings you have an interest in, then if you take a drive about two miles west of St. Albans on the A4147, you’ll come across the beautiful Gorhambury Estate. As well as the current Grade II listed Gorhambury House, built in Palladian style between 1777 and 1784, you will also discover the wonderful 16th-century parkland and woodland, set in a woodland and agricultural estate of about 300 hectares. Although tours of the house are limited, the estate is open to the public.

A bit further outside of St. Albans, about 12 miles north of the city, is the parish of Digswell. Here too you will find a Grade II listed mansion, which was erected around 1805-07. Situated in the Knightsfield area of Welwyn Garden City, the house was used during the First World War as an Australian auxiliary hospital and nursing home for wounded Australian soldiers (although Belgian and British soldiers also stayed there). Its extensive grounds provided a centre for sports, including shooting! The building as it stands has been turned into a collection of private dwellings, but still displays its impressive four massive columns on the south front.

If you are looking for more of an historical building you can relax in, then The Holly Bush pub – a beautiful 17th-century pub situated in the tiny hamlet of Potters Crouch, just four miles south west of St. Albans might be the perfect place. The Holly Bush has been described as a fairytale pub which casts a spell, and is beautifully covered in Wisteria, and has been tastefully furnished. There is a lovely garden, and the food is of high quality, so why not give it a try on your journey to or from St. Albans Car and Van Hire.