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Ely Cathedral

Ely

Self-guided walks for the Curious...

Explore Ely city centre with two self-guided heritage walks with a treasure hunt theme. Discover Ely's "hidden treasures" whilst having a fun day out with family and friends!
Ely is an ancient Cambridgeshire city, occupying the largest 'island' in the Fens, named after the eels found in the surrounding waters. The Medieval annual St Audreys Fair was famous for selling cheap trinkets and baubles, hence the word tawdry from St Audrey. Ely Cathedral is the only building in the UK to have been included as one of Seven Wonders of the Middle Ages – Pink Floyd featured it on the cover of their album The Division Bell. It was also used during the filming of the movie The King’s Speech, substituting for Westminster Abbey.

EXPLOREDISCOVERENJOY

Code Curious20 at checkout for 20% discount on purchases over £12

The Booklet

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Curious About... Ely

  • An exploration of Ely's city centre with two self-guided heritage walks with an optional treasure hunt. Completing the treasure hunt keeps everyone actively engaged, and urges you to look up, down and every which-way - so you won't miss out on any of the city's treasures.
    Explore, Discover, and Enjoy!
  • Most clues are chosen for their historical value, so you'll learn about the diverse culture, significant people and extraordinary events which have influenced Ely in becoming what it is today.
  • This is an outdoor, unsupervised activity - so you can go at a pace which suits you, whilst keeping you healthy!
  • A Curious About walk is a fun and social activity for all the family and friends. Different people can take on different roles - follow the map, identify picture clues, read directions, etc - it's ideal for children from the age of 6, and if you can walk/wheelchair it, you're young enough!
  • The two walks have been designed so that the second one follows on from where the first one ends. Do both, or have a breather and do the second one another day! They both start and finish in the heart of the city - so buses, trains and car parks are easily available to get you there and back.

1.  Cathedral to College - 1.5 miles / 2.4 kms
From the grounds of the stunning cathedral, this walk provides a flavour of the delightful city centre, before branching out to the picturesque house where Oliver Cromwell once lived. Returning to the cathedral, you’ll explore some of Ely’s older streets, before ending at a former theological college, bounded by charming cottages and a delightful Green, shaded in the summer by graceful trees.
1.5 hoursOK but diversion maybe needed

2.  College to Lavender Green - 1 mile / 1.6 kms
From a former theological college, walk down Cherry Hill, with its delightful views of Ely Cathedral. Cross Jubilee Gardens - gorgeous flowers, and areas for play. Now take a walk alongside the charming River Great Ouse where all manner of boats skip by, or make their way into the bustling marina. Sample some interesting streets, then end your walk back at the river and the tranquility of Lavender Green.
1 hourOK

Each booklet has a page dedicated to the history of the town or city and 2 pages summarising each walk with suggestions on what to visit along the way. Walk 1 has 21 clues & walk 2 has 14 - both with detailed directions to follow. There are interesting stories about important people, places & events along the way; detailed instructions on how to find a clue if you're stuck; and a comprehensive map with the routes marked on.
Buy a booklet by clicking on the Add to Basket button, then either checkout, or continue shopping. Checkout takes you through payments via a quick & secure process managed by a third-party company called SendOwl. At the end of the payment process SendOwl will email you a confirmation email (inc download link if relevant).

Downloads
You have 14 days to complete your download, and up to 3 attempts are permitted. If you buy the print-at-home version you will need to print it on normal A4 paper and the email you receive, with the download link, explains how best to fold the pages to make it into an A5 booklet. If you buy the download to mobile version you will need pdf reading software on your phone or tablet, eg using the Adobe Acrobat App (free).

Printed Copy
The booklet has a flexible cover, which has been professionally printed. The inside pages are printed to order, to ensure that they are as up-to-date as possible. We post booklets out 1st class Royal Mail, usually the same, or next working day. A postage & packing charge is added.

"We'd never really considered Ely before today, then we tried your walks and fell in love with it. The magnificent cathedral, the lovely parks and gardens, and the the bustling river - which we watched with a drink in our hands... Thanks for opening our eyes!"

"Hello. My daughter Lara and I enjoyed completing our second walk today around Ely from Cherry Hill to Lavender Green as part of her Children's University passport to learning. Lara enjoyed finding all of the clues and has been really interested finding out about eels (She doesn't like the look of them at all!!) We enjoyed an extra discovery of Oliver Cromwell's House where she saw a rather life like eel on his kitchen table. We really enjoyed our walks around Ely and will definitely be looking at your other walks of discovery in other places."


Latest Revision : March 2022