Ludlow Food Festival

Ludlow is arguably the UK's most foodie town. It was the first UK member of the slow food movement and has over the years made a decent claim to being the self-appointed guardian of the nation's culinary values. Nowhere more so than at its annual Ludlow Marches Festival of Food & Drink, which takes place over three days every September.

Made up of around 160 small local food and drink producers, and mostly hosted in the keeps and baileys of Ludlow Castle, the Ludlow Food Festival is a vibrant event. You can have a fine time just browsing the various stalls and partaking of the free samples, but there are lots of specific events too, from 'Slow Food' taste workshops, regular cookery demonstrations and masterclasses in everything from baking bread to cheese tastings and slow food workshops. There are also various food and drink trails, including a sausage trail around Ludlow's many independent butchers, tasting and grading as you go, and a 'real ale trail' around the best of the town's pubs and bars.

Ludlow was one of England's first regular food festivals and the nice thing about it is that it doesn't feel at all contrived: events spread far beyond the castle, and it sometimes seems as if everyone is joining in: shop windows are gussied up for the window-dressing competition and there are loads of activities for kids – both in the castle itself and in the town and countryside beyond.

Finally of course there are some terrific places to stay In Ludlow and in the nearby Shropshire Hills, and the food festival makes a terrific excuse for a weekend in the country. Kin Rooms, right in the heart of the town, offers beautifully furnished studio apartments – self-catering, so you can cook up any goodies you've found at the festival – while in the countryside around, we love the Castle Hotel in picturesque Bishop's Castle, the foodie Old Downton Lodge and the quirky glamping and cottages at Walcot Hall.