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A series of structured gardens over 20 acres (8 hectares): seaside, Japanese, woodland, gravel.
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On one level it's simply a large garden centre, but the draw is the extensive show gardens, inspiration for all sorts of tricky corners and habitats. One neat example is the gravel garden, which never needs watering.
Roller Skating Rink
The Minories is Colchester's oldest art gallery, opening its doors to the public in 1956. It shows a diverse range of contemporary art and design by artists and makers from the eastern region as well as historic work that relates to Colchester. It has a beautiful walled garden (perhaps Colchester's best kept secret) and a cafe serving good quality homemade local produce.
Contemporary visual arts centre with exhibitions and workshops located in a new building. Also a restaurant.
The largest Norman keep in Britain, build on the foundations of the Roman temple to Claudius it has the city centre on one side and landscaped gardens on the other. The museum covers the extensive history of Britain's oldest recorded town, from pre-Roman times, Boudicca's rebellion, the Norman invasion, medieval witch hunts, the civil war and up to the present day. Guided tours of the Roman foundations and Norman roof take place at set times throughout the day for a small fee. There is a restaurant and gift shop.
A fairly large park in the grounds of Colchester castle. Annual events held there include cricket matches (there is a cricket week every year when Essex CC play visiting counties), music festivals and a fireworks display in November.