PLACES OF INTEREST AROUND PRESTON PARK

Preston Park

This glorious green space is the largest park inside the city of Brighton and Hove, and is the perfect spot to enjoy a warm summer’s day. Whether your favourite activity is biking, football, walking or dog or simply taking a leisurely stroll with the family, Preston Park has something for everyone. Due to its large size the park is also frequently used as a venue for fun fairs, music performances and other exciting events. Preston Park boasts over 63 acres of lawns, gardens, wooded areas, bowling greens, tennis courts and a small pond. It’s also home to the “Preston Twins”, two trees that are thought to be the largest and oldest Elms in the world! A beautiful refuge just north of the city centre, Preston Park is a wonderful place to relax and soak up all that nature has to offer.

Preston Manor

Now a remarkable example of both architecture and upper-class Edwardian life, the oldest parts of Preston Manor date back to the thirteenth century. The building was significantly extended in 1738 by the Lord of the Manor, Thomas Western, and was majorly renovated in 1905 by Charles Stanley Peach into the beautiful building that can be seen today. The manor house was owned by the Stanford family for over two hundred years. The richest family in Sussex, the Stanfords decorated Preston Manor to the highest standard. In 1932 the Stanfords donated the home to the city of Brighton, where it is now a museum and exhibition hall. Today visitors can stroll the halls and admire the extensive collections of upper-class Edwardian furniture, ceramics, silver and artwork.

Booth Museum of Natural History

The Booth Museum was founded in 1874 by local naturalist and collector Edward Thomas Booth. Today the museum features over half a million natural specimens and artifacts that span over three centuries, including displays of hundreds of British birds shown in their natural habitat. Collections also include a variety of butterflies and skeletons, including dinosaur and whale bones. The Discovery Laboratories offer visitors a change to interactively explore the museum’s collections, making the Booth Museum an excellent place to spend an afternoon.

St Peter’s Church, Preston Park

Nearly destroyed by a 1906 fire, this 800-year-old flint church is home to numerous valuable fourteenth-century wall paintings that depict a variety of religious scenes including the nativity and the murder of Thomas Becket. After their near loss by fire, the paintings as well as the rest of the interior of St Peter’s Church were painstakingly restored, and can now be admired by parishioners and visitors alike.