Have I found a 'free lunch'?

If you ever wanted a clear example of the importance pricing plays in a marketing strategy to increase the desirability of a product or service, then look no further than The Royal Landscape, part of The Crown Estate near Windsor.

The area is broken down into three areas, namely The Savill Garden, Virginia Water and The Valley Gardens all housed within the Windsor Great Park. Very fortunately I live on the doorstep of this thousand acre site, and utilise its entirety often for various family activities.

Arguably the leading attraction is The Savill Garden, a 35 acre site wonderfully fronted by the strikingly modern The Savill Building, a 2007 RIBA Sterling Award Finalist. As you would expect this garden offers diverse planting with a myriad of plants, design and landscaping and of particular splendour is the fairly new contemporary rose garden addition, designed by RHS judge Andrew Wilson.

Providing even more treasure

Dorney Court Kitchen Garden is a delightful collective nursery, café, children’s play area and garden providing the perfect coffee and cake destination for all the family to enjoy. Obviously the main attractions for us are the three ride-on pedal tractors that our children use to explore the site, keeping them amused and allowing our uninterrupted cappuccino supping! 

La crème de la crème anglaise and a splash of sake

I recently visited Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons in Great Milton, Oxfordshire. Oooh! I here you cry as you raise your imaginary handbags to your chin, but ‘hey’ how else do you celebrate your grandmother's 90th year milestone? If you want to eat great food, it's best done in terrific settings, I’d say. After reading and viewing images of the gardens, I desperately wanted to take a look. The place had so much to offer, so here’s just a little snippet of our outing.

Wand 'er' lust?

Listen, I’m as bigger admirer as most of all things ‘non-muggle’. I delight in the creativity of the stories and the pleasure it gives my children to re-enact these adventures.

After a recent trip to the Warner Bros Harry Potter studios, I was equally impressed with the tour and marvelled at the work and detail that has gone into producing this magical world to the screen, and was particularly entertained by Warwick Davis and Nick Dudman’s beautifully comical guide to special effects.

However with all these things the tour throws you out into the gift shop, and whilst you always attempt to prepare yourself for the worst, my surprise at the merchandise prices was matched only by my realisation that Professor Snape was one of the good guys.

Blue Cliveden

I've been visiting Cliveden since I was a small child, so I’m thrilled that my three young children get as much as I did and still do from this amazing setting. But hey, what’s not to like? Woodland, river, formal gardens, sculpture, great architecture, history, pond gardens, maze, secret paths, wildlife, play parks, picnic areas, not forgetting cappuccino and ice cream. No wonder it’s the flagship attraction for the National Trust.

Cliveden - southerly view of the house from the bluebell woods