Avebury stone circle ★★★
An ancient stone circle curled around a medieval hamlet
Stonehenge is spectacular, but Avebury is way cooler.
Sure, the stone circle at Avebury is not nearly as intact, but it is far, far larger—enclosing an area of 28.5 acres (11.5 hectares)—and while it is difficult to get inside the stone circle of Stonehenge, Avebury incorporates an entire medieval hamlet in its midst.
You can sit there sipping a pint at the Red Lion with a view out the window at sheep grazing scenically next to the stone monoliths erected between 2850 BC and 2200 BC. There's even a small hotel within the circle.
Many of Avebury's standing sarsen stones remain—some re-erected and many medieval buildings cleared away in the 1930s under the auspices of marmalade heir Alexander Keiller—and the many of the missing stones have been replaced by smaller concrete pillars to give a better sense of the overall pattern.
Avebury was actually a complex consisting of a Neolithic henge surrounding the largest stone circle in England, originally made up of around 100 standing stones.
What is a henge? Think of it like an early version of a moat, consisting an artificial bank of blindingly white chalk—once nearly 55 feet (17m) high, now covered in grass and about 14–18 feet (4.2–5.4m)—rising above the ditch dug to make it (originally 30 feet/9m deep). It had—and still has—four entrances for the roads to pass through.
Within that henge and its stone sub-circle were two smaller stone circles. The more southerly one once had 29 stones set regularly 39 feet (11m) apart around a great Obelisk, a 21-foot (6.4m) monolith removed in 1725. The northerly one had 27 stones also set 26 feet (11m) apart.
At the center are three rectangular sarsen stones forming three sides to a square, with an opening (the fourth side) facing north. This is known as the Cove—or, more fancifully, as the Devil’s Brandirons.
There is also the Alexander Keiller Museum, split between two spaces: the stone Stables Gallery with artifacts gathered by Mr. Keiller—Neolithic pottery, 4,00-year-old stone tools, and ancient animal skeletons—and the Barn Gallery, a 17C threshing barn with interactive exhibits aimed at the family, including Bronze-Age dress-up and a chance to do archaeological rubbings.
On the south edge of town, don't miss monoliths of West Kennet Avenue, which lead toward yet another stone circle south of town called the Sanctuary (now vanished, but with modern markers to show the layout).
The full-day tour starts at 9am from Salisbury train station or Central Car Park Coach Park in Salisbury.
It begins in the Medieval Cathedral City with all of its history and mystique where you enjoy a tour of the City before spending an hour at the Cathedral taking in the tallest spire and the Magna Carta (subject to opening times) before departing at 10.15am for a brief stop at Old Sarum, the original City of Salisbury. This Iron Age settlement became Salisbury after visits from Saxons, Danes, Vikings and Normans. Old Sarum offers wonderful views over the City and the surrounding landscape. This is where King John had his garrisons in the early 1200s before the barons rose up against the King which resulted in the Magna Carta being sealed in 1215.
You will depart Old Sarum at approx. 10.40am and follow a narrow riverside road through a picturesque valley with its own history to tell. Here you can take in the many thatched cottages and begin to learn the history that surrounds Stonehenge.
Arriving at Stonehenge at 11.10am you will spend two hours experiencing the new visitor centre and the Ancient Stones before heading to Avebury.
En route to Avebury you will see the Alton Barnes White Horse (a large chalk carving in the hillside) before passing through Lockeridge (where the Sarcen stones originate that form part of Stonehenge & Avebury). You will also see Silbury hill, the largest manmade mound in Europe and the West Kennet longbarrow (an ancient Neolithic burial mound). If time & weather permit you will walk to the site and actually enter the burial mound.
At 2.15pm you arrive at Avebury where your guide will walk you over the site. Here you will try your hand at divining for spiritual leylines.
Leaving Avebury at 4.30pm you begin your return journey to Salisbury train station, Central Coach Park or a local hotel (if you are staying overnight). The tour will be completed at 5.30pm.
Your day trip starts with a morning pickup from Salisbury Train Station or your accommodation in Salisbury. En route to Stonehenge, learn the wonders of the medieval city of Salisbury before travelling a scenic route to Stonehenge. You will see thatched cottages and learn about the surrounding area.
Once you reach the world famous UNESCO Heritage Site of Stonehenge, marvel at human endeavour which is testament to the sophisticated engineering skills of prehistoric people. Follow in their footsteps as you approach the monument of Stonehenge and explore the many other prehistoric remains across the landscape.
Just after noon, depart Stonehenge and begin your journey across the Wiltshire countryside. You will cross the Kennet and Avon Canal and learn of the transition between the Canals and the first trains before seeing a magnificent chalk carving in the hillside, Alton Barnes White Horse. You then travel through Lockeridge, the home of the Sarcen Stones (the largest of the stones at Stonehenge), and you soon arrive in Avebury where you have free time for lunch (own expense).
In Avebury, another UNESCO World Heritage Site, you will learn of the true definition of a henge and as your guide takes you around this Neolithic henge monument containing three stone circles you will be able to touch and feel the stones themselves. You will try your hand at Divining for the spiritual leylines before leaving Avebury.
Departing Avebury you will travel to West Kennet Long Barrow and Silbury Hill, where you can take a short walk to one of the largest, most accessible Neolithic chambered tombs in Britain. Built in and around 3650BC, it was used for a short time as a burial chamber, nearly 50 people being buried here before the chambers were blocked. You will have a great view from here of Silbury Hill, the largest man-made mound in Europe. Mysterious Silbury Hill compares in height and volume to the roughly contemporary Egyptian pyramids. Probably completed around 2400BC, it apparently contains no burial.
At around 5pm you will depart Silbury Hill and begin your journey back towards your desired drop off location in Salisbury, where you will return at 6-6.30pm.
