Pints will be poured and hot food will be served in pubs and restaurants across England from Monday, as places with outdoor seating areas welcome back customers. Indoor spaces will have to wait a little longer to open up from 17 May, while in Scotland hospitality will start to reopen from 26 April. Whether you’re more about an alfresco drink than a full dine-in experience, the prospect of visiting pubs again is an exciting one, so NationalWorld has rounded up the quirkiest and most unusual spots to visit in the country.
5. Tan Hill Inn, North Yorkshire
Nestled high in the Yorkshire Dales is the Tan Hill Inn - the highest pub in the UK. It stands at 1,732ft above sea level and there’s nothing else round about except from the wilderness, making this particular dwelling a very special place. It is also rumoured to be home to the ghost of Mrs Peacock, who ran the inn for 40 years. tanhillinn.com Photo: Facebook
6. The Sun Inn, Herefordshire
Situated in the Roman village of Leintwardine, this is one of the UK’s last remaining traditional Parlour pubs. It is pretty much a room in someone’s house, and hasn’t changed much in 200 years. The historic two-bar pub was originally home to legendary landlady Flossie Lane. There’s now an extension and a beer garden at the back. suninnleintwardine.co.uk Photo: Facebook
7. The Temple, Manchester
Descending the steps into this unlikely pub will bring you to what used to be a public toilet. Now, the Temple is a fun, vibrant watering hole with an array of continental beers. In pre-Covid times, regulars, tourists and even many of the city’s famous band members would pack inside this tiny venue at the weekend. facebook.com/pages/The-Temple Photo: Facebook
8. The Marsden Grotto, Tyne and Wear
Known locally, as “the Grotto”, this historic and renowned hotel sits on Marden Beach in South Shields. The unusual spot is actually one of the very few “cave bars” in Europe. In 1782, miner Jack Bates blasted a large cave in the side of the cliff to create a rent-free home for himself and his wife, and it soon became a spot for smugglers before being developed into an inn. marsdengrotto.com Photo: Facebook