A honey-coloured hive of activity

Castle Cary is a thriving market town and a perfect place to visit for a spot of window shopping, discovers CATHERINE COURTENAY

- CATHERINE COURTENAY

With its honey-colored stone buildings and famous Market House standing proudly at its centre, Castle Cary makes an impressive impact on the first time visitor.

Its shops are clustered around the Market House, adding to the appeal and making it a great destination for a spot of window shopping.

First though, it’s worth visiting one of the town’s iconic buildings. Just up the hill from the Market House is a small circular tower, the Round House, an old lockup prison dating from the 18th century. You can borrow the keys from the information office in Market House and look inside. It’s one of only 12 such buildings in the country and you can even get married there.

Not far away is another impressive building from 1767, which houses the Post Office and next door is a lovely library, a pretty little building which, since threatened with closure in 2018, is now run by volunteers as a community library.

The town has a thriving bookshop, the Bailey Hill Bookshop, which is one of many independents in the town and has been around for more than 40 years. To have so many truly local shops indicates that the town’s retailers are doing an impressive job and fighting back against online competition. The bookshop for example, as well as being staffed by knowledgeable booksellers, can order a book for overnight delivery.