From beautiful gardens a stone’s throw from the Southsea seafront to an open-air swimming pool named as one of the country’s best secluded lidos in a survey commissioned by bath retailer Showers to You, here are some great things to do in the Portsmouth area.
5. Southsea Rock Gardens
While the nearby Southsea beach may draw bigger crowds, the Southsea Rock Gardens are a great place to stroll, relax or admire an ornate fish pond. Photo: The News
6. Hotwalls
The Hotwalls in Old Portsmouth, near Portsmouth Harbour. Roughly a four minute walk from the cathedral is Hotwalls Studios, a centre of arts and crafts inside some of the city's historic sea defence buildings. Here, you can watch artists at work, step inside some of their galleries and relax on Hotwalls Beach. Picture: Habibur Rahman Photo: Habibur Rahman
7. Portchester Castle
Another site rich with history that is within a stones throw of Portsmouth, Portchester Castle has many interesting stories to tell and with large open grounds it is a great place for a scenic stroll. Photo: Alison Treacher
8. The Strand City Map Mural
Mapping the city in stylised form, the Strand mural is on a 3,000 sq ft wall of a building at the junction of Waverley Road and Clarendon Road in Southsea. Muralist Mark, 52, first painted the mural in 1997 before it was damaged by a leaking pipe and redone in 2010. It is regularly updated and has recently added more features from the north of the city. Picture: Sarah Standing Photo: Sarah Standing