Going home to The Wirral

When I was a teenager my family moved to the Wirral but I continued to go to school in Liverpool and later to work in the city, so I never really explored this beautiful peninsula on my doorstep - until recently.

Now living in Wales I go back to Liverpool and the Wirral whenever I can to visit family and friends, so when we got an invitation to stay there for a weekend, me and my partner Alberto jumped at the chance.

Golf fans will already be familiar with Hoylake on the coast, home to the Royal Liverpool Golf Club which hosted the Open Championship in July 2014 attracting more than 203,000 golf enthusiasts.

But this attraction is just one of many in a huge area which offers visitors a host of activities including walking, cycling, eating out, great pubs and places to shop till you drop.

The coastline offers fabulous views across the Mersey with my most favourite in the whole world - yes I am biased - the fabulous Liverpool skyline with its distinctive Liver Birds and two cathedrals. Or you can admire the hills of North Wales, viewed from the Wirral Way at Thurstaston.

However, the part of the Wirral we were staying in was a place I knew nothing about.

We were lucky enough to spend the weekend at the Mere Brook House in Thornton Hough, the only five-star gold award guest house in Merseyside.

And it richly deserves this award as it was highlighted in the Michelin Guide and named Accommodation of the Year in the Wirral Tourism Awards 2014 and Guest Accommodation of the Year in the LCR Tourism Awards 2014.

It has also been named Independent Hospitality Business of the Year in the Merseyside in Business Awards 2014.

The house is set off a country lane in its own grounds and adjoining the owner's own farmhouse (www.merebrookhouse.co.uk).

The huge rooms are luxuriously decorated in warm colours, our room had a huge comfortable bed and deep red brocade curtains framing a large bay window with views over the countryside.

The house has a welcoming and homely farm kitchen stocked with homemade cakes and biscuits, bottles of wine, local cheeses and fresh fruit juices which guests are welcome to sample any time.

The conservatory style dining room is where we enjoyed huge English breakfasts, fortified with tea and coffee, before being taken on a whirlwind tour of some of the Wirral's 'hidden gems'.

On arriving on Friday night we were whisked away to enjoy dinner at The Lawns restaurant attached to,Thornton Hall Hotel and Spa, which has a luxurious and welcoming dining room in a great location with fabulous grounds, favoured by many couples who choose the popular venue for their wedding celebrations. (www.lawnsrestaurant.co.uk)

We were treated to a three course meal with melt in the mouth ingredients. I enjoyed a starter of sliced wood pigeon in a delicious sauce with a main of veal and seasonal vegetables and chocolate heaven sweet to finish.

Highly recommended!

The next day on our tour of Wirral our first stop was to Claremont Farm, a short ride from Mere Brook House, which is run by Andrew Pimbley and his brother Guy, the third generation to run the business.

Claremont is proud of developing a wide range of vegetables with its most in demand being asparagus, first grown in 1994 and in season on the menu of many local restaurants and hotels.

The farm shop, which has been expanded recently to include a cafe/restaurant selling a range of mouth watering dishes included prawns fished that morning from Hoylake, just a couple of miles up the road, as well as a butchers, homemade bread and a range of fruit and vegetables plus a great range of biscuits.

We were treated to a fabulous spread of local fish, meat, pasta and huge salads plus homemade pies which melted in the mouth. It is a shame we had had breakfast less than an hour before but we still managed to have a bite of every dish on offer.

Claremont Farm is now regarded as the good food hub of the Wirral and this year, 2015, sees the huge space above the farm shop being upgraded so it can play host to conferences and wedding receptions with fabulous views from huge picture windows over the countryside. (www.claremontfarm.co.uk)

Our next stop was Birkenhead Park which I used to pass daily on my way home from work but never appreciated that on our doorstep is a true treasure which has been there since 1847.

It was designed by Sir Joseph Paxton as a 'park for the people' and it is widely accepted that, after visiting Birkenhead Park in 1850, American architect Frederick Law Olmsted incorporated many of the features in his design for New York's Central Park.

It is a great place for families to explore with their children, to enjoy a stroll, admire the many floral displays and have a chat with a park ranger who will gladly give you the history of this beautiful place.

Or you can admire a bowls game, enjoy a drink at the visitor centre or just sit in the sun and relax.

The rangers are also involved in a scheme which takes on youngsters who the system 'may have given up on'. These kids are given the chance to work on projects in the park where they learn a sense of pride and belonging and in many cases go on to expand on their experience and learn that there is more to life than skipping an education.

After our park tour we were treated to lunch at an unusual venue known as Four Seven. Four Eight in the historic Hamilton Square in Birkenhead.

This beautiful location is home to many law firms whose staff can take a lunch break sitting in the small park in the middle of the square. From the outside you would be forgiven for thinking 47.48 was a law firm with its impressive wooden door and iron railing frontage.

But step inside and you are entering a beautifully restored building which houses both conference facilities on one side of the building and bars and restaurants, including a courtyard area with a nearby bar which would make an ideal wedding venue, on the other.

At the top of this beautiful building is a self contained flat which boasts a huge bathroom with a clawfoot bath and black and white colour scheme with a luxury kitchen, living room and ensuite bathroom which is hired out for mini breaks or longer if you desire. This is why 47.48 is known as a venue for celebration, working, eating, sleeping and playing! (www.4738.co.uk).

Another fabulous hidden treasure, which I never knew existed, is the Wirral Tramway and Transport Museum, hidden away in Taylor Street in Birkenhead, with a tram line running from Woodside Ferry to the museum.

And if you time it right you can take a trip on a tram after exploring the museum which has trams dating back to the 1900s. The fleet includes tram cars from Birkenhead, Liverpool, Wallasey and a recently restored car from Lisbon, Portugal. The Museum is proud winner of the Wirral Unsung Hero of The Year 2012 along with their volunteers.

The transport collection was created as a celebration of Birkenhead's place in the history of public transport, and set up in collaboration with the volunteers of the Merseyside Tramway Preservation Society.

In addition to trams, the museum houses a collection of local buses in running order and a group of cars and motorbikes on load from the Baxter Collection. There is also a model railway layout and World of Motion, a real transport enthusiasts' model shop. (For details of opening times call 0151 647 2128).

Our tram trip ended at Woodside Ferry, with the great view over to Liverpool waterfront and just yards from Gallagher's Pub and Barbers. Yes barbers! This is where you can have a pint and a hot towel close shave at the same time!

Frank Gallagher was formerly in the Irish Guards and had run two barber's shops in the area. He and his wife Sue wanted to run a pub so they decided to juxtaposition a pub and traditional barber's shop on the same premises.

The barbers section is just beyond the beautifully restored bar area and while unusual it seems entirely normal to have a chat with a customer who is also having a close shave.

The historic venue also boasts a beer garden and upstairs is a venue for live music and comedy shows which are growing in popularity as they have a mixture of well known names alongside newcomers.

Frank and Sue are very welcoming and happy to talk about all the memorabilia adorning the walls of their quirky pub which they have lovingly restored after taking on the old building which had been left to rot.

The unusual contributions are not only from family and friends but pub regulars and others who have learned about Frank's connection with the military.

After sampling several real ales and a platter of sandwiches we headed back to Mere Brook for a rest before enjoying a meal out in nearby Heswall.

This lovely town centre has a host of boutique types shops and bars and our destination was the popular Ego restauratn which can be found in the town's main street, Telegraph Road (www.egorestaurants.co.uk) offering a buzzy yet relaxing place to eat out.

The menu boasts the best of the varied flavours of the Mediterranean; from Moroccan Tajines to Greek Meze, Neapolitan Pizzas to Spanish Tapas, Steaks, Pasta, Risotto and daily fresh fish specials.

We enjoyed a Moroccan beef dish loaded with flavours and served with vegetables and rice and several glasses of wine.

It was a lovely end to a whirlwind weekend, having packed so much in to two days.

If you haven't explored the Wirral peninsula, you are missing out on a great experience and I've only touched on a few of the delights.

Our stay was courtesy of Wirral Borough Council. For further information on Wirral check www.visitwirral.com or follow @visit_wirral