The frozen in time village that’s perfect for a day trip | City breaks | Travel

A picturesque “chocolate-box” village is the perfect day trip. Escaping the city’s hustle and bustle, I embarked on a midweek jaunt to a quaint Lancashire village that seemed straight out of a fairy tale.

Brimming with charming cottages and bustling independent businesses, Croston is a treasure trove of history and bucolic landscapes.

I took the journey from Liverpool Central to Ormskirk, followed by a changeover to Croston, which was a breeze. A mere ten-minute walk from the station led me to the heart of the village.

As I strolled down Station Road, I was greeted by stunning historic houses, along with numerous cyclists and dog-walkers.

Tucked away in the countryside, Croston Village is a sight for sore eyes, attracting many visitors who come to amble around and soak up the scenic beauty of Croston Moss. Further up Town Lane, a quaint historic bridge crossing the River Yarrow caught my eye, flanked by gorgeous cottages, blooming flower baskets, and a historic church in the backdrop, reports the Liverpool Echo.

Nearby lies a cosy little cafe called Thyme on the Yarrow, which serves an array of breakfasts, lunches and sweet treats. Inside, I’m greeted by Suzy Whillis, originally from Philadelphia in the United States, who moved to Croston with her husband Dave at the beginning of the year, later taking over the business.

Priding themselves on supporting and sourcing local food and ingredients, the couple have made the café into a “hub” for the community and offer everything from coffees and toasties to Dave’s signature rocky road and lemon drizzle cake. Suzy, 46, told the ECHO: “I love it. People are so friendly and there’s real a sense of community in Croston.”

“It’s a small village, but there’s just always something on the calendar. There’s just always an activity whether it’s for children or seniors, there’s always something going on.

“I love that even though it’s small and tucked away here in Lancashire county, it’s still vibrant.” Suzy said many come to the area to walk around Croston Moss, where you can often see horses and sheep, and that anybody who knows the area tends to “follow the sun” when moving from beer garden to beer garden.

She said: “There’s little bridges and picturesque walks. People have the phrase chocolate-box, people may say it’s a little bit of a chocolate-box village, out of a storybook.

“You can get the money shot standing on the bridge and you have St Michael’s Church in the background. Now it’s wedding season, it’s so nice on a Saturday morning when it’s busy and we’re running around and the door is open and you can hear the church bells in the background.”

Suzy said the village definitely gets a lot of visitors from outside Lancashire and in many ways it is the “perfect stop.” She said: “It’s nice that you can leave a metropolitan area and get the serenity of Croston.”

“It’s about an hour to Liverpool, it’s about an hour to Manchester, so for someone weaving their way through Lancashire county it’s a perfect stop. If I were to go to a different area, it kind of checks all the boxes of what I want in a quick day trip.”

“I want some exercise, probably fancy a pint of a glass of savy b, I love coffee and a biscuit and a little browse or mooch. It’s perfect for a day trip.”

Before heading back towards the station, you can make your way down Westhead Road to find Croston Sports Club and The Black Horse pub. Operator Andrew Edmundson said customers come from Liverpool to visit the pub “on a weekly basis.”

Andrew, 58, told the ECHO: “This pub goes back to about the 1850s, but it’s what we call a hub pub. We have about 12 different teams that play from here – bowls, darts, poker.”

“I’ve been here 21 years, so I’ve certainly got to know the locals. I’d say it is a typical northern village, probably one of the most photographed villages in Lancashire without a doubt – with Church Street up the road.”

“Every pub is a little bit different from the next one, so it works.” Andrew said once you get to Croston, you can “stay for the whole day” as there’s plenty to do.

He said: “There’s places to drink, places to eat, places to relax. It’s really friendly, it really is and visitors are made to feel welcome.”

“I think that’s what attracts people. It’s something that’s a change for a day out. People come from all destinations to visit.”

“There’s caravan parks up the road, there’s not so much accommodation within the village so a lot of the time it is just day visits, but it is literally from all destinations. Through the summer, there’s people who I call my locals who’ve come from Manchester, Hull, Liverpool, that own caravans and they come for the summer or come every weekend, summerlocals if you will,”

“Get yourselves down here for a lovely day out and you can bring the kids. There’s plenty of things to do.”