Glastonbury Town in Somerset

Glastonbury as seen from the Tor.

Glastonbury is a small market town of about 9,000 people situated near Wells in the Mendip District of eastern Somerset. The town is stands on the Somerset Levels.

Glastonbury Abbey was one of the most important abbeys in England, it was the site of Edmund Ironside's coronation as King of England in 1016. The Abbey is also rumoured to be the burial place of King Arthur although this has not been proven.

It is known that there has been some sort of settlement in this area since Neolithic times. The timber trackway known as the 'Sweet Track' confirms that. Some centuries later the Iron Age Glastonbury Lake Village grew around the former course of the River Brue. In the Middle Ages, Glastonbury became a centre for commerce and the town still contains many buildings of this period such as the Somerset Rural Life Museum and the Church of St John the Baptist.

Glastonbury is known nowadays for its Glastonbury Music Festival, held near the town in the village of Pilton. It is also a centre for New Age and spiritual visitors who come to immerse themselves in tales of the Isle of Avalon and search for their own Holy Grail. Glastonbury Tor and the Chalice Well also attract thousands of visitors every year.

Dining out near Glastonbury

The Who'd A Thought It Inn Restaurant, Glastonbury

Abbey Tea Rooms, Glastonbury

Panborough Inn, Wells

Beah, Wells

Goodfellows, Wells

Glencot House, Wookey Hole

The George, Wedmore, Wedmore

The Olive Mill, Bridgwater

Halfway House, Langport

The Natterjack Inn, Shepton Mallet