Watford - Watford visitor guide showing a virtual tour of 'Watford' linked to an interactive map with local and travel information. 360° panoramas from Hertfordshire.

Watford is a town and district in Hertfordshire, just north of London. The town grew up on a low hill next to an ancient fording site on the River Colne. It is first mentioned in an an Anglo-Saxon charter of 1007, but not by name in the Doomsday Book. It grew in importance due to proximity to both St Albans and the Chiltern Hills and since 1100 has held a weekly farmers market.

In 1762 the Sparrows Herne turnpike ran past Watford and it was the first staging post north of London on the route. By 1798 the town was joined to the Grand Junction Canal and in 1837 to the London and Birmingham Railway. Watford has excellent links to London and is now a popular commuter town. It is also the location of the headquarters of a number of important national companies like Mothercare, British Waterways and J D Wetherspoon.

Watford - Attractions

• Cassiobury Park - 190 acre park formed from the grounds of Cassiobury House and winner of the 2007 Green Flag Award. The Grand Union Canal flows though the park.
• Oxhey Park - nature reserve near to Oxhey Park Golf Club.
• Harlequin Shopping Centre - main shopping centre in Watford
• Watford Museum - museum of the history of the area and Watford Football Club.
• Watford Colosseum - one of the best concert and music halls in the UK, often seeing performances by the BBC Concert Orchestra and used for recording film tracks.
• Watford Palace Theatre - used for all kinds of performances, drama, dance and pantomimes.
Pumphouse Theatre and Arts Centre - live music and drama theatre in a converted pump house.St. Mary's Church - 12th century church built on the site of an older Saxon church.
• Watford Fire Museum - housed in the former fire station workshop with fire fighting equipment from the 1850's onwards.
• Bushey Museum and Art Gallery - based in Bushey just east of Watford with a a large collection of works and articles relating to Sir Hubert von Herkomer RA and his world-renowned Art School.

Watford should not be confused with the Watford Gap, a gap in the Northamptonshire hills 50 miles north of Watford between Northampton and Rugby.

Rail: Watford High Street, Watford Junction Station
London Overground: Watford High Street
Road: M1 (Junction 5), M25 (Junction 19). Watford is about 20 miles north of central London.