Dunham Massey is excellent and local, the classic GM site for Green Woodpecker, which are brilliant birds to watch. Longshaw Estate/Padley Gorge is a superb day out further afield. I also like Lyme Park, and where it differs for me is that there is probably a bit more to explore and perhaps less online coverage, so you might well find some birds yourself. I found a Redstart at Lyme in a bit of the estate that I hadn't seen anyone mention in the thread on here or whatever. In contrast at Padley Gorge you just have to walk up the main path and you should see all the woodland species fairly easily. So it is a bit horses for courses, if you want to test your ID skills I'd try Lyme, if you want some straightforward ticks then Dunham or Padley Gorge are excellent.

As an aside, I visited a NT reserve in Cambridgeshire called Wicken Fen in 2014. It is a very special place so if you were anywhere near East Anglia for any reason you could do worse than an afternoon there.

Cheers for the suggestions, will probably try a couple of those in the coming weeks (weather providing!).

Tatton Park can be good for woodland birds & also the mere gets waterbirds.
Free entry to gardens with NT card but beware....still have to pay for car.

I always enjoy visiting Dunham Massey which is of course very local. Good selection of woodland birds and waterfowl.
( 3 varieties of Woodpecker if you're lucky) Sometimes the odd wader.. See our Forum for recent sightings.
A good café and Santa's due soon.
Plus National Trust car Park.

-- Edited by keith mills on Monday 7th of December 2015 07:03:00 PM

Longshaw Estate in Derbyshire (actually right on the border of Yorkshire, I think) is a fantastic place to go, though probably a lot more rewarding in the spring and summer; there's a thread in the Derbyshire section that'll give you a pointer as to what you might see (titled 'Padley Gorge'). Link here. ETA: Hopefully the link works this time.

-- Edited by Shannon Llewellyn on Monday 7th of December 2015 02:31:56 PM

I've been bought a year's National Trust membership by my future mother-in-law as she seems to think it'll get me access to more places for birding...so, where's good to go in the North West (I've got two weeks off work over Christmas, so if the weather is half decent I could visit a few then)? I know Sizergh Castle is meant to be good for Hawfinches (and not too far from Leighton Moss so could visit both in a day), but other than that I've got no idea.