Market · Amesbury

Salisbury Charter Market, Salisbury

Held twice weekly on Tuesday and Saturday in the grand Market Place beneath the shadow of Salisbury Cathedral's soaring spire, this is one of England's oldest chartered markets — trading has been continuous here since 1227. Stalls spill across the cobbles selling local cheeses, Wiltshire charcuterie, cut flowers, vintage clothing and handmade ceramics.

What to Buy and Eat

Look out for Wiltshire-cured bacon and locally smoked trout from the farm stalls at the eastern end, and for rounds of Wiltshire Loaf and Tidworth-made goat's cheese that rarely appear in supermarkets. The flower stalls near the Guildhall are stacked with British-grown blooms at prices that make you want to fill every vase you own.

Street-food traders set up alongside the permanent stalls on Saturdays, offering everything from wood-fired flatbreads to Ethiopian injera — a reflection of how cosmopolitan Salisbury has quietly become. Grab a paper cup of coffee and a warm pastry and take a pew on the Guildhall steps to watch the whole scene unfold.

The Market Place and Its Surroundings

The Market Place itself is one of the finest medieval squares in southern England, ringed by Georgian and timber-framed facades and anchored by the 1795 Guildhall. On non-market days the square is still worth visiting for the Poultry Cross — a 15th-century hexagonal canopy under which livestock was once sold and which is now a beloved local landmark.

From the Market Place it is a five-minute walk to the Cathedral Close, where you can see the best-preserved of the four surviving copies of Magna Carta (1215) in the Chapter House — an astonishing document to see in the flesh.