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So, as part of the Festival of Firsts I asked the Yelp Community what they hadn't done in…read moreBirmingham. Renfield C. suggested a Ghost Walk (http://www.yelp.co.uk/topic/birmingham-yelps-festival-of-firsts) and what a mighty fine idea it was. Midlands Discovery Tours run 3 different ghost walks (as well as numerous other history related walks in the Midlands). Two are run monthly and one is run exclusively around Halloween. The main monthly Ghost walks are split into the "Sinister" and "Graveyard" varieties. The Graveyard Ghost Walk takes you into Birmingham's Jewellery Quarter and covers the catacombs in the two famous cemeteries in this part of the City (Warstone Lane and Key Hill). I haven't done this walk, but both of these locations are fantastically spooky anyway; so well worth checking out. For our #YelpFOF Ghostwalk, we chose the "Sinister" side. Starting off at Council House, we trekked around to Town Hall, Paradise Forum, New Street Station, Temple Street and ended up at the Cathedral. Our tour guide Mike was decked out like a Victorian Undertaker and led us around the City imparting his knowledge about where the bodies were buried, moved to and then reburied (did you know John Baskerville was moved from his resting place at least 4 times?). Poor Mike is normally part of a duo and was missing his partner on this particular eve. It was still incredibly enjoyable, but there were certain stories he wasn't as use to telling; saying that, even his minor mistakes were fun (as he was a fab storyteller). The tour costs £8 per person, but we ran at just over 2 hours. If I was to do another one, I would probably wait until it warmed up a bit. By half way around, my hands were frozen and I couldn't feel my ears! It was still incredible value for money and well worth cold pinkies for. A big thank you to Gem, Renfield, Emma and Dan (our intrepid Yelp explorers) for joining me for this installment of the FOF. We'll have to do it again (when it's warmer!).

As well as the regular tours that Midlands Discovery Tours run each weekend, they also offer…read moreprivate tours for groups on pretty much any topic. I know they've done one for international visitors about Heavy Metal, outside of Birmingham for those wanting to know more about Liverpool and Harry Potter tours based on some of the locations in the films. The one I asked for was for some students who were learning about the hospitality industry so we picked the topic of 'Tourism in Birmingham.' The angle very much lent itself to jobs as all the participants are looking to work in the industry and we learnt which the biggest hotel in Birmingham is, what sport was invented in Birmingham, why the Hyatt Regency was built and how many visitors come to Birmingham each year. Of course no walk/talk would be complete without the phrase 'more canals than Venice.'

To review Big Brum Sightseeing, I have to talk about what I think is their best tour; the Christmas…read moreLights tour. This is an open top bus, driving through Birmingham city centre when the Christmas lights are on. So yes it's freezing but it's dazzling too. I've been on it twice and whilst it doesn't get any warmer and each year we vow to take more warming things with us; another pair of gloves, and extra thermal hat, thermal socks, flask of hot chocolate etc etc. The best part of is it the commentary because although this is a Christmas tour, the guide is full of dark humour and we hear all about Christmas murders, wrong doings and mis-behaviour in the bygone era. Unmissable every Christmas!

Birmingham also has its famous sightseeing bus tours and I have been experiencing some of them. The…read moreBig Brum Open Top sightseeing is one of those experiences. Every first Sunday of each month, including this one now) until October, it's possible to check 30 touristic places of Birmingham, in a sightseeing that has the starting point on the corner of Colmore Row and Waterloo street, at Victoria Square. Take note: There are three different hours to join this adventure, at 10:30, 12:30 and 2.30 pm. When this tour guided started running in Birmingham, the admission was free but now it costs £12 (adults), £8 (students), £5 (15-5 years children) and under 5 years are for free. It's a bit pricey for a sightseeing compared to other bigger cities but if you just have a weekend to explore the city and this weekend is exactly when the Big Brum is running, it's a good way of visiting most of the heritage museums and landmarks in just one go!

A great morning/afternoon can be spent here, and also neighboring property Packwood House, so try…read moreand visit them both together. All four of us n our party enjoyed our visit to Baddesley Clinton very much. This is one of the only moated manor houses we have seen on our "National Trust" travels. As with lots of other properties of this era, there are Priest holes to see created by the infamous Nicholas Owen. Excellent tea rooms. A great time will be had by all.

This is a great place to visit and to keep going back to, even if only for the great walks in and…read morearound the grounds. The moated manor house has lots of surprises including priests' holes, possible bloodstains on the floor in one of some rooms, and chatty and knowledgeable room guides who make the visit a pleasure. There is a great secondhand bookshop to pass some time (nice and cheap too), the usual NT shop, and a lovely courtyard for teas and coffees with sheltered alcoves, which is alongside the barn restaurant. Nice food too, if a little pricey for some items. As an NT member, you can pop in for free, so worth considering if you like the ambiance of the place. It's also very near to the NT's Packwood House, so you can easily fit in a visit to both in the same day.

Sherborne Wharf, based canal side in Birmingham city centre is a lovely day out, especially if…read moreyou've not been before. You have to visit Sherborne Wharf to be able to hire one of the public available barges, as most of the small barges around the canals are privately owned and not accessible. They do tours through all the canals, and is a great local and somewhat different way of seeing the local canal and Brindley place tourist haunts. It's quieter in the morning, and you may find a bit of a queue during the weekend. Sitting on the barges, yes they are a little small on the inside, but worth the experience! Mind your head if your tall like me. Great to just relax, maybe take some food with you, or, take the dog down by the canal side. Easily reached from Broad Street, a short walk from the Mailbox and round the corner from Brindley place. A lovely and idyllic way to spend an afternoon.

You know those amazingly warm and sunny weekends? Well we don't get them too often and when they…read morehappen I get the urge to do something quintessentially English. So last one day recently saw a much needed drive out of Brum and into the countryside. I'm not a National Trust member but I am starting to wonder why? Our visit to Packwood House was fantastic. You can go into the house and even have a tour but we wanted to experience the gardens, herbaceous borders and huge yew topiaries up close. The house is originally 16th century and features several gorgeous blue and gold sun dials - so check your watch against them and see which are still set to GMT. The gardens are beautiful and kept in stunning condition. Mostly they are comprised of some very distinct and large yew topiaries. The highlight has to be walking up the helter skelter style border to reach the top of The Mound which is adorned with a large yew tree. From there you can take in the views, enjoy the cool shade and benefit from some much needed peace. The rest of the gardens are a mix of wild and wonderful plants and the look must change considerably throughout the year. Don't miss out on walking around the back of the house to catch the very unique sun dial monument. A great day out even if you are not a National Trust member - stunning!

Packwood is another National Trust property right on the doorstep and one that makes me so glad…read morethat we got membership for a Chrismas present. The gardens are the usual lovely mixture of more formal with some stunning yew trees to admire, plus the broader park land. The formal area is very children friendly and there's a lovely little raised mound right at the back that's lots of fun to run up. The pak land has a great walk and there's a large pond/small lake with ducks. It's a good place to explore and there's the usual wooded area to wander around too. The National Trust is so much better at welcoming families and Packwood now has so much more to offer children such as outdoor games and family activities during holidays. Picnics are welcome too. There isn't a cafe or restaurant although you can get coffee and snacks from the reception area. The toilets are in the car park.

You could be forgiven for not knowing about Martineau Gardens…read more Rather inconspicuous, it sits alongside a busy junction in the Edgbaston area and doesn't warrant much attention from the road. Once through the gates you find yourself in amongst fruit trees and carefully nurtured plants and flowers, on this occasion we didn't venture past the club house but had already witnessed an almost surreal scene of classes being given on the lawn with a tree being the focus of the lesson, needless to say the world of traffic noise and commuter squabble is soon forgotten. The staff were friendly when approached and assisted with our guesswork as to exactly which fruits blossomed within the protective netting of various beds. Martineau Gardens is a welcoming place and offers a great deal for anyone interested in the simple joys of gardening. Events are held regularly and more information can be found at their website: http://www.martineau-gardens.org.uk/visitor-information/plants-produce/

An oasis of calm just set back from busy Edgbaston roads…read more Volunteer gardeners are friendly and always willing to help. Produce and plants are also often for sale (wood chips, seasonal vegetables and fruit and preserves) There are always interesting things growing and it's good for a look around any time of year. They even have a mulberry tree, not many of those in the area. Their events are worth visiting as there's always a lot going on (from Seed swaps to Apple Days)There's also a great play area with large wooden ship for the tiddlywinks to have a play on.