BRITS who have dreamed of starring in their own American Western don’t need to fly to the States to live out their cowboy dreams, oh no.
From fake towns and glamping sites to cattle ranches and secret speakeasies, there are plenty of Western-inspired attractions in the UK, if you know where to look.
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Laredo Western Town
Just 20 miles from the English capital lies Laredo Western Town, an authentic Wild West-inspired town that was founded in 1971 by enthusiast, John Truder.
It started life as the Laredo Western where John met other Western enthusiasts to discuss their love of the American Old West.
The club expanded over the years with Wild West Shows and re-enactments taking place.
Authentic buildings that wouldn’t look out of place in a John Wayne film were eventually built.
Nowadays, Laredo Western Town is home to 24 buildings, including The Silver Palace – a full-size two-story hotel that took nine years to build.
Other buildings include a Saloon, a Marshal’s Office, working Blacksmiths, a Livery Stables, a bank, and a Saddlery.
The interiors are packed with authentic decor, like oil lamps, candles and wood-burning stoves, while the outside features hitching trails, horse troughs and stylised street signs.
Despite being used as a backdrop for Hollywood Blockbusters and TV shows invitations to the town are hard to come by, this is because Laredo Western Town is for members and invited guests only, so don’t have your heart set on visiting.
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The Great Dartmoor Cattle Drives
Luckily there are plenty of other Cowboy experiences in the UK Brits can easily visit, including ‘the UK’s only Cattle Drive’ in Dartmoor National Park.
Famous for its wide open spaces and dramatic landscapes, Meldon, a hamlet in West Devon, still uses horses to move cattle to grazing areas, cowboy-style.
Luckily, Brits who want to become a drover can book three-night stays at Dartmoor Riding Holidays & Cattle Drives.
Holidaymakers will learn how to drive the cattle as they take in breathtaking views over woodland, valley bottoms, rivers and hilltops.
Three-night breaks start from £1,170 per person, with holidaymakers raving about the experience online.
One person wrote: “One holidaymaker said: “Not for the inexperienced or nervous rider, but perfect if you are a confident rider and want to enjoy a good ramp! “
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Shotgun City, Sundown Adventureland
Often billed as one of the best theme parks for under 10s, Sundown Adventureland near Retford in Nottingham has its very own Wild West Town.
One for the younger cowboys, Sundown Adventureland has eight themed areas, including Shotgun City.
Park-goers will find a traditional saloon, complete with an animatronic sing-song show
Other attractions include The Rocky Mountain Train Ride, a Shooting Gallery and a soft play area.
Drayton Manor also has its own themed Wild West zone called Frontier Falls that has a 4D cinema and other themed attractions like a blasting barrels game.
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Smith and Western
Fancy a smokey American BBQ? Then, look no further than Smith and Western, an American-themed restaurant chain.
Each of its seven restaurants has been decorated to look like a Western saloon with faux-antler chandeliers hanging from the ceiling and cowhide blankets and rugs decorating the ramshackled booths.
Film memorabilia from John Wayne’s The Searchers is also displayed in cabinets, while other props like mining carts also wind round its upper levels.
Diners can also opt to purchase cowboy hats, so they can eat their meal living out their dreams of becoming a cowboy.
Plates of grub are hearty, think rib platters, huge burgers, steaks and chillis, it’ll definitely keep even the hungriest Sheriff satisfied.
The family-run business has seven restaurants in the UK, including sites in Horsham, Tunbridge Wells, Chichester and Box Hill.
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Deadwood Cabins
After a long day spent chasing off bandits and bank robbers, you’ll be looking for somewhere to rest your weary legs, luckily we’ve found the perfect place.
Set in Lincolnshire, Deadwood Cabins is a Wild West-theme glamping site with three luxury log cabins.
Each cabin looks like it has been plucked out of a spaghetti western starring John Wayne thanks to the walls lined with cowhide and antlers.
All three have a comfy bed, indoor kitchen, toilet facilities, a long burner, TV and BBQ.
Additional extras like BBQ packages and sweet treat boxes with ingredients for s’mores can also be added on to the cost of a stay.
Deadwood Cabins is an adults-only glamping site, where overnight guests aged 21 and over will need to book a two-night stay, minimum.
Overnight stays start from £77.50 per person, with parties of six able to book all three cabins in one booking.
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Here’s what it’s like to visit a moonshine saloon in London
THE Sun’s Jane Cook visited Moonshine Saloon: Immersive Wild West Experience in London last year, here’s what she thought.
Situated between Algate’s glass skyscrapers, the Saloon’s gaudy facade with its tea-stained newspaper boards and wagon wheels looked like it had been cut out of a Western film and pasted right into the centre of London.
It’s all a little too surreal for my friends and me, who were standing in a queue in a busy city street with unopened bottles of vodka and gin hidden in our bags.
The Moonshine Saloon’s gimmick, as the name suggests, is moonshine, and all guests are tasked with ‘sneaking’ in their homemade concoctions aka ‘store-brought spirits’.
Before long, a woman donning a ponytail, boots and a stetson with the loudest and cheeriest Texan accent I’ve ever heard is bellowing instructions at us.
Next, we are promptly ushered into a cloakroom – where things take a wild turn as we really felt like we travelled back in time.
With our modern clothes, phones and laptop bags, we look uncanny against the dark yellow-tinged interior, where piano music not far off HBO’s Westworld plays, and the only sensible way of greeting is ‘howdy’.
The actress reminds us that we look like out-of-towners and hands out cowboy hats and colourful ponchos to blend in.
We are told that we are here to strike a moonshine deal with the legendary Moonshiner Cassidy (who runs the bar with her naive husband) and that we mustn’t tell her husband about the illegal operation.
It is when we push our way past the iconic double-swinging batwing doors (the hallmark of any good Western movie) , that I really question reality.
Before my eyes is a believable dim western bar, with shady figures in cowboy hats, and lantern-lit wooden tables with dollars, dice and playing cards.
Discreetly, our alcohol is taken by the bar staff and somehow transformed into four different mouth-watering cocktails, which are delivered throughout the experience.
Beforehand, we are asked if we have any particular preferences and if any members of the group would prefer to stick to one spirit.
By the end of the night, my gin bottle was returned to me, with only a small bit of it used.
The show is broken into three segments: one of drinking, in which any of the actors could approach and talk to you; one of story scenes performed by the actors; and moments where you were led in a group into one of the two side rooms.
For more action-packed experiences, check out our list of adult-only attractions that make you feel like a kid again.
And for fans of the Wild West, this UK theme park has launched a western land.
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