Blueprints Of Britain App

Free app for iPhone and Android

Explore 1,400+ places across Britain, and counting.

The Blueprints of Britain app brings together castles, waterfalls, beaches, viewpoints and villages. Hand-picked, written up, and free to explore.

Free to download and free to use. A free account unlocks the full write-up, directions and favourites.

The Blueprints of Britain app map, zoomed in over the Scottish Highlands, with individual pins showing what kind of place each one is.

What is inside

Whatever you fancy doing with the day.

Wherever you are in Britain, there is something worth the trip within reach.

  • England
  • Scotland
  • Wales
  • Northern Ireland
  • Castles Ruins, keeps and gatehouses
  • Landmarks Stones, monuments and follies
  • Attractions Museums, gardens and railways
  • Villages, towns and cities Places to park up and wander
  • Beaches Sand, shingle and quiet coves
  • Waterfalls Some roadside, some a walk in
  • Lakes, reservoirs and quarries Still water and shoreline walks
  • Caves Show caves and wilder ones
  • Wildlife spots Seals, puffins and seabirds
  • Viewpoints Worth the climb, or the drive
  • Walks and hikes Short circuits to full days
  • Hand-picked accommodation Places we would happily stay
  • Food Somewhere good to stop for lunch
  • Drink Pubs, inns and breweries

The map

Tap a pin. Decide in seconds.

Every place sits on one map, grouped so it stays readable at any zoom. Filter by category, or use Near Me to see what is around you right now.

  • DetailsThe full write-up, photograph and everything worth knowing before you set off.
  • NavigateHands the place straight to your usual maps app for directions.
  • FavouriteSaves it to your list so you can plan a day out around it later.
  • Stay nearbyLooks up places to stay within reach of that spot.
  • Adventures nearbyShows you what else is close by, so one stop becomes a proper day.
  • Website postOpens our own article about that place, with the history, the photographs and where to park.
A place card open on the map for Falls of Glomach, showing a photograph of the waterfall and buttons for Details, Navigate, Favourite, Stay nearby and Adventures nearby.

Getting there

Tap Navigate. Your phone does the rest.

Every place has a Navigate button. One tap hands the spot to the maps app you already use, with the pin already dropped. No copying postcodes between apps, no wondering whether you have got the right village.

  1. A place card open on the map for Anglesey Abbey, showing the Navigate button alongside Details, Favourite, Stay nearby, Adventures nearby and Website post.
    Tap Navigate on any place card.
  2. The phone's own maps app open with a driving route to Anglesey Abbey, showing sixteen minutes as the fastest option.
    Your maps app opens with the route ready.

It opens whatever you normally use for directions. We do not try to replace it.

Also in the app

Small things that make a day out easier.

  • FavouritesKeep a running list of everywhere you mean to go.
  • SearchLook up a place or a destination by name.
  • Near MeSee what is close by when you are already out.
  • FiltersNarrow the map down to just castles, or just beaches, or whatever you fancy.
  • Suggest a placeTell us about somewhere we have missed and we will take a look.
  • CommentsLeave a note for other visitors. Comments are checked before they appear.

A look inside

What it looks like on your phone.

  • A browsable list of places in Scotland, including Dirleton Castle, Blackford Hill, Holyrood Palace and the National Museum of Scotland, each on a card with a photograph and its category.
    Browse the collection as a list when you are not sure what you are looking for.
  • The page for Fyrish Monument in Scotland, with a photograph of the stone arches and a write-up explaining what it is and why it is worth seeing.
    Every place gets a photograph and a plain-English write-up.
  • The filter screen listing every category with a tick beside each one, and a country filter above them.
    Turn categories on and off, or narrow the map to one country.
  • The map zoomed in over northern Britain, with individual pins showing the kind of place each one is.
    Zoom in and every pin tells you what kind of place it is.
  • The Stay nearby screen showing places to stay around Exning Road on a map, each marked with a nightly price.
    Stay nearby finds somewhere to sleep within reach of the spot.
  • The Adventures nearby screen showing things to do close by, including self-hire punting in Cambridge.
    Adventures nearby turns one stop into a proper day out.

Comments

Been there? Leave a note.

Under every place there is room for a comment. Add yours once you have been, and see what other people made of it.

Was the car park a nightmare? Is it better at low tide? Did you love it? That is worth more to the next person than anything we can write.

We read every comment before it goes up, so it stays useful and friendly.

The comments on the Fyrish Monument page, where a visitor has written about the walk up and the view from the top, with buttons to like, reply and report, and a box to add your own.

What it costs

£0

Nothing. There is no subscription.

The app is free on both stores. Some of it opens up when you make a free account, and here is exactly where that line sits.

Without an account

  • Every place on the map
  • The photograph for each one
  • Stay nearby
  • Adventures nearby
  • Every filter, and Near Me

With a free account

  • The full write-up for every place
  • Directions
  • Favourites
  • Suggest a place
  • Comments

No payment details. No trial that ends. The email newsletter is a tick-box on the sign-up screen and it is off by default.

Questions

Anything else you want to know.

Is it really free?

Yes. The app is free to download on both the App Store and Google Play, there is no subscription, and we never ask for payment details. It is paid for by small adverts inside the app.

Do I need an account?

Not to look around. You can browse every place on the map, see the photographs, filter by category and use Stay nearby and Adventures nearby without signing in. A free account unlocks the full write-up for each place, directions, and saving favourites. There are no payment details involved, and the email newsletter is a tick-box that is off by default.

Which phones does it work on?

iPhone and Android. You can get it from the App Store or from Google Play.

How do you choose the places?

They are picked and written up by us rather than pulled in automatically, and we keep going back over them to check that what we have said is still true. Where we have written a full article about a place, the app links straight to it, like our guide to 18 must-see castles in East Anglia.

Can I suggest a place?

Please do. There is a Suggest tab in the app. Tell us where it is and why it is worth the trip, and we will take a look.

Something looks wrong. How do I tell you?

There is a Report a problem option in the app on every place, which is the quickest way to reach us. You can also email support@blueprintsofbritain.com.

Get the app

Britain, in your pocket.

Free on iPhone and Android.