Heights of Abraham is a 60-acre Georgian hilltop estate, first opened in 1787. Located on the edge of the Peak District and accessed by an exciting flight in a cable car, with two underground cavern tours, exhibitions, adventure play and stunning views, the Heights is a fun-filled educational day out!

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Heights of Abraham

Bring your class to the Heights of Abraham for a memorable and educational day out! The day begins with an exciting flight in the state of the art cable cars, across the stunning Derwent Valley, with 360 degree views from the comfort of the cable car seat. The cable car journey takes you 554ft upwards, to the summit of Masson Hill.

Once your class have reached the top, there is a whole 60-acre hilltop park to explore. The Heights estate first opened in 1787 as a pleasure ground for wealthy Georgian visitors, who were fascinated by country scenery and exploration of the outdoors.

Back in the late 1700s, visitors would scale the steep slopes of the Heights of Abraham by foot, or by donkey. Drawn in by romantic ideas of the countryside, it became a popular and fashionable destination.

But the Heights hasn’t always been a country park, in fact, the history of Masson Hill dates back hundreds of millions of years. The two caverns at the Heights of Abraham were first formed during the carboniferous era and have morphed and changed with the times ever since.

They then became popular lead mines and were mined for the valuable metal from the 15^th Century. We invite you to take a tour underground deep into the hillside in the Masson Cavern. Experience first-hand the intricate cavern system that the miners created and maintained for hundreds of years.

Learn about the 350 million year story that led to the cavern being what it is today. From the light of a single miner’s candle to the whole chamber being flooded with a rainbow of lights, it’s illuminating!

A little further down the hill is the Great Rutland Cavern, where we take you on a journey back in time to experience what life was really like for a 17^th Century lead mining family. Learn about the role of women and children within the mines, and how they took on the most dangerous work. Hear the stories from the past of mass excursions, cave chandeliers and extraordinary light shows.

Above ground, there are fantastic scenic views everywhere you look. The views are inspirational and great for subjects relating to Geography, Art, English and more. Head up the historic Victoria Prospect Tower for an amazing 360 degree view of the surrounding area, 1000ft above sea level! At the Heights we have worked with local teachers to create a wide range of worksheets, for KS1 and KS2, covering a variety of topics. These worksheets are free to download and cover material during the visit and for class work afterwards.

The Heights is home to three exhibition spaces with fascinating stories to tell. The Long View gives a detailed story of tourism in Matlock Bath and how the Heights of Abraham came to be. Upstairs in the Film Theatre, you can watch the incredible story on how the brave engineers in 1984 built the famous cable cars. The third exhibition, A Mirror on the Past, houses historical costumes, to represent how visitors clothing and fashion changed since the estate first opened to the early 1900s.

Once the learning is done, there are two large adventure play areas for your class to let off some steam and have a great deal of fun. There’s two giant slides for racing down, multiple climbing frames and obstacles to tackle, all while the teachers enjoy a seat and a well-deserved break!

We also have two large picnic areas plus plenty of wide-open space to explore. There are souvenir shops and an ice cream kiosk for the children to spend a little pocket money too, plus a café for the teachers to enjoy a cup of tea or coffee.

Located in the heart of the country in Derbyshire Peak District, near to several large Youth Hostels and school residential sites, the Heights is a good stop off on a long journey, or a full day trip with your class.

Interested? We invite you to come for a pre-visit to see what you think! We offer complimentary pre-visits for two members of staff, to take a look and see if a day at the Heights is the perfect trip for their class. Please email office@heightsofabraham.com to arrange.

Contact the Educational Visits UK team to help plan your next school trip.