Alfoxton Wood

Alfoxton Wood sits just above Holford in Somerset's Quantock Hills, a proper woodland walk that locals actually use rather than some over-trampled tourist route. The beech and oak canopy is thick enough to keep things cool even on warm days, and the paths wind through the kind of gentle terrain that doesn't leave you gasping for breath.

It's the sort of place where you can easily spend two hours wandering without a map, though nothing here is particularly dramatic - no crashing waterfalls or prehistoric monuments. What you get instead is peace, dappled light filtering through leaves, and the occasional cleared viewpoint back towards the coast. Families with primary-school kids will find it manageable; teenagers might find it a bit slow unless they're keen on identifying trees.

Walkers should allow between ninety minutes and two hours depending on how lost you want to get. There's no visitor centre or facilities that I'm aware of, so bring water. It's free to access and open year-round, though late spring when the bluebells appear is genuinely worth timing a visit around.

If you're based at Haven Doniford Bay or Warren Bay for a wider park holiday, this works perfectly as a half-day break from the caravan - close enough to nip out to, far enough away to feel like proper countryside. It's the sort of wood that rewards a slow wander rather than a tick-box visit.