Bradgate Park (Hunts Hill Entrance)

The Hunts Hill entrance opens onto 354 acres of proper countryside - deer roaming freely, ancient woodland, and views across Leicestershire that stretch for miles. It's genuinely one of the best walks you can do within striking distance of Leicester without feeling like you're on the city's doorstep.

This is largely wild parkland rather than manicured gardens. You'll find oak and bracken, grey and fallow deer that barely flinch as you pass, and enough elevation changes to work your legs without being brutal. The ruins of Bradgate House sit deeper into the park - a Tudor mansion destroyed in the Civil War - but from Hunts Hill you're more here for the landscape than the history.

Walkers will get the most from this. Three to four hours allows a decent loop without rushing, and the terrain suits anyone reasonably fit. Families with young kids might find it a bit long, though shorter circuits work fine. History buffs will want to push further in to see the house remains, but it's not the main draw from this entrance.

Free to enter and open dawn to dusk. Spring brings bluebells that are genuinely worth timing a visit around. Autumn is lovely too - fewer people, good light, the deer more visible.

If you're based at Meadow Farm Marina or High Meadows Farm nearby, this beats a repeat lap of the holiday park. It's a proper walk in proper countryside, the sort of place that reminds you why you came to the Midlands in the first place.