Dartmoor National Park

The moment you step onto Dartmoor, you're walking on something genuinely wild. This is 368 square miles of open moorland, granite tors, and bog - properly raw stuff, the kind of landscape that doesn't need manicuring to impress. You'll see Bronze Age stone circles, ancient ponies grazing unfenced, sudden thunderstorms rolling in from nowhere. High Willhays and Yes Tor dominate the northern reaches, while the southern moors slope toward woodland and river valleys.

Walkers absolutely thrive here. The tors are the big draw - you can do anything from a gentle potter around Haytor (near Bovey Tracey) to serious day-long expeditions across open ground. Families with young legs will manage the easier routes; those after a proper hike won't find it demanding enough. The granite landscapes photograph brilliantly, which explains why you're never entirely alone, especially on weekends.

There's no admission charge and you're free to roam, though it's worth respecting grazing areas and checking the Ministry of Defence range firing times - they still use parts of it. Spring and early summer are best; winter brings fog that swallows everything, and summer can be quite touristy.

Stay at Langstone Manor Holiday Park, five miles out near Tavistock, and you've got proper access without camping rough. The park itself offers a base for exploring Dartmoor's edges and deeper valleys - it's genuinely better than doing it as a day trip from the coast. Go for the walks, but bring proper boots and a map. This isn't theme-park countryside.