Desborough Cross

The stone cross stands in the middle of Desborough, a market town in Northamptonshire, looking rather incongruous planted on a traffic island. It's a proper medieval relic - built in the 14th century and one of only a handful of original market crosses to survive intact in England. The base is squat and sturdy, the shaft rises cleanly, and the whole thing radiates the kind of solidity that comes from 700 years of weather and indifference.

You're looking at a few minutes of your time here, not hours. Walk round it, read the plaque if there is one, take a photo. It's the sort of thing that speaks to people interested in medieval England and local history rather than those seeking active entertainment. Children will struggle to find much to do beyond staring at old stone.

What makes it worth a stop during a caravan park stay around Market Harborough is the walk through Desborough itself. It's a genuine working market town, not a heritage theme park - proper bakeries, pubs, a church worth glancing at. Park at Get Lost In Nature or Lakeview Caravan Park, both within striking distance, and you've got the cross as a focal point for a town ramble rather than a destination in itself.

Free to see, obviously. Go midweek if you can - quieter and you'll get a better sense of what the place actually is rather than what it looks like on a Saturday when it's choked with through-traffic.