Great Amber Way Park

The Great Amber Way Park sits just outside Salisbury and feels like the sort of place locals have been quietly enjoying for years while visitors flock past to Stonehenge. It's a proper nature reserve - the kind where you actually stand a chance of spotting something worth photographing rather than just trudging around a manicured loop.

The walk takes you through woodland and open ground where you'll find birds aplenty if you're into that sort of thing, and the paths are well-maintained enough that families with decent walkers won't struggle. The reserve has real variety in habitat, so the scenery shifts as you go rather than feeling repetitive. Depending on which route you take, you're looking at anything from a quick hour's stroll to a proper half-day adventure.

It's best visited in spring or early autumn when the light's decent and you're not melting or freezing. Summer weekends can draw a crowd, which rather defeats the purpose of coming to a nature reserve.

For a park holiday based at Stonehenge Campsite & Glamping, this works as a proper break from the main attractions. You get the sense of the Wiltshire countryside without the tourist machinery, and it's close enough that you're not spending half your time driving. Birdwatchers will get the most from it, but walkers after something genuine rather than chocolate-box will appreciate the space and quietness too. The free access is a bonus.