Long Wittenham Wood

The woodland around Long Wittenham, just south of Oxford, offers proper walking territory without the crowds you'd find on the better-known Cotswold trails. It's beech and oak mostly, the kind of forest floor that's soft underfoot even in dry weather, with paths that wind through to the village itself and down towards the Thames.

This is walker country, full stop. You're not looking at a visitor centre or a car park with facilities - you're getting a genuine stretch of English woodland where the trees do the talking. The walk itself takes anything from 45 minutes to two hours depending on which route you fancy, and it links nicely with the village if you want a pub stop afterwards. The real draw is the quietness and the proper old-school woodland feel, the kind you don't get everywhere.

Families with kids aged seven or older will manage it fine; anything younger and the paths get tedious. It's best in spring when the floor's carpeted with bluebells, or autumn when the light gets low and golden through the branches. Summer can feel a bit thick and airless.

If you're camping at Benson Waterfront or Bridge Villa, both within four miles, this makes a straightforward morning or afternoon break from the campsite. It's the sort of walk that fills time well without requiring much planning - just turn up with decent shoes. Oxford's close enough if you want to combine woodland with proper sightseeing, though the wood stands perfectly well on its own merits.