Mynydd Tir-y-Cwmwd chambered tomb

Stone and turf pile up on the hillside like someone's forgotten it all these centuries, which is rather the point. Mynydd Tir-y-Cwmwd is a Neolithic chambered tomb - about 5,000 years old - sitting on open moorland above Pwllheli in Gwynedd, and it's the sort of place you visit because you're genuinely interested in how your ancestors lived, not because you're after a photo opportunity.

What you're looking at is a burial chamber from the Stone Age, built to last. The structure consists of an entrance passage leading into a central chamber, though time has stripped it back to basics - you're reading archaeological bones rather than a pristine structure. It's free to visit and accessible year-round, since there's no fence or gate keeping you out. Allow perhaps half an hour if you're taking it seriously, longer if you're the type to sit and think about Bronze Age life while staring across the Welsh hills.

Historically-minded visitors will find it worthwhile. Kids under ten will probably lose interest quickly unless they're the sort fascinated by old rocks and dead people - which, to be fair, some are. The walk itself is pleasant moorland terrain, nothing too strenuous, and the views towards Pwllheli and the coast earn their place even if the tomb itself underwhelms.

If you're staying at Tal-y-Fan Holiday Park just down the road, it's an easy morning outing before lunch. Pair it with a coastal walk or a visit to Pwllheli's market town centre to make a proper half-day of it.