River Great Ouse

The Great Ouse winds through Cambridgeshire like a thread through green cloth, and if you're staying at Long Island Lake nearby, it's worth spending an afternoon exploring its banks. This isn't a dramatic river - it's gentle, almost lazy in places, with willows drooping into the water and the occasional punter drifting past. You can walk the towpath for miles without much effort, spotting kingfishers if you're lucky and patient, or simply sit on a bench watching the water move.

Cambridge itself uses the river extensively - you'll see it threading through the college grounds and under the famous bridges - but venture outside the city and you get something quieter. The river opens up around villages like Ely and Littleport, where the landscape flattens entirely and the sky becomes enormous. It's proper Fenland territory.

Walkers will get the most from this. Bring binoculars for birdwatching, which is genuinely decent here. Families with young children might find an hour or two pleasant enough, though there's not much hands-on activity to keep them occupied beyond paddling and feeding ducks. The towpath can be muddy after rain - locals know to stick to the higher stretches when the water's been heavy.

There's no admission fee, obviously. Spring and early summer are loveliest, when the banks are thick with wildflowers and the light sits low and golden in the evening. It's not a destination in itself, but as part of a broader Cambridgeshire park holiday, it gives you a real sense of what the region's actually about.