Seaton Tramway, Colyton Station

The vintage trams that run between Seaton and Colyton are the sort of thing you either think sounds brilliant or a bit twee - and frankly, they're brilliant. This narrow-gauge railway uses restored electric tramcars that date back to the 1950s and earlier, clanking along a three-mile route through the Axe Valley with genuine charm and zero pretension.

Colyton Station is the inland terminus, a proper little Victorian affair where you can hop on or off depending on which direction you fancy. The journey itself is the point - watching the Devon countryside roll past from an open-air tram, stopping at intermediate halts like Colyford and Colyton. On a decent day it's genuinely lovely, though it's not a fast ride by modern standards. Allow a couple of hours for the return trip if you want to linger at either end.

Families with children under ten will get the most from this. Older kids might find it a bit slow unless they're into heritage railways, and adults travelling alone often seem to make a day of it by combining the tram with a walk or a pint in Seaton itself. The line runs year-round, though summer weekends draw decent crowds.

If you're based at Beer Head Holiday Park or Oakdown, this is a solid half-day activity that breaks up a park holiday without requiring a long drive. It's not free - expect to pay - but it's genuinely run by enthusiasts rather than a corporate machine, which shows.