Skellingthorpe Old Wood

The woodland here is old, genuinely old - you can feel it the moment you step between the trees. Skellingthorpe Old Wood sits just outside Newark and offers proper ancient woodland, the kind with gnarled oaks that have been standing for centuries. It's a working landscape rather than a manicured nature reserve, which means you get the real thing: tangled undergrowth, fallen logs, light filtering through gaps in the canopy.

Walkers will find this rewarding, especially those who prefer their woods undisturbed and wild. The paths aren't dramatic or particularly well-signposted, so come prepared with decent boots and maybe a map. Families with young children might find it a bit rough underfoot, but older kids who enjoy actual exploration rather than play parks will get far more from this than another circuit around a visitor centre.

Honestly, don't come expecting facilities or a cafe. There's nothing like that here. What you get is solitude and the chance to walk through a fragment of what Nottinghamshire's woodland would have looked like centuries ago. The best time is late spring or autumn when the light's better and you're not battling peak season crowds.

If you're based at one of the nearby caravan parks - Lakeside or Camper UK Leisure are closest at under three miles - this makes an excellent morning walk before heading into Newark proper. It won't take half a day, but it's exactly the sort of local spot that rounds out a park holiday rather than dominating it. Real woodland, no frills.