St. Bernadine's

The church sits quietly on the edge of Buckingham, a solid Victorian build that you'd walk past without thinking twice if you didn't know what to look for. St. Bernadine's has that particular charm of English country churches - nothing showy, just proper workmanship and the kind of peace that makes you lower your voice without meaning to.

Inside, there's decent stained glass and the sort of architectural detail that rewards a slow walk round. The space is intimate rather than grand, which actually works in its favour. You're not dwarfed by scale or intimidated by grandeur - it feels like a place where worship happened, not a museum piece.

It's the sort of stop that suits walkers more than anyone else. Twenty minutes max if you're just passing through, though if you're interested in Victorian church design you could happily spend longer. Families with young kids might find it a bit much - there's only so long a child will stand still in a quiet church, and there's nothing interactive here.

For those camping nearby - Hedgehog Retreat is barely 2.5 miles away, and Barton Hill Farm not much further - it makes a decent rainy-day option or a short walk from base camp. The town of Buckingham itself has enough going on that you won't feel stranded if the church alone doesn't fill an afternoon. Don't expect revelations, but do expect somewhere genuinely worth twenty minutes of your time.