St Mary's Church, North Mymms

The churchyard at North Mymms gives you that proper sense of stepping back centuries - St Mary's sits solid and unflashy among the gravestones, with enough medieval bones in its walls to keep any history buff occupied for an hour or two. The building itself is a mix of periods: 12th-century nave, later additions, some decent Victorian restoration work that didn't overdo it. Inside, there's the sort of quiet you only get in country churches where not many tourists bother to venture.

This is really one for people who enjoy the slower side of exploring - church historians, genealogy types hunting down ancestors, walkers taking a longer route through Hertfordshire. You won't find it mobbed. The village of North Mymms sits just east of St Albans, and the church feels like the kind of place locals know well but outsiders miss entirely.

The churchyard itself is worth a wander, especially if you're interested in reading old gravestones - there's a real sense of the village's history embedded there. Allow 30 to 45 minutes if you're genuinely interested; 15 if you're just passing. There's no charge to look around, though whether it's always open is worth checking before you make the trip.

If you're staying at Commons Wood Caravan and Motorhome Club Campsite nearby, it makes a decent add-on during a broader walk around the area. Not a main attraction by itself, but the kind of place that gives you a proper flavour of the Hertfordshire countryside away from the big sites.