Stubby pigs

Small pig sanctuary just outside Newark where you can get up close to - yes - stubby pigs. They're compact, friendly creatures, and the whole place has that genuine farmyard feel rather than polished zoo atmosphere. You'll spend perhaps an hour here, tops, but kids genuinely enjoy the hands-on side of it. Feeding and petting are on the menu, which beats standing behind barriers watching animals ignore you.

It's the sort of thing that works brilliantly as a half-day activity when you're based at one of the Sherwood Forest holiday parks nearby - Center Parcs is under two miles away, and Sherwood Pines sits about three and a half. Pair it with a walk through actual Sherwood Forest or one of the other attractions in the area, and you've got a proper day sorted.

The place itself is low-key and honest - no entrance fees nonsense that you'll find everywhere else, and staff actually know their animals rather than just herding visitors through. Admission details aren't widely advertised online, so ring ahead or ask at your holiday park. Winter can be a bit muddy depending on weather, so waterproofs are sensible. It's very much a family thing rather than a solo traveller's destination. Not groundbreaking, but genuinely enjoyable if you've got children who want to interact with animals rather than just gawk at them from a distance.