Westlands Plantation

The woods at Westlands Plantation offer a proper breath of fresh air if you're based around Hull or staying at one of the nearby holiday parks. It's a genuine working forest rather than a manicured country estate, which means you get real trees, actual woodland floor, and the kind of quiet that makes you realise how rarely you hear it these days.

What you're doing here is walking. Miles of it, if you want. The paths wind through mixed woodland - nothing fancy, just solid English forestry where you might spot the odd deer if you're lucky and the morning's been quiet enough. It's the sort of place where families with young legs can burn off energy without feeling like they're on a tourist trail. Older walkers appreciate the flat sections broken up by gentle inclines. The playground area and picnic spots mean you can make an afternoon of it without needing to pack provisions for a expedition.

Timing-wise, allow a couple of hours minimum if you're just doing a gentle loop. Autumn's genuinely brilliant here - the light filters through differently, and the place feels less busy than summer weekends. Spring's good too, though muddy after rain.

It's free to visit, which makes it a proper no-brainer when you're staying at Little Otchan Glamping or any of the holiday parks strung along the coast nearby. Westlands fits neatly into a week where you're doing Withernsea or the beaches - a day you fancy somewhere inland without driving miles. Not Instagram-famous. Not crowded. Just a wood that does what it says on the tin.