Farnham

Ancient market streets wind uphill from Georgian terraces, past independent shops that somehow survive the chain store invasion. Farnham feels properly lived-in rather than polished for tourists - a working Surrey town where the weekly market still draws proper crowds and the high street buzzes come Saturday afternoon.

The real draw here is getting your boots on. Crooksbury Hill and the Hog's Back stretch out like a green backbone across the Surrey Hills, offering proper walking country within minutes of the town centre. Hungry Hill and Red Hill provide cracking views across the Weald, while Soldiers Ring - an Iron Age hillfort - reminds you this landscape has been special for millennia.

Down in town, Hog's Back Brewery keeps the local tradition alive with their TEA bitter, and the castle ruins (what's left of them) perch above the Georgian streets like a broken tooth. The Maltings shopping centre does the job for rainy days, though the real pleasure is wandering Castle Street's antique shops and cafes.

Getting here couldn't be easier - trains from London Waterloo take 55 minutes, while the A31 brings you straight off the M25. Aldershot sits just down the road for bigger shops and services.

Staying at one of the holiday parks scattered around Farnham's edges makes perfect sense. You're close enough to walk into town for dinner, yet wake up surrounded by Surrey's rolling hills. Chapel Farm Park and Tilford Woods Lodge Retreat put you right on the doorstep of Alice Holt Forest, while the sites near Chantry Wood give easy access to both the North Downs Way and Farnham's Georgian heart. It's proper countryside camping with civilization close at hand.