Trowbridge

The former cloth-making capital of the West Country still bears traces of its industrial past along the River Biss, though today it's more market town than textile powerhouse. Trowbridge might not win beauty contests, but it serves as a surprisingly useful springboard for exploring Wiltshire's finest countryside.

Five minutes from the town centre, Biss Meadow Country Park offers riverside walks where you can actually hear birdsong over traffic - a proper escape from the pedestrianised Fore Street. Families rate Trowbridge Town Park for its decent playground and open space, though it's hardly Kew Gardens.

What makes staying near Trowbridge worthwhile is the access to National Trust properties. Great Chalfield Manor and Garden sits just outside town - a proper medieval manor house that most tourists miss entirely. The Courts Garden, meanwhile, showcases topiary work that puts suburban hedge-trimming to shame.

Bath's Roman splendour lies twenty minutes northeast, while Salisbury and its famous cathedral anchor the south. Bradford-on-Avon, with its Saxon church and honey-coloured cottages, makes for an easy day trip west.

Getting here couldn't be simpler - Trowbridge sits on the main London Paddington to Bristol line, with regular services throughout the day. The M4 junction lies ten minutes north, connecting you to the Cotswolds and beyond.

Local camping and glamping sites dot the surrounding villages, from working farms to purpose-built holiday parks. Most offer easy access to footpaths crossing the Wiltshire Downs, where chalk hills roll toward distant horizons. It's not dramatic landscape, but there's something deeply English about these gentle slopes and dry stone walls.