BUCKINGHAMSHIRE’S Hambleden Valley is one of England’s true hidden gems. Bypassed by through traffic, it is a lovely spot to explore on foot or bicycle if you keep to the path beside the Hamble Brook.

Drive into Lavenham High Street and you instantly feel you have stumbled onto the set of a period drama. Lining the main street, half-timbered facades in Mediterranean and pastel colours give this Suf

AS hotel names go, this one’s a little unusual. Across Church Street, where I’m standing in the Welsh Border town of Chirk, is the Hand Hotel. Parts of it date back to 1610, during the reign of James

6 20.6km / 12.8 miles / 7-7.5 hours Ascent 1122m/3680ft

Located in the heart of the Herefordshire countryside and surrounded by a moat, this romantic timber-framed house contains over 600 years of history within its walls

If we had to choose our “special place”, Andy and I would always choose Exmoor National Park. It’s a place we often escape to. Straddling the Somerset/Devon border, Exmoor’s coastline is littered with