Foxholes Farm

There’s a lot of wildlife to spot around this part of the country. Whether it’s all the birds and dragonflies at Panshanger Park (10 minutes’ drive), the 30 acres of gardens at Capel Manor Gardens (20 minutes) or the scents of Benington Lordship Gardens (20 minutes) – also home to a popular chilli festival – there should be plenty to see around here. There are big cats, meerkats, penguins and plenty of other animals at Paradise Wildlife Park (15 minutes), but those of you who prefer to fill your itinerary with history and culture might want to take off to the Hertford Museum (five minutes) or Hatfield House (20 minutes), a fine example of a Jacobean house and garden. What else to pack into your stay? Perhaps the swimming pool and skatepark at Hartham Common (10 minutes)? A round of golf with the gang at Chadwell Springs Family Golf Centre (five minutes)? Or, for the more adventurous folks among you, the Lea Valley White Water Centre (20 minutes) runs canoeing and kayaking courses on the lake as well as intrepid whitewater rafting activities.