Glottenham

Quite the history aficionado? Rye (half an hour’s drive) is jam-packed with historic sites like Mermaid Street’s medieval houses, a Norman church and the 14th-century Ypres Tower and Rye Castle Museum. A stunning moated castle Bodiam Castle (10 minutes) will be a must-visit too, along with The National Trust’s Scotney Castle (20 minutes), a country house with gardens which have been declared a Site of Special Scientific Interest – now, that’s something unusual. Pry down south for art, shopping and the seaside: Hastings (25 minutes) and Bexhill (25 minutes) are fine candidates. With East Sussex’s only sand dunes, Camber Sands (35 minutes) is another candidate. If you like an active holiday, get stuck into paddleboarding in Bodiam (10 minutes) and Go Ape or hiking in the conifers of Bedgebury National Pinetum and Forest (15 minutes). Go for a stroll – or two or three – in Pashley Manor Gardens (15 minutes) too.