Crows Hall Farm

You can reach all bits of 'Glorious Goodwood', with its racecourse, motoring meets and marvellous country house within a 15-minute drive. If it gives you a taste for roaming round ducal residences, 12th-century (and still occupied) Arundel Castle is 25 minutes away.

Queen Elizabeth Country Park (25 minutes) as well as being a pretty destination in itself is the starting point for the Hangers Way, a 21-mile path through fab countryside ultimately linking up with the mighty, 100-mile long South Downs Way. Both routes are split into handy sections with public transport links, and have elevated wanderings through a landscape of ancient woods, wild grasslands and chalk rivers.

Take a dip after all that rambling, by beetling over to Bognor (half an hour) for beaches and traditional seafront stuff. The harbour at Chichester (25 minutes) is deservedly designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty: walk or cycle through its creek-laced wetlands to see a fine spread of wildlife under big skies and splendid sunsets.

Sailors and history buffs alike will love it in Portsmouth, half an hour away: it's an increasingly happening harbour city where you can clamber around historic vessels like HMS Victory and the Mary Rose.