At The Cowshed

Start off with a trip to the Stourhead Estate (five minutes' drive), a National Trust-run property with a historic house and smashing neo-classical garden centred around a gorgeous lake. Grottoes, decorative temples and a whole host of trees will keep you occupied for many an hour (and supply you with near-endless material for family games of I spy). If travelling with drowsy younger tots, it's also good to know that the flat, wide paths here are (by and large) buggy-friendly. Longleat (20 minutes) is another great Wiltshire estate where you can set out on self-driven safaris, making this another popular pick. But plenty more low-key attractions are ensconced in the local countryside too, like King Alfred's Tower (five minutes) and Frome (15 minutes), where there are lots of intriguing independent shops. Artsy holidaymakers are very well-served around here: they've got the Hauser and Wirth gallery and sculpture park (15 minutes) and Bath's Holburne Museum (40 minutes). Fans of trains, planes and automobiles, meanwhile, can head out to Haynes International Motor Museum (20 minutes) or for steam-powered trips on the East Somerset Railway (20 minutes).