Percy Wood Country Park

For a cracking country walk and castle combination, Alnwick Castle is 15 minutes’ drive away, with dragon quests and broomstick training for those of magical mindset, tours of the baronial interiors, and a series of walking trails through the surrounding estate. Further fab castles are along the coast at Dunstanburgh and Bamburgh, both half an hour away and with long stretches of wild coast to wander between them. Island hoppers head to Seahouses (half an hour) and hail boats to the Farne Islands and Lindisfarne: divers flock to the former to explore the shipwrecks, while land rambles deliver seals and puffins in a landscape dotted with ancient ruins. Walking or driving to Lindisfarne is also an option, provided you time the tides right; take walks round the castle and the ruined priory and finish off with warming tipples at the winery. An exotic collection of residents hangs out at Northumberland Country Zoo (10 minutes), including skunks, chinchillas and Chinese water dragons, while those at Whitehouse Farm Centre (25 minutes) are more of the furry and familiar kind, competing for the kids’ attention with indoor go-karts, adventure playgrounds and tractor rides. Beamish Open Air Museum tells the story of Northumbria, urban and rural, over the past two centuries and the wildlife filled bogs and heaths of the Whitelee Moor National Nature Reserve could belong to another world; both are an hour away.