Forrest Valley View

What to do in Durham (15 minutes' drive), you ask? It's a toss-up between the cathedral, Crook Hall, Durham Castle and the city's brilliant bunch of museums and ancient university buildings. If you prefer to learn about the past in the open air, you may prefer Beamish Living Museum (20 minutes), where you can sample some of the sights, sounds and smells that would have been common around these parts at the height of industrialisation in the early 20th century. More chilled times are up for grabs at Pow Hill Country Park (20 minutes), Derwent River Fisheries (15 minutes) and Saint John's Chapel (30 minutes), a gorgeous moorland village where all sorts of trails and paths converge. Whether you're all about your sport or are on the look-out for some retail therapy, Geordie jaunts of all flavours are to be had in the vibrant city of Newcastle (35 minutes). You could also call in at Barnard Castle (40 minutes), an attractive market town named after the fortress founded there by Bernard de Balliol in the 12th century.