Wild Hammocks

Corwen (five minutes' drive) has a playground where you can take younger kids in your group, as well as essential shops, restaurants and walks that lead down to the river Dee. A 20-minute drive to the east, you also have Llangollen, a popular tourist town with boat trips, outdoor activities like climbing and rafting, plus plenty of independent boutiques. Keep heading east and you'll soon reach the spectacular Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Horseshoe Falls (30 minutes), an engineering marvel built in the 19th century by Thomas Telford. While you're in the same part of the world, you won't want to miss Chirk Castle and its deer park (40 minutes) or Erddig (45 minutes), a gorgeous National Trust property on the outskirts of Wrexham. Driving for a while in the other direction will take you into Snowdonia National Park, where highlights include Bala with its lake and steam railway (20 minutes), adventurous days out like Zip World Fforest (40 minutes) or Zip World Penrhyn Quarry (an hour) and magnificent mountains like Tryfan (50 minutes), Snowdon (an hour) and Moel Siabod (an hour).