Top 3 UK Countryside Destinations

The beauty of the UK countryside is something known the world over, yet when looking for holiday destinations people tend to flock to coastal towns like Blackpool or the major cities like London and in doing this they miss out on so many great places they could be visiting or staying instead. Below are the top 3 destinations for those of you who are thinking about taking a holiday in the beautiful UK countryside.

It is not only the Queen that is marking her diamond jubilee in 2012, so is the North Yorkshire Moors National Park, and there are lots of activities and events being planned to mark this special anniversary. To call the area a park makes it sound much smaller than the 554 square miles it actually covers.

One of the things that make this park so unique is the diversity of the landscapes that it contains. As you drive over the moors themselves you can visibly see the land change colour and alter as the light changes, time your trip right and the entire moorland is ablaze in the vibrant purples of the heathers that covert it. You can journey for miles without encountering a village, yet 26,000 people live within the borders of the park. Everywhere you look you will see signs of times past, with stone crosses, ancient walkways, old or ruined abbeys and villages where time could well have stood still.

There is simply nowhere better to get away from it all than in one of the UK’s National Parks and the Peak District offers a whole 555 square miles of wide open spaces to enjoy. This is a park for those with a sense of adventure and a zest for life, the air up on the peaks can revitalise whilst the amazing views may simply take your breath away.

Walk, hike, trek or find your way around on horseback. There are many trails and routes around the area for you to follow, as well as guided ranger trails where you can learn more about this amazing part of the UK. No one is left out either as there are lots of trails and routes accessible by wheel chair so that everyone can enjoy the natural beauty of their surroundings. The landscape here is popular with climbers too and you can occasionally see people climbing and abseiling from the rocky hillsides.

This is a pace best explored on foot so leave the car behind and enter the forest to discover what lies hidden deep within. If you don’t want to travel on foot, choose a cycle or a horse but make sure that you make the effort to journey to the heart of the forest and experience the sights, sounds and smells of nature in this truly stunning environment. With villages and coastline to explore this is much more than just a forest. Here the landscape is very much alive, the land breathes and draws you in alongside the wildlife and the myths and legends of tradition folklore in which this part of the country is so rich.