Holiday Park in the Lake District

For sheer scenic splendour, few places in the UK compare to the Lake District. After all, this is where Wordsworth, Coleridge and the Romantic poets found their muse in the 19th century. The landscape of the Lakes is as breathtaking as you’ll find in Switzerland – a sweeping panorama of humpbacked mountains, razorblade crags and scree-covered hillsides, dotted with Britain’s largest natural lakes.

But this area is also full of history and culture, from abandoned slate mines around Honister and the ruined abbey of Furness to the literary landmarks of Dove Cottage and Rydal Mount, both former homes of William Wordsworth. Not to mention Beatrix Potter, of course.

The bustling little towns of Bowness, Ambleside and Windermere are worth a visit, and in Coniston you can walk through the ancient copper mining districts to the summit of Coniston Old Man. Keswick is the archetypal Lakes' market town, virtually unchanged for centuries.

Finally, keep an eye out for the golden eagle, which can be spotted soaring on air currents high over Haweswater.400