High House

Blickling Hall is a Grade I listed Jacobean country house near Aylsham in Norfolk, set in 5,000 acres of parkland in a loop of the River Bure. It was built after 1616 for Sir Henry Hobart on the ruins of a Tudor house once held by the Boleyn family, and it is now cared for by the National Trust.

Tip: Head for the library first if you only have limited time, as it is the house's most celebrated feature.

Norwich Castle was built by William the Conqueror as a royal palace, and later served as a gaol before becoming a museum and art gallery. The medieval Castle Keep has rooms furnished to give an authentic sense of twelfth-century life, along with immersive storytelling.

Tip: Pre-booking tickets online gets you the best price for entry, and a free digital guide is available to help you explore the castle and its collections.

The Muckleburgh Military Collection sits on a former military camp at Weybourne on the North Norfolk coast, a site used for anti-aircraft training in the Second World War. Exhibits include working tanks, armoured cars, artillery, anti-aircraft guns, missiles and light weapons, plus displays on the Norfolk and Suffolk Yeomanry and on sea rescue and reconnaissance.

Tip: The collection closes for the season, so check its website for current opening before you travel. Parking on site is free for paying visitors.

Sandringham House is a royal country house on a large estate in the Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It is owned personally by the monarch rather than the Crown, and the house is Grade II* listed. The landscaped gardens, park and woodlands are on the National Register of Historic Parks and Gardens, and the site has a history stretching back to Elizabethan times.

Tip: If you're bringing a dog, check the estate's dog-friendly areas on its website before you set off.

Holkham Hall is an 18th-century Neo-Palladian country house, designed by William Kent for Thomas Coke, 1st Earl of Leicester. It is Grade I listed and still the ancestral home of the Coke family. Inside, you can see the Marble Hall, made of pink Derbyshire alabaster, and the Saloon with its red velvet walls. Guided cellar and attic tours take you behind the scenes.

Tip: You can book the Hall, Walled Garden and Holkham Stories in advance, and the ropes course too. Check opening times first, as they vary.

Castle Rising is a ruined medieval castle in the Norfolk village of the same name, built soon after 1138 by William d'Aubigny II. It was designed as part fortress, part palatial hunting lodge, with a deer park behind it. Queen Isabella lived here after her fall from power in 1330, and entertained her son, Edward III, on several occasions.