2-Bedroom Hot Tub Cottage in Saham Hills

Bristol Zoo Project is a wildlife conservation park in South Gloucestershire, run by Bristol Zoological Society. It covers a large site, and its areas are designed to link ecosystems and conservation programmes around the world. Current areas include Bear Wood, Benoué National Park and Discover Madagascar.

Dyrham Park is a baroque country house set in an ancient deer park near Bath, now cared for by the National Trust. The house was built in stages in the 17th and early 18th centuries and has interiors with a strong Dutch influence, including Delftware, Dutch Masters paintings and an Anglo-Dutch state bed.

Tip: Leave the car in the main car park and head down to the house; a shuttle runs from the car park to the bottom of the hill if the slope is too much.

SS Great Britain is a museum ship on Bristol's harbourside, designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel. When launched in 1843 she was the largest passenger ship in the world, and one of the first iron, propeller-driven ocean liners.

Tip: Parking is available at the Maritime Heritage Centre car park next to the site, and you pay at the ticket desks. The Long Ashton Park & Ride is an alternative Monday to Saturday.}

The Roman Baths are well-preserved Roman thermae in the city of Bath. A temple was built on the site in the first decades of Roman Britain, and the bathing complex grew up around the natural hot spring over the following centuries.

Tip: Book tickets in advance on the official website, romanbaths.co.uk, as advance prices are lower and it is the only genuine ticket seller.

Bath Abbey is a parish church of the Church of England and a former Benedictine monastery. Founded in the 7th century, it was rebuilt in the 12th and 16th centuries and restored by Sir George Gilbert Scott in the 1860s. It is one of the most significant examples of Perpendicular Gothic architecture in the West Country, and is particularly noted for its fan vaulting.

Tip: Look up at the west front sculptures of angels climbing Jacob's Ladder, then head inside for the fan vaulting.

Gloucester Cathedral is one of Britain's greatest buildings, with a history stretching back to around 679. Inside you can see the giant pillars of the Norman Nave, intricate fan vaulting (a style invented here in the 1300s) and the grand tomb of Edward II.

Tip: Well-behaved dogs are welcome Monday to Saturday, but only assistance dogs are allowed on Sundays, in the Lady Chapel and on guided tours.

Beckford's Tower is a Grade I listed neo-classical folly on Lansdown Hill, just outside Bath, built for the writer and collector William Beckford. A museum on the first floor tells his story, including the wealth from slavery that paid for his collecting and building. You'll see furniture made for the tower, plus paintings, prints and objects from his life.

Tip: Parking at the site is very limited, so plan how you'll get there, and book tickets online to avoid disappointment.

Berkeley Castle in Gloucestershire began as a Norman motte-and-bailey around 1067 and was rebuilt in stone through the 12th and 14th centuries. It has a circular shell keep, a curtain wall, Thorpe's Tower and an inner gatehouse. The Berkeley family have held it since the 12th century, apart from a spell of royal ownership under the Tudors.