Coastal Lodge at Seaham Hall

Washington Old Hall is a stone manor house in the heart of Washington village, cared for by the National Trust. It includes parts of the medieval home of George Washington's direct ancestors, and the family took its surname from here. The ground floor shows a 17th-century home, with carved oak furniture and a collection of Delft ware.

Tip: Free parking is available on The Avenue, right beside the property.

Durham Cathedral is a Church of England cathedral and part of the Durham Castle and Cathedral World Heritage Site. A substantial part of the building was completed between 1093 and 1133, and it is a significant example of Romanesque architecture. The nave ceiling is the earliest surviving example of a pointed rib vault.

Tip: There is no parking at or near the cathedral, so use the Park and Ride or the Cathedral Bus into Durham. The tower is stairs only.

Beamish is a living, open-air museum on a 350-acre site in County Durham, telling the story of everyday life in the North East. Original, moved and replica buildings are staffed by costumed engagers, with live demonstrations and hands-on activities. Trams and buses carry you between the different areas.

Tip: Book your pass online before you visit for faster entry, and download the map to your phone or pick one up at the Entrance Building.

Hylton Castle is a distinctive, highly decorative gatehouse-tower in Sunderland, built by the wealthy Sir William Hylton shortly before 1400. It originally held four floors of self-contained family accommodation, and its entrance front displays royal and family heraldry, including Richard II's white hart badge.

Tip: Car parking is available at the site.

Lumley Castle is a Grade I listed, 14th-century quadrangular castle at Chester-le-Street, close to Durham. It stands on the banks of the Lumley Park Burn, a tributary of the River Wear. Sir Ralph Lumley converted his family manor house into a castle in 1389, and it remains a property of the Earl of Scarbrough.

Tip: Book a table in advance through the castle's website if you want to eat at the restaurant or have afternoon tea.

Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens is a municipal museum beside Mowbray Park. Its winter garden was based on the Crystal Palace model, and a lottery-funded refurbishment later added a new Winter Garden extension. The museum began as the first municipally funded museum in the country outside London, and it holds a Designated Collection of national importance.

HMS Trincomalee is a Royal Navy sailing frigate built shortly after the Napoleonic Wars. She was made in Bombay by the Wadia family of shipwrights, using teak because Britain was short of oak. She is now a museum ship afloat at the National Museum of the Royal Navy in Hartlepool.

Bowes Railway at Springwell is a preserved colliery railway designed by George Stephenson and opened in 1826 to carry coal from pits in north west Durham to the Tyne at Jarrow. The site is a scheduled monument, and it became a museum after coal haulage ended.

Tip: Check opening arrangements and book any guided tour with the museum before you travel, as visits may need to be arranged in advance.