2-Bedroom Hot Tub Cottage in Bodiam

Bodiam Castle is a 14th-century moated castle near Robertsbridge in East Sussex. Sir Edward Dalyngrigge built it in 1385 with the permission of Richard II, ostensibly to defend the area against French invasion during the Hundred Years' War. It has no keep. Instead, the chambers were built around the outer walls and inner courts, with towers at the corners and the entrance, topped by battlements.

Tip: You don't need to book in advance, but the car park uses the JustPark app, so download it and set up an account before you arrive. The towers are reached by steep spiral staircases.

Battle Abbey, run by English Heritage as 1066 Battle of Hastings, Abbey and Battlefield, is the site where William the Conqueror's Normans met King Harold's English army. The abbey was founded by William soon after the conquest, said to be on the spot where Harold died.

Tip: Head to the visitor centre first to get the story of the battle, then take the audio tour round the battlefield.

Scotney Castle is a National Trust property near Lamberhurst, set in a wooded valley. The star is the ruined medieval Old Castle, which sits on an island in a small lake. Sloping gardens run down to the water, with rhododendrons, azaleas and kalmia in spring, wisteria and roses in summer, and strong autumn colour. The garden is a Site of Special Scientific Interest.

Tip: The car park is small, so check the National Trust website for current parking booking rules before you set off.

Sissinghurst Castle Garden was created by the writer Vita Sackville-West and her husband Harold Nicolson, who bought the run-down farmstead in 1930. It is among the most famous gardens in England and is Grade I listed. The design is a series of enclosed "garden rooms" linked by straight walks, and the White Garden is the best known of them.

Tip: Pushchairs aren't allowed in the main garden because of narrow paths, but baby carriers are fine. Dogs on leads can use the wider estate but not the formal garden. Check the National Trust page for opening times and any closures before you go.

Bateman's is the 17th-century Sussex home of Rudyard Kipling, who lived here from 1902 until his death. The Grade I listed Jacobean house has been kept much as it was in his day, with his study, his Nobel Prize and his Rolls-Royce Phantom I among a large Kipling collection.

Tip: The house has small rooms, so leave buggies in the hall or outside. Estate paths can be muddy, so bring wellies or walking boots.

Pevensey Castle began as a Roman fort around AD 290 and is the largest of the Saxon Shore forts. Its massive walls, more than 500 metres long, still stand almost to their full height. In 1066 William the Conqueror landed here to begin his invasion of England, and the Normans built a stone keep and fortress inside the Roman defences.

Tip: Book advance tickets online to save money. Battle Abbey, the 1066 battlefield, is about 9 miles away.

Herstmonceux Castle is a brick-built castle in East Sussex, dating from 1441. It is one of the oldest significant brick buildings still standing in England, built with bricks made from local clay by builders from Flanders. Its story runs from a ruined shell, left after the interior was demolished in 1776-77, to a major restoration in the early twentieth century.

Hastings Museum & Art Gallery is housed in John's Place, a red-brick building designed as a private house, with a crenelated roofline, columned loggia and studded oak doors. Inside, the early local history gallery tells the story of the area from prehistory to the Saxons. Local wildlife is shown in dioramas of different habitats, and there is a dinosaur gallery too.