4-Bedroom Hot Tub Cottage in Empingham

Diggerland is a theme park where children and adults can ride, drive and operate real diggers, dumpers and other full-size construction machinery. The Devon park is in Cullompton, and the whole line-up runs to around 20 rides and drives.

Tip: Check the ride height chart on the Diggerland website before you go, so you know which rides each child can enjoy.

Tropiquaria is a small zoo and animal sanctuary based in and around a repurposed 1933 BBC Radio Transmitting Station at Washford Cross in Somerset. The listed building houses the Reptile House, Aquarium and Nocturnal House, with several acres of outdoor enclosures around it. Outside you can spot animals such as gibbons, ring-tailed lemurs, meerkats, tapir, wallabies and serval.

Tip: Don't leave dogs in your vehicle, as the car park has limited shade; only registered Assistance Dogs are allowed in the zoo.

The Museum of Somerset is in the 12th-century great hall of Taunton Castle, in Taunton. It is run by the South West Heritage Trust, an independent charity, and tells the story of the county through its collections.

Coldharbour Mill in Uffculme is one of the oldest woollen mills in the UK, and has been in continuous production since 1797. Once owned by the Fox Brothers textile firm, it is now a working wool museum set across 12 acres of Victorian mill buildings, boilers, steam engines and grounds. Historic England has called it "probably one of the best-preserved textile mill complexes in the country".

Tip: Check the mill's website for current opening days and any event days or workshops before you go.

Cothay Manor is a Grade I listed medieval house near Wellington in Somerset, built around 1480. Its period rooms include a great hall with a hammer-beam roof, and the house has a chapel, a gatehouse and mullioned windows. Writing in Country Life in 1927, Christopher Hussey called it "the most perfect small 15th-century country house that survives in the Kingdom".

Exeter Cathedral has stood at the heart of Devon for nearly a thousand years. Its Norman towers and Decorated Gothic interior are topped by the longest uninterrupted medieval stone vaulted ceiling in the world. Inside you can see the 15th-century Astronomical Clock and an early set of misericords, and guided floor tours and audio guides help bring the building to life.

Tip: Head for the Treasures Exhibition tour or a guided floor tour, both included in standard admission, though floor tours are subject to availability.

Cheddar Gorge is a dramatic limestone gorge in the Mendip Hills, with cliffs up to 137 metres deep. A day ticket covers Gough's Cave, Jacob's Ladder and the Museum of Prehistory. Gough's Cave is where Cheddar Man, Britain's oldest complete human skeleton, was found, and its stalactites and stalagmites were shaped by an underground river.

Tip: Arrive before 11am, especially in school holidays and on bank holidays, to find a parking space easily. Booking day tickets online in advance also saves money.

Montacute House is a late Elizabethan mansion in South Somerset, completed around 1601 and built of golden local Ham Hill stone. Inside you can explore the ground floor, which is home to the rare Tournai Tapestry, and the Long Gallery is the longest in England and displays portraits as an outpost of the National Portrait Gallery.

Tip: Parking is free, and timed entry tickets are used on busier days, so check before you set off. The Ladies' Walk is a 45-minute climb with lovely views over the village.