The area is known for coach tours and A-lister escapes, but beyond the honeypots lie delightfully alternative communities, ancient walking trails and brilliant pubs

Think of the Cotswolds and you’ll probably conjure up images of chocolate-box villages in honeyed stone surrounded by dreamy patchworks of green fields, possibly farmed by Jeremy Clarkson. The region covers parts of six counties – most is in Gloucestershire and Oxfordshire, but also corners of Warwickshire, Wiltshire, Worcestershire and Somerset – is a postcard-pretty holiday destination, and has been a hub for the wealthy since the heyday of the wool trade in the late middle ages.

More recently, the region I call home had a PR coup when Taylor Swift and her entourage based themselves near Chipping Norton this summer for her London tour dates. Then there are the stars of Bridgerton filming on the streets of nearby Bath, and traffic jams outside Clarkson’s farm shop, made famous by his TV show.

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Spa towns, perfect seaside haunts, brilliant food and art, and spectacular walks feature on our tour of lesser-known Italy, courtesy of our readers

The Tuscia area of northern Lazio, within easy reach of Rome, is a quiet oasis of history and geography: from the papal palace in Viterbo, follow winding roads through rolling green hills of oak forests and hazelnut orchards to the stone monsters of Bomarzo park, prehistoric cave homes in the nearby gorges and the high art of Caprarola town. But my favourite place is Civita di Bagnoregio, a fortress town on a volcanic plug, with views to distant crater lakes.
Lucy

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Many coastal towns are seeing a post-pandemic resurgence, with new builds and stately piles being returned to their former grandeur

• Rowan Moore: Historic British seaside hotels are glorious white elephants, but perhaps they can have new lives

The Grand is a dog-eared Cluedo board of a hotel. The art deco ballroom, its sprung dancefloor covered by carpet, opens into a library used for community events, which in turn leads to an enormous dining room, while the other wing has a billiards room.

Everything in this Folkestone landmark is a bit higgledy-piggledy: spare tables and chairs shoved to one side, curtains askew, a grand piano here and there. A 1920s-style mural completes the Agatha Christie feel. There’s even a stray three-pronged candlestick.

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With its mysterious stones, fairytale waterfalls and dinosaur footprints, Arran is a magical playground for children

As we climb up to Eas Mor waterfall in the south of the island of Arran, I pause to read the words carved into a fallen tree across our path: “Bow your head for you enter sacred and magical lands.” There’s a lot about Arran that is sacred and magical. Growing up in Glasgow, I went to the island several times as a child, played mini golf at Brodick and spent hours combing beaches for perfectly smooth, multicoloured stones. My husband’s family used to decamp from London for long summer holidays too: stories of three-year-olds trudging up Goatfell – the island’s tallest peak at 874 metres – are the stuff of family fable.

We have two children of our own now – Henry, eight, and Isobel, five – and we brought them back to this beautiful Firth of Clyde island in May half-term. Arran is often dubbed “Scotland in miniature”, but that is especially true and pertinent for families. You can be there in about two hours from Glasgow, and the island’s main road is a continuous 55-mile loop around its coast, taking in wild beaches, misty castles, whisky distilleries and looming granite mountains.

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From snorkel trails and seafood restaurants to maritime festivals and a ‘museum of fun’, here’s what’s new and exciting around the UK coast

I love walking in Blackpool. The stroll along the prom takes time and a bit of effort – it’s almost three miles from the South Shore to the Grand Hotel – and takes me past three piers and more than a century of architecture including Victorian, art deco, modern and postwar municipal. In her 2023 novel Pleasure Beach, Helen Palmer pastiches Joyce’s Ulysses: her home town perfectly suits its promiscuous, genre-hopping, list-loving energy. The expanses of sand, big skies and far horizons of the Irish Sea always distract and calm the soul.

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Our tipsters savour delights at cafes, restaurants and pubs by the sea, from Bangor to Brighton

The cockle chowder served in a cottage loaf at The Peterboat in Leigh-on-Sea, Southend, is to die for (£19.95). The prawn and chorizo linguine at £17.95 equally so! Fabulous location, right on the sea wall, and the service is always excellent. It’s so easy to reach on public transport that customers can enjoy a glass of wine from their extensive list.
Carolyn Simpson

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Summer night markets, fairytale villages and painterly beaches feature among our tipsters’ travels

At Chantelle village, 40 miles north of Clermont-Ferrand in the Auvergne, the organic butcher and deli offers game, pâtés, and wine, while fresh croissants await every morning at the boulangerie. The abbey, brocantes (secondhand shops) and bar are also popular with visitors, mostly from France. Visits here are made even more magical by hikes through the Gorge de la Bouble, lake swims, gourmet farmers’ markets in surrounding villages and plentiful live music all summer. I return every summer, following Anne of France’s footsteps in the 15th and early 16th centuries. She sought refuge here in the abbey, where she could retreat from the politicking of the French court.
Anne Page

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