Ten unexpected places for a great day out around the UK

1. Go on a snorkel safari

Who needs the Serengeti when you have the Cornish coastline? Newquay Sea Safaris and Fishing runs private-charter Snorkel Safaris past otherworldly kelp forests, sea anemones and scuttling spider crabs. To explore above the water as well, hit the Newquay Activity Centre to sign up for a Super Stand Up Paddle Safari, navigating the Towan Headland’s clear, wildlife-filled waters. After anchoring up and donning snorkels, you’ll meet some of the locals, from lobsters and spiky sea urchins to curious grey seals – or, if you’re lucky, a passing humpback whale.

2. Swim in a sculpture

Just outside Edinburgh, Jupiter Artland is gloriously unexpected: a 100-acre estate scattered with site-specific sculptures owned by two leading art collectors. You might spot a snail-stacked fountain or a Tracey Emin bronze amid the beeches; a monstrous, 40-foot orchid or a caged, curving void in the woods (Anish Kapoor’s strangely unnerving Suck). Book ahead for one of its surreal swimming sessions, in Charles Jencks’ serene Cells of Life or Joana Vasconcelos’ Gateway – a tiled, technicolour artwork that moonlights as a pool. 

3. Ride an antique rollercoaster in Margate

Hop on a fast train and Margate is only 90 minutes from London, making it just the place for a sunny seaside jaunt. Your first stop? Old-school amusement park Dreamland, with its Waltzer, vintage pinball machines and whirling Chair-o-plane. Don’t miss its wooden rollercoaster, the 1920s Scenic Railway, whose on-board brakeman slows the descents (no high-tech safety systems here). Afterwards, follow the seafront to the Old Town and a flawless lunch at Dory’s: aioli-doused smoked prawns, perhaps, or the signature crab tart.

4. See knights clash at Warwick Castle

For connoisseurs of castles, Warwick’s fortress has it all. In this mighty mediaeval stronghold overlooking the River Avon, there are state rooms to admire, ramparts to climb and peacock gardens to stroll, along with talks, a Dragon Slayer spectacular (above), ghost tours and a Zog-themed playground and trail. Armoured knights gallop by in summer’s jousting tournaments, while an Andean condor soars overhead in the birds of prey displays. Don’t miss the castle’s 22-tonne trebuchet (siege catapult), which stars in a live-action show, along with some turnip-wielding peasants.

5. Go rodeo rafting in East London

Prepare to get wet if you spend a day at Lee Valley, which hosted the canoe slaloms for the 2012 Olympics. There’s a fast and furious 300m competition course, along with the shorter Legacy Loop. Go whitewater or rodeo rafting (spoiler: you’re going to get soaked), or try hydrospeeding – swimming the rapids, with flippers and a foam float to cling to. Too much? There are paddleboard and kayaking sessions in the lake’s calm waters, along with Water Wipeout, an inflatable obstacle course.

6. Squirrel-spot at Formby Beach

If you like your beaches wild and unspoiled, Formby Beach is the place: a pine-backed, 500-acre swathe of dunes, 70 minutes’ drive from Manchester airport. Climb the dunes to survey the Irish Sea then meander along the beach, scanning the sands for low-tide shipwrecks and prehistoric footprints. Pools in the dunes shelter natterjack toads and tiny, dragon-like newts, while the tranquil pinewoods behind are a stronghold for native red squirrels. They’re shy, so tread quietly and listen for rustles, looking out for the falling pine-cone seeds that mean a squirrel’s snacking overhead.

7. Go into orbit

Distant galaxies might be closer than you think at Leicester’s National Space Centre (above), an easy day trip from Birmingham. Its collections run from interstellar snacks to two bona fide rockets, housed in the 42ft Rocket Tower. Pose for an in-space selfie, seemingly defying gravity, or ponder alien life forms in the UK’s largest full-dome planetarium. Would-be astronauts can also claim a seat aboard the Tetrastar Spaceport simulator for a low-orbit cruise of Earth (note it’s weekends and school holidays only, and kids need to be at least a metre tall).

8. Lunch on lobster in Crail

Pick up a car for an adventure in the East Neuk of Fife, swapping Edinburgh’s Georgian grandeur for sea air and scattered fishing villages. Not sure where to start? Crail is ridiculously quaint: a stone-built harbour and huddle of cottages where seagulls wheel overhead. Stroll along the Fife Coastal Path to survey it from West Braes, then have lunch at Reilly Shellfish, a tiny, no-frills seafood shack where the crab often sells out by noon. No matter: a succulent lobster roll will only set you back £8, while half or whole lobsters make for a memorable picnic.

9. Head to the beach near Belfast 

Northern Ireland’s glorious beaches are easily reached from Belfast, from the gently-shelving sands of Helen’s Bay to the surfer’s hangout at West Strand. An hour’s drive from the city, Murlough National Nature Reserve feels like another world: a yellow gorse-edged stretch of sand backdropped by the Mountains of Mourne. It’s a wonderfully wild and epic landscape, famously standing in for Slaver’s Bay in Games of Thrones. Walk its golden sands, get lost amid the dunes, or follow the circular, three-mile trail through the National Trust-run reserve.

10. Enlist for broomstick training

North of Newcastle, Alnwick Castle might look familiar to fans of a certain boy wizard: it stood in for Hogwarts in the first two Potter films. The Inner Bailey is where Ron and Harry crash-landed in a flying Ford Anglia, while the craggy Lion Arch was the way to the Forbidden Forest. Broomstick-riding and Quidditch, meanwhile, were taught on the Outer Bailey’s lawns, where visitors can sign up for broomstick training and snag some magical selfies. It’s free, but places soon get snapped up, so make enquiries on arrival.