Best October half-term weekend breaks

Mountain ridges, waterfalls and some of the darkest skies in Wales

A cathedral village on the River Tay, in Perthshire's Big Tree Country

A cathedral and castle on a wooded river bend

Castles, empty beaches, dark skies and Hadrian's Wall

A Highland gateway town with a theatre in the woods and a salmon ladder

A dramatic harbour town with a clifftop abbey

England's biggest national park: lakes, fells and cosy villages

Ancient woodland and heath with free-roaming ponies

Wide sandy beaches, salt marshes and seal trips

England's first national park, with moors, dales and stately homes

England's biggest lake, with a town on its doorstep

Medieval walls, a magnificent minster and cobbled streets

Honey-coloured villages, rolling hills and country pubs

A dramatic castle city of cobbled lanes, festivals and whisky