Winchester on foot

The lowdown

Winchester was the capital of Anglo-Saxon England and wears the history lightly. You can wander the cathedral close, the medieval streets and the buttercross for free, and the Great Hall, home to the giant medieval Round Table, asks only for a donation.

The best free bit is the walk: follow the River Itchen out past the old mill to the water meadows and up St Catherine's Hill for the view back over the spires. Bring a picnic and it is a full free day in one of England's loveliest small cities.