Westonbirt, The National Arboretum

Few places on these islands do autumn quite like Westonbirt. Spread across the high ground near Tetbury, this Victorian-planted arboretum holds one of the world's finest collections of trees, and come October the Japanese maples turn the paths into corridors of scarlet, amber and burning gold. Wander the Old Arboretum's grand avenues or lose an afternoon in Silk Wood, boots crunching through leaf-fall, the light slanting low through the canopy. A treetop walkway lifts you into the colour itself. Busy at peak, yes — but for good reason. This is the pilgrimage.

When the subject is autumn colour, Westonbirt is simply the national benchmark — a place people gladly travel across the country to witness, and one every visitor tells a friend about.

• Family Adventure
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• Seasonal