Brocavum Roman Fort

The remains of a Roman fort sit quietly on the outskirts of Penrith, easy to miss if you're not looking for it. Brocavum once housed a garrison of around 500 soldiers during the second century, a crucial staging post along the frontier. What you'll find now is mostly earthworks - raised banks and ditches that show where the fort's defences once stood. The stone structures have long gone, but walking the perimeter gives you a proper sense of the layout: you can pick out where the gates would have been, trace the outline of the commander's quarters.

This is one for people who actually like archaeology rather than expecting dramatic ruins. Kids under ten will likely get bored after twenty minutes; teenagers interested in Roman Britain will spend longer piecing together the layout from the interpretive boards. It's genuinely free and takes about forty minutes to an hour to properly explore.

The location is clever for a holiday based around Penrith. Crossfells Campsite sits just over a mile away, making it a decent morning walk before heading into town or tackling the Lake District proper. Lowther Holiday Park is similarly close. The fort works best as a short detour rather than a destination in itself - pair it with Penrith's medieval castle or a walk along the nearby Eden Valley for a fuller day. The site itself sits in open countryside with decent views across to the fells. Go when it's not raining, as there's nowhere to shelter once you're out there.