Withcote Chapel

The village of Withcote isn't much to speak of - a few houses scattered along a quiet Leicestershire lane - but the chapel hiding behind its churchyard wall is absolutely worth the diversion from Leicester. Step inside and you're looking at 13th-century work, which does something to a place. The nave's proper old, the roof's low enough to make you duck slightly, and there's real medieval glass still in the windows - the kind of thing that doesn't survive unless everyone forgot to demolish it.

Historically-minded visitors will want a good 45 minutes here, walking around the monuments and taking in the details. The chapel has that genuine, unfussy atmosphere you only get when a building's been genuinely forgotten by modern restoration trends. Families with young kids might find 15 minutes enough unless you've got budding archaeologists in tow.

It's free to visit, though you may need to hunt for whoever holds the keys - worth phoning ahead or checking locally. The walk from the road is short and pleasant. If you're based at Emily's Cut Camping just a couple of miles down the road, this makes an easy morning sortie before heading into Leicester proper. It won't eat a full day, but paired with a proper walk around Withcote village and the surrounding lanes, it's the kind of low-key stop that reminds you why exploring on foot beats rushing between the big attractions.