Our top six pubs with walks right from the door

You could set off in just about any direction from The Royal Oak and enjoy the walk you ended up on, but a longish out-and-back, the 7-mile hike to the Roman Villa, is worth making a day out of. The Cotswold Way also runs nearby if you fancy picking off a section. When you get back to the inn, you’ll have earnt a seat by the big fireplace or in the big glass atrium, and a local pint to go with it.

The 1600s pub is still very much a proper village local and the menu is full of well-made pub classics. Two of the rooms are dog-friendly, all of them are decked out with simple country charm and one features big bunk beds that kids would love.

We head north to another moor now, with the Exmoor Forest Inn, aptly named on both counts. It’s surrounded by trees and Dunkery Beacon, the highest point in the national park, is walkable from the door. If the hills aren’t calling to you, maybe check the schedule for foraging walks with head chef, Ben. The enthusiastic forager periodically arrange workshops for guests and the public, followed by a culinary feast. The pub’s team know a few other guides in the area who offer a similar service, if Ben is too busy cooking for you!

Whether you picked it yourself or let the kitchen do all the work for you, you’ll eat in the bright, rustic bar of the inn that was once a fishing lodge, before rolling upstairs to bed.

There’s a whole book of local walks to choose from when you’re staying at The Crown & Anchor and that’s a long read without even thinking of joining up to long distance routes like the Mid Wilts Way, Test Way, Ridgeway, Kennet & Avon canal or the new Pewsey Vale Ring. You could stay for months and not walk them all.

The best thing is that with a train into Hungerford and a quick cab ride, you can be here from London in time for lunch, browsing a menu full of local game and fish while you think about the rooms upstairs and wonder whether or not you should even bother going home.

Being in Penrith, on the very edge of The Lake District, you’ve obviously got plenty of walking to choose from. But before you go skipping up Scafell, take the owner’s tip for gentler strolls and head to the Lowther Family estate castle and gardens, or the woodland walk that passes the famous Rebel Oak, where Bonnie Prince Charlie was defeated.

Wherever you’ve roamed, come back to the bar that gleams with dark wood and rich fabric to choose from a menu of homegrown, foraged and locally sourced ingredients worked into fabulous dishes and tempting you with a list of perfect wine pairings.