© Dave Goodman/Shutterstock
Top choice
It's a magical effect: 300 often quirky sculptures hidden away in a 4-hectare wooded valley. There's a fairy-tale or comic feel to much of it – slivers of burnished steel, painted columns and a series of mystical figures pop out from behind trees; the way they're laid out often invites you to join the composition. Broomhill is 3 miles north of Barnstaple at Muddiford, on the B3230.
Broomhill also has a slow-food restaurant, and an art hotel.
17.12 MILES
Clovelly is privately owned, and admission is charged at the hilltop visitor centre. The village's cobbled streets are so steep that cars can't cope, so…
3.8 MILES
The honey-grey Regency manor house of Arlington Court exudes charm, from the model ships and shells collected by the owners, to the produce-packed walled…
12.45 MILES
Run by the prestigious Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), Rosemoor is a must-see source of green-fingered inspiration. One of only four RHS gardens open…
19.9 MILES
Porlock Weir's stout granite quay curves around a shingly beach, which is backed by pubs, fisherfolks' storehouses and a scattering of seasonal shops. The…
26.89 MILES
Rosy-hued Dunster Castle crowns a densely wooded hill. Built by the Luttrell family, which once owned much of northern Exmoor, the oldest sections are…
12.7 MILES
This extraordinary piece of Victorian engineering sees two cars, linked by a steel cable, descend and ascend the steeply sloping cliff face according to…
27.97 MILES
For full-blown Victorian architectural excess, Knightshayes Court delivers in spades. It was designed by the eccentric architect William Burges for the…
19.04 MILES
Exmoor's most famous landmark is an ancient stone clapper bridge shaded by gnarled old trees. Its huge slabs are propped up on stone columns embedded in…
3.8 MILES
The honey-grey Regency manor house of Arlington Court exudes charm, from the model ships and shells collected by the owners, to the produce-packed walled…
4.85 MILES
Few museums are this cool. Vibrant surfboards and vintage wetsuits line the walls; sepia images catch your eye. The stories are compelling: 18th-century…
5.95 MILES
The vast network of dunes here is the UK's largest. Paths wind past sandy hummocks, salt marshes, purple thyme, yellow hawkweed and pyramidal orchids. The…
7.42 MILES
Pregnant, naked and holding aloft a huge spear, Damien Hirst's 20m statue Verity towers above Ilfracombe's harbour mouth. On the seaward side her skin is…
7.43 MILES
Recreates aquatic environments from Exmoor to the Atlantic, via estuary, rock pool and harbour.
9.17 MILES
At 253 hectares, the Northam Burrows reserve is a vast, wildlife-rich expanse of grassy plains, sand dunes, sandy shoreline and salt marshes grazed by…
12.45 MILES
Run by the prestigious Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), Rosemoor is a must-see source of green-fingered inspiration. One of only four RHS gardens open…
12.52 MILES
This sweet museum's collections include chilling pictures of Lynmouth's devastating 1952 flash flood, which claimed 34 lives. It occupies the town's…