A very grand adventure: VisitEngland and Pooh Bear reveal our top 25 days out (warning: includes honey farm)

Our favourite English days out have inspired new travel guide illustrations of Winnie-the-Pooh and Christopher Robin

winnie pooh pier
(Image credit: Whinnie the book travel guide | new story | housetohome)

So it seems we are a nation that enjoys the simple pleasures of life and, surprisingly, we enjoy them in our very own England. Picnics, rock-­pooling
and building sand castles are among our most lasting childhood
memories.

According to a study by VisitEngland on behalf of Egmont Publishing, our favourite family past-times are eating a fish supper by the sea, with afternoon tea coming second and picnicking a close third.

The survey, taken in July 2014 by 2,000 parents, found that half said their fondest memories were of holidays taken in England.

Video games, all-inclusive holidays and the TV were thankfully nowhere to be found!

Instead, these results suggest an affection for activities that go back to an age when the great outdoors was considered the ultimate family tonic and it seems we want to pass these care-free happy days on to our children, too.

winnie pooh picnic

(Image credit: TBC)

From boating on the Broads to camping in the New Forest, parents also highlighted just how precious family time is, with over a third saying they enjoy at least one family outing a month.

******

As a celebration, the top 10 favourite activities have been illustrated by Mark Burgess in a beautiful travel guide by Egmont Publishing in the loveable style of Winnie-the-Pooh and his best friend Christopher Robin.

winnie pooh maze

(Image credit: TBC)

The 'simple pleasures' campaign with Winnie-the-Pooh has been designed to encourage modern families to enjoy the great outdoors while celebrating our English heritage.

Winnie-the-Pooh's 25 simple pleasures were named as:

1. Enjoying a fish supper on Blackpool Pier, Lancashire 2. Indulging in afternoon tea, Devon 3. Picnicking on the shores of Windermere in the Lake District, Cumbria 4. Rock-pooling in Treyarnon Bay, Cornwall 5. Camping in the New Forest, Hampshire 6. Marvelling at Stonehenge, Wiltshire 7. Getting lost in the maze at Hampton Court Palace, Greater London 8. Taking a stroll beside Hadrian's Wall, Northumberland and Cumbria 9. Boating on the Broads, Norfolk and Suffolk 10. Watching the puffins on the Farne Islands, Northumberland 11. Star-gazing in Exmoor National Park, Somerset and Devon 12. Taking in the vista from the peaks at the Peak District National Park, Derbyshire 13. Trying to make the Queen's Guard laugh at Buckingham Palace 14. Watching the Changing the Guard at Windsor Castle, Berkshire 15. Fossil-hunting on Brook Beach, Isle of Wight 16. Exploring the famous White Cliffs of Dover 17. Playing Pooh Sticks at Hundred Acre Wood, East Sussex 18. Rolling down the hills around Corfe Castle, Dorset 19. Visiting a honey farm in Devon 20. Skimming stones at Holy Island, Lindisfarne, Northumberland 21. Picking blackberries on Box Hill, Surrey 22. Riding a narrow boat through the canal ways, Birmingham 23. Taking in the grandeur of Chatsworth House from the park, Chatsworth, Derbyshire 24. Seeking out the deer at Richmond Park, London 25. Admiring Bamburgh Castle from the beach, Northumberland

With Winnie-the-Pooh's very own Hundred Acre Wood in East Sussex, the original destination for playing Pooh sticks, coming 17th in the poll, what better way to look for days-out inspiration than with help from the 'silly old bear'?

For more on Pooh's favourite places, you can download an illustrated travel guide.

Love this? Browse our dedicated news pages

 

Contributor

Rachel Homer has been in the interiors publishing industry for over 15 years. Starting as a Style Assistant on Inspirations Magazine, she has since worked for some of the UK’s leading interiors magazines and websites. After starting a family, she moved from being a content editor at Idealhome.co.uk to be a digital freelancer and hasn’t looked back.