Gatekeepers Cottage - Fun Days Out

Tropiquaria is a small zoo and animal sanctuary based in and around a repurposed 1933 BBC Radio Transmitting Station at Washford Cross in Somerset. The listed building houses the Reptile House, Aquarium and Nocturnal House, with several acres of outdoor enclosures around it. Outside you can spot animals such as gibbons, ring-tailed lemurs, meerkats, tapir, wallabies and serval.

There are talks and encounters, a restaurant, and both indoor and outdoor play areas, so it works well for a relaxed family day out. The mix of wildlife, conservation and history should also appeal to anyone curious about the building's past. The zoo is a member of BIAZA and has bred a number of endangered species.

Tip: Don't leave dogs in your vehicle, as the car park has limited shade; only registered Assistance Dogs are allowed in the zoo.

Dunster Castle stands on a steep hill called the Tor above the village of Dunster, and has been fortified since the late Anglo-Saxon period. Today it is a Grade I listed country house run by the National Trust, with dramatic views and subtropical gardens around it.

Inside, you can explore the castle rooms, which the Victorian architect Anthony Salvin remodelled in a Gothic, Picturesque style. Outside there are the gardens and parkland to wander, plus a shop, a castle café and a tea-room by the Watermill. It suits history fans, couples and families who like a castle with grounds to roam. Expect steep routes, steps and uneven surfaces, though mobility scooters can be hired.

Tip: The car park is small and its gates lock at 6pm, so arrive early. In poor weather you may be asked to use Dunster Steep village car park instead.

Diggerland is a theme park where children and adults can ride, drive and operate real diggers, dumpers and other full-size construction machinery. The Devon park is in Cullompton, and the whole line-up runs to around 20 rides and drives. You can get to grips with real JCBs and Komatsu excavators, spin on Spindizzy, rise up on the Skyshuttle for the views, or take an off-road trip on the Groundshuttle. There are also dodgems and go-karts.

The parks are aimed at children aged 4 to 14, though visitors of all ages enjoy it, and rides have height restrictions. There are indoor and outdoor play areas, a cafeteria and a Goodie Store for souvenirs. Visitors describe the site as compact, with little walking between rides, which suits grandparents and younger children. One reviewer spent about five hours there in mixed weather.

Tip: Check the ride height chart on the Diggerland website before you go, so you know which rides each child can enjoy.

Exmoor Zoo is a conservation centre near Bratton Fleming in Exmoor, North Devon. It grew from Exmoor Bird Gardens, which opened on a former farm site in 1982, and today it specialises in smaller animals, with a good number of rare species on show.

You can see red pandas, meerkats, bush dogs and Abyssinian ground hornbills, along with small carnivores such as servals, caracals and fishing cats. Cheetahs, maned wolves and wolverines are among the other residents, and the zoo is also home to birds like flamingos and a shoebill. It is a member of BIAZA and EAZA and takes part in breeding programmes. Families and animal lovers can also book keeper-style experiences, and the zoo runs education activities for curious children.

Tip: Tickets can be bought securely online through the zoo's website, where you can also check price options and offers.

The Museum of Somerset is in the 12th-century great hall of Taunton Castle, in Taunton. It is run by the South West Heritage Trust, an independent charity, and tells the story of the county through its collections.

Exhibits include the Frome Hoard, 52,503 Roman coins found in a ceramic pot near Frome, and the Low Ham Roman Mosaic. You can also see the bronze-age South Cadbury shield, toys and dolls, sculpture, natural history, fossils, fine silver and pottery remains. The Somerset Military Museum follows the Somerset Light Infantry on their campaigns around the world.

At the heart of the museum is the Tree of Somerset, a sculpture carved from Quantock Hills oak that depicts events from the county's history.

Cothay Manor is a Grade I listed medieval house near Wellington in Somerset, built around 1480. Its period rooms include a great hall with a hammer-beam roof, and the house has a chapel, a gatehouse and mullioned windows. Writing in Country Life in 1927, Christopher Hussey called it "the most perfect small 15th-century country house that survives in the Kingdom".

Outside, the gardens are divided into separate garden rooms, each with its own planting, leading off a 200-yard yew walk. You'll find specimen trees, cottage gardens, courtyards and a river walk, plus an arboretum, a bog garden and a wild flower meadow. It suits anyone who likes historic houses and gardens.

Arlington Court is a neoclassical country house, built in the 1820s and set in a picturesque garden. Inside, you can see the Chichester family's antique furniture and an eclectic collection of family memorabilia. The National Trust Carriage Museum on site holds an impressive collection of horse-drawn vehicles.

Outside, there is the garden and a wider estate to explore, with guided walks run at times. Families can let children loose on the adventure playground, which has sit-on diggers, balance beams and a mud kitchen. The Old Kitchen Tea-room serves drinks, light meals and cakes, and there is a shop and a second-hand bookshop. It suits history fans, walkers and families, with plenty to do outdoors if the weather is kind.

Tip: Dogs on leads can go in the garden, wider estate and Carriage Museum, but not the main house or tea-room. Follow the brown signs, not sat nav, as unmarked lanes are dead ends.

Coldharbour Mill in Uffculme is one of the oldest woollen mills in the UK, and has been in continuous production since 1797. Once owned by the Fox Brothers textile firm, it is now a working wool museum set across 12 acres of Victorian mill buildings, boilers, steam engines and grounds. Historic England has called it "probably one of the best-preserved textile mill complexes in the country".

You can see working and static exhibits, watch craftspeople making traditional textiles, knitting yarn and hand woven rugs, and see the 18th century water wheel in action, the biggest breast-shot waterwheel still working in the UK. The estate also has about 10 acres of wetland, wildlife and mill pond, and the exhibits cover the Fox family and their Quaker history. There is a shop and a café bar on site, and the mill is just off junction 27 of the M5.

Tip: Check the mill's website for current opening days and any event days or workshops before you go.