Dudley

Dudley sits at the centre of the Black Country, a town built on limestone and industry that has turned much of that history into places worth visiting. The town is dominated by Dudley Zoo and Castle, where Victorian animal enclosures wrap around the ruins of a medieval castle on a hill above the streets below, giving you views out across the surrounding boroughs alongside the animals themselves.

Underneath the town, the Dudley Canal Tunnel & Limestone Mines offers a different way to see the area's past, with boat trips taking you into the tunnels and mines that were carved out beneath Castle Hill. The Black Country Living Museum extends this further, rebuilding shops, cottages and workshops to show what daily life looked like here during the region's industrial peak. For open air and green space rather than heritage, Saltwells Local Nature Reserve and Baggeridge Country Park & Miniature Railway give you woodland, trails and a small railway to ride, while Himley Hall and Park adds a grand house and grounds on the edge of town.

Families have plenty to fill a day with beyond the main sights too, from Adventure Street to Sycamore Green Adventure Centre, both aimed at keeping children entertained with activity-based attractions rather than museum cases.

For somewhere to stay, options range from the countryside setting of Himley Country Hotel and Himley House Hotel by Chef and Brewer collection near the park and hall, to more central and practical choices like the Copthorne Hotel Merry Hill Dudley and Premier Inn Dudley Kingswinford. Smaller options include Castle Terrace B3 R2, Mike & Carolyn Ball B&B on Parsons Street, and the memorably named Mad ORourkes Pie Factory, which gives a nod to the town's food heritage as much as its lodging.