Hartlepool

Hartlepool sits where the County Durham coast meets the North Sea, a town built around its harbour and still shaped by it. The marina is the natural focus for visitors, with hotels like the Premier Inn Hartlepool Marina and The Marine Hotel putting you close to the water, while guest houses such as Aarondale, Brafferton and Sea View offer a more traditional, family-run base a short distance from the centre. The Best Western The Grand Hotel Hartlepool adds a more established option in the town itself, and if you'd rather stay a little further out, Hardwicke Hall Manor Hotel gives a country house feel outside the main bustle.

This spread of accommodation reflects a town that works as both a short seaside break and a base for exploring the wider coastline. History is a big draw here, above all the Hartlepools Maritime Experience and HMS Trincomalee, Britain's oldest floating warship, which sit right on the harbourside and give a real sense of the town's naval past. Families are well catered for too, with Tweddle Children's Animal Farm, Jump 360 Hartlepool, the Wacky Warehouse Merry Go Round and soft play at Make Believe all giving younger visitors plenty to do, alongside Vue Hartlepool for a rainy afternoon at the cinema.

Altogether, Hartlepool works well as a coastal base with real maritime substance behind it, whether you're staying harbourside for a night or two, camping along the coast, or settling into a guest house for a longer look at the town and the Durham coastline beyond it.