Cairngorm National Park

At 4,528 square kilometres, the Cairngorms is the UK's largest national park. It shelters a quarter of the UK's threatened bird and animal species, among them red squirrels, ospreys, red kites, and the country's only free-ranging reindeer herd.

The nearest edge of the park is about 65 miles north of Edinburgh. Aviemore, the main gateway town, is around 126 miles away, roughly two and a half hours by car.

Entry to the park itself is free. Individual attractions inside it, such as the Cairngorm Mountain Funicular, the Highland Wildlife Park, and the Cairngorm Reindeer Centre, charge admission.

The Cairngorms is the richest wildlife habitat in Britain. Look out for red squirrels, red deer, mountain hares that turn white in winter, ospreys fishing the lochs, red kites over the glens, capercaillie in the old pinewoods, and the UK's only free-ranging reindeer herd at the Cairngorm Reindeer Centre near Aviemore.