English countryside: through the Cotswolds and Cornwall

Bristol blends a maritime past with creative fervour, a south-west English port city that has become an icon of independent culture and street art. Its centre revolves around the Floating Harbour, an old port turned into a lively area of museums, restaurants and boats, where the SS Great Britain is moored, the steamship designed by the famous engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel. Brunel also designed the iconic Clifton Suspension Bridge, a daring span across the Avon Gorge and the city's emblem. Bristol is the home of the artist Banksy, whose murals dot the city's walls in an open-air gallery. Districts like Stokes Croft and Clifton offer cafés, markets and bohemian atmospheres, while the cathedral and medieval quarter tell the older story. Each year the city brightens with the spectacular hot-air Balloon Fiesta. A short way off await Bath, the Cheddar Gorge and the Somerset coast. Bristol is a young, rebellious city where tradition and innovation dance together.

Bath wins you over at first sight with its honey-coloured limestone façades, the only English city inscribed in its entirety as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Its name reveals the secret: here the Romans built baths fed by Britain's only natural hot springs, and the beautifully preserved Roman Baths remain the chief attraction. Beside them rises the imposing Gothic abbey, and a little further on Georgian elegance reaches its peak in the Royal Crescent, a crescent of thirty Palladian houses, and the Circus, a perfect ring of façades. The city is bound to Jane Austen, who lived here and set her novels in it, celebrated in a centre devoted to her. Pulteney Bridge, lined with shops like the Ponte Vecchio, crosses the River Avon. For those seeking relaxation, the modern Thermae Bath Spa lets you bathe in the same waters as the Romans with views over the rooftops. A short way off await the Cotswold villages and the prehistoric site of Stonehenge. Bath is a city of rare harmony, where Roman history, Georgian refinement and spa wellbeing live in perfect balance.

Plymouth carries its maritime calling in its name, a historic port city of south Devon from which the Pilgrim Fathers sailed aboard the Mayflower in 1620. Its most striking spot is Plymouth Hoe, a wide grassy esplanade overlooking the sea with a panoramic view and the striped Smeaton's Tower lighthouse. Just below, the historic Mayflower Steps recall the settlers' departure for the New World, while the Barbican quarter keeps cobbled lanes, Tudor houses, art galleries and the country's oldest gin distillery. The modern National Marine Aquarium and the lively waterfront round out a visit. Plymouth is also a gateway to spectacular scenery: nearby await the wild moors of Dartmoor National Park, with its ponies and granite tors, and the rugged coasts of Cornwall. Among seaside pubs, fresh seafood and a long naval tradition, Plymouth tells of centuries of exploration. It is a city with its gaze fixed on the ocean, proud of its place in history.

St Ives seduces with its special light and Mediterranean tones, an enchanting fishing village on the north coast of Cornwall that became a famous artists' colony. Its white houses gather around a picturesque little harbour, ringed by beaches of golden sand and turquoise waters reminiscent of the tropics, such as Porthmeor and Porthminster. It was this clear light that drew painters and sculptors, so much so that the prestigious Tate St Ives faces the sea, beside the museum devoted to the sculptor Barbara Hepworth. Narrow cobbled lanes hold art galleries, craft shops, tearooms and restaurants of the freshest fish. The famous South West Coast Path offers scenic walks along cliffs and coves. St Ives is a destination that enchants the senses, where art, sea and light blend in an atmosphere beyond compare.