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Family in the Forest

Sandra Burnell tried a break in Robin Hood country

Sherwood Forest was uncharted territory for my family. Our weekend breaks are usually spent in Scotland visiting as many of my relatives as we can pack into a weekend, or heading south to the coast.

This time, with our 15-year-old daughter and her friend, we were on our way to Edwinstowe, on the very edge of the forest. According to legend, Robin Hood married Maid Marian here.

Our base was Crow Hollow Cottage, a detached Victorian farmhouse two miles outside Edwinstowe. Until recently a farm worker's cottage, it's just been refurbished, offering seriously comfortable accommodation for six people.

Edwinstowe has good pubs, a couple of restaurants and take-aways. There's also a butcher and delicatessen selling cooked meats, game pies and home-preserved pickles on which you could dine like a king.

Very close by are the Sherwood Forest Centre, where the local legends are explained, and the Major Oak, the largest and oldest tree left within the original forest. It takes its name from an 18th century antiquarian, Major Rooke, who was the first person to identify and document it.

The forest can be explored on two wheels. There's no worry about traffic and, if your fitness levels have seen better days, you can move at your own pace.

The National Trust has a number of attractions in the area. We visited Clumber Park near Worksop, which has acres of wonderful historic parkland and Europe's longest avenue of lime trees.

The 19th century workhouse in Southwell is worth visiting. My daughter and her friend were fairly quiet on this outing - wondering, perhaps, how anyone could live without a TV and a computer in their bedroom?

I knew walking and exploring wouldn't be enough to keep two 15-year-olds keen. Nottingham has an excellent shopping centre, and if the weather is poor, the National Ice Centre is a great place to spend a couple of hours. The girls had two hours of skating for £5.50 per head.

'We had a superb weekend and came home feeling completely recharged. That's how weekends should be!'

For yet more shopping, move on to the McArthurGlen Designer Outlet, just off the M1 towards Mansfield.

This is a wonderful part of England. It's green, lush and there's something for the whole family. The pace of life in the forest is unhurried, almost serene. And Crow Hollow Cottage made our weekend complete. Its fully- fitted kitchen has everything needed for a self-catering holiday. We had a superb weekend and came home feeling completely recharged. That's how weekends should be!