Zone locale

Spend an afternoon exploring Hampstead Heath, an ancient, expansive parkland a 10-minute drive from the hotel. You can wander through acres of woodland, or in warm weather take a dip in the swimming ponds. There are various playgrounds for the kids, or you can have a workout on the athletics track or tennis courts. For sweeping views of the London skyline, make your way up to Parliament Hill.

Alexandra Palace is an imposing Victorian venue surrounded by parkland, 15 minutes' drive from the hotel. You can take the kids for a spin on the indoor ice-rink, sign up for a tree-top climbing session or take a boat or a pedalo out on the lake. If you like, while away the afternoon in the beer garden, or in the evenings catch international acts in the vast indoor concert venue.

Join the crowds for some retail therapy at the sprawling Camden Market, a 25-minute Tube ride from Golders Green station. You can browse a bewildering array of stalls for vintage fashions, an original piece of art, homewares or trinkets. Grab a bite to eat at one of the many international food stands, then wander along Regent's Canal before stopping for a drink at a Camden Lock bar.

A 15-minute drive from the hotel, the atmospheric Highgate Cemetery is known for being the final resting place of Karl Marx, George Eliot and Douglas Adams, along with a host of other famous figures. It is also a nature reserve. You can ramble through the newer East Cemetery on your own, or book a tour of the West Cemetery's overgrown maze of paths winding past Gothic and Egyptian-style tombs.