The most underrated place to visit in Britain in 2026

We may already be in the New Year, but it’s not too late to set some resolutions. If you’re struggling to think, we suggest you try to see more of the UK this year. Sure, Blighty might not always be as glamorous (or warm) as heading abroad, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t plenty of brilliant places worth seeing.

The only tricky part is knowing what’s actually good and what’s a rip-off, which is exactly why the Telegraph has put together a list of the 10 most underrated things to do in Britain. Each spot was chosen by the newspaper’s travel team as being somewhat off the beaten track. You might not have even heard of some of these places, but each is intended to offer something that you won’t get anywhere else.

So where should you head first? According to the Telegraph, up to the Bowes Museum in County Durham.

A gorgeous stately home-turned-art-gallery in Barnard Castle, the Bowes is as famed for its sprawling grounds and grand building as for its art collection. The structure dates back to the 1890s, when a local MP and his wife decided they needed somewhere special to display their private art collection – and so constructed an entire French-inspired château. Magnifique.

The Telegraph notes that a gallery of this grandeur with this sort of collection – you can find textiles dating back to the 17th century, a mechanical silver swan, and an original El Greco – in the south of England would be ‘mobbed’, but the Bowes Museum remains largely unknown to those outside of the northeast. That means you can enjoy the extensive body of work inside the museum without having to fight off throngs of tourists, and you’ll almost certainly get a seat in the café.

Liverpool’s Williamson Tunnels – a subterranean street system designed for no discernible purpose by a man (Joseph Williamson) with too much money and time in the 19th century – was named the second most underrated attraction. The real attraction here, as the Telegraph puts it, is in ‘[attempting] to figure out what on earth was on Joseph’s mind’ as you explore his bizarre underground maze. In third was the jaw-dropping Menai Bridge in Anglesey. 

The 10 most underrated things to do in the UK in 2026

Here are all of the Telegraph’s top lesser-appreciated places to visit in Britain this year:

1. The Bowes Museum, County Durham
2. Williamson Tunnels, Liverpool
3. Menai Bridge, Anglesey
4. Clevedon Pier, Somerset
5. Lavenham, Suffolk
6. Maunsell Sea Forts, Thames Estuary
7. Beverley Minster, East Yorkshire
8. Isle of Bute, Scotland
9. Stamford, Lincolnshire
10. Yarm, North Yorkshire

You can discover them all in more detail in the full article here.

Make the most of 2026: here’s how to maximise your annual leave in 2026.

Plus: The legendary British landmark that is one of the worst tourist attractions in Europe, apparently.