Holiday rentals in Matlock

Antiques shops and welcoming pubs snuggle into the rugged scenery of the Derbyshire Dales in this winsome market town on the southeast edge of the Peak District National Park. With its varied shopping, quirky cafes, and riverside walks along the Derwent, there’s plenty to keep you busy in town. But Matlock is also a brilliant stepping-off point for outdoor adventures. The Derwent Valley divides the Peak District here between the White Peak limestone plateau on the southeast side and the wilder Dark Peak uplands of gritstone and moorlands on the other.

Local museums reveal the area’s industrial history as an important centre of textile manufacturing, hard to forget when overlooking the town is Riber Castle, folly of the famous industrialist John Smedley. Practically adjoining Matlock, a mile south, is the more tourism-focused Matlock Bath. With its racks of postcards, gift shops, and ice cream, it surely belongs at the seaside, yet here it is, clinging to the Derbyshire steeps. As a hip spa town in the 19th century, it was compared to Switzerland. That’s a bit of a stretch, but there is a cable car at the nearby Heights of Abraham attraction, which supplies eye-popping views.

There are reasons to come to Matlock at any point in the calendar. Spring is gorgeous for walking and cycling, summer is heaven, and the Peak District is particularly fetching when upholstered in snow. The craggy surroundings can be somewhat austere in winter, but this town is all heart, and its residents know how to spice things up in the cold. Matlock Bath Illuminations, in September and October, is a spectacular event when themed model structures covered with tiny lights are paraded on rowing boats on the Derwent Gardens lake. Chatsworth House, one of the United Kingdom’s most incredible stately homes, hosts a Christmas fair in November, as well as a country fair in September and outdoor theatre in summer. Another stately home, Haddon Hall, hosts events and markets too.

Industrial mill museums

To understand Derbyshire’s history and the part it played in the Industrial Revolution, make a trip to the UNESCO Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site, where several former mills were the birthplace of the world’s first factory system. These riverside buildings were erected for the sole purpose of spinning cotton. You’ll see Arkwright’s Cromford Mills, the world’s first water-powered cotton-spinning mill; Belper, the world’s first cotton mill town; and the new Museum of Making at the Derby Silk Mill.

White Peak Loop

Amid the beautiful limestone landscapes of the White Peak, this trail welcomes hikers, cyclists, and horseback riders. It runs north towards Bakewell where, after a gap, you can join another path, the 8.5-mile Monsal Trail, which leads all the way to Buxton.

Lumsdale Valley waterfalls

A short walk directly from Matlock leads across private land into a magical wooded gorge in the Lumsdale Valley, following the Bentley Brook to a series of waterfalls, overgrown ruins of mills, and mill ponds.