Enjoying a visit to Chapel Porth is all about timing. This dramatic cove near St Agnes was named as one of Britain’s 20 best hidden beaches by the Telegraph earlier this year, but go at the wrong time – high tide, or when the Atlantic is in a bad mood – and you’d be forgiven for feeling more scared than serene. Waves crash against cliff faces and a shingle beach struggles to assert itself. Get it right and the beast becomes a beauty. At low tide on a clear summer’s day, Chapel Porth is tranquillity defined, with blue seas lapping against a stretch of fine sand, and a café serving beachside delights to the smattering of visitors.

9. City of London (on a Sunday)

The historic centre of London covers only 1.12 square miles (hence the Square Mile nickname), but around 8,000 people live here and they’re joined every weekday by over 400,000 workers. Squashed and manic, it’s probably one of the least peaceful places in the UK. All that changes on a Sunday, when the financiers stay at home and so too do their entourage of eatery and transport workers. Walk from St Paul’s Cathedral down Gresham Street and then plunge into the financial heartlands of Leadenhall Street and you’ll find an area so peaceful it’s almost eerie. Like the start of a zombie movie…