Ashbourne is a traditional English market town with an olde worlde charm. The town is most famous for its annual Shrovetide football match (). The match first took place on Shrove Tuesday and Ash Wednesday in the 12th Century and the tradition continues today. It is believed that the match was originally played with a severed head following an execution. The towns Up’Ards and Down’Ards (depending which side of the river they were born) compete on the three mile long ‘pitch’ with pride being the end prize.

The town has a great independent food scene with Ashbourne becoming a FairTrade town in 2005. Although the traffic and parking can be horrendous the town is well worth a visit.

Bakewell is a tourist hotspot attracting domestic and international day-trippers alike. The town is most famous for its traditional Bakewell pudding, for which three different bakeries in the town claim to have the original recipe. Monday is the town’s busiest day by far, since its weekly market attracts many visitors from local villages. The town is close to Chatsworth House and Haddon Hall, local tourist attractions in their own rite.

Traditional Derbyshire ‘well dressing’ ceremonies take place throughout June. Additionally on the first Wednesday and Thursday of August the town plays host to the Bakewell Agricultural Show, reputed to be the largest covered show of its kind.

Buxton has the accolade of the highest market town in England. Buxton is famous as a spa town, sometimes referred to as ‘the Bath of the North’. The Romans built a settlement here after discovering a 28°C geothermal spring. The water is now pumped to St Ann’s well, which sits opposite The Crescent. The Crescent (pictured) designed by John Carr in 1780 was heavily influenced by Bath’s Royal Crescent. Other spectacular architecture in the town includes the Buxton Opera House and the Devonshire Dome, once the world’s largest unsupported dome. For more information see the Visit Buxton website.

Hartington is an extremely popular village with tourists. Surrounding the old marketplace is a number of souvenir shops and tea-rooms. The village also boasts a pretty village green and duck pond. As well as tourism the village also has a thriving cheese industry, with the Hartington Cheese Shop one of a limited number licenced to produce Stilton and Buxton Blue Cheese.

A former railway line to the village has been converted for use by walkers and cyclists and is known as the Tissington Trail. Hartington is also well situated for those wanting to explore the trails along Beresford Dale, with its interesting rock formations and caves. There are a number of holiday cottages in and around Hartington, get details at Peak District Information.

Leek is a market town located just two miles from the pub. During the industrial revolution the town was a major producer of textiles, and was also prominent for dyeing. William Morris, of the Arts and Crafts Movement lived and worked in the town between 1875 and 1878. He and architect Larner Sugden founded the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings, and it is for this reason that so many of Leek’s historic buildings survive today. Several large textile mills still stand throughout the town, with some having been converted to residential accommodation. Today Leek is most famed for its large number of antiques shops and weekly antiques market. Some of the larger antiques shops such as the Compton Mill Emporium occupy former mill buildings.