Shakespeare, Dickens, Christie, Wilde, Burns, Woolf, Austen – the list of the UK's literary giants is endless. Over the centuries, our glorious landscapes have provided inspiration for poets, painters, writers and great thinkers, and it's no wonder that so many famous and important works came into being here.
So great is the literary legacy of Britain, UNESCO created the ‘Cities of Literature’ in 2004, judged on extensive criteria that include publishing, educational institutes and creative output.
Of the 295 cultural capitals on the list, five are in the UK: Edinburgh, Norwich, Nottingham, Manchester and Exeter.
Bibliophiles don't have to look too far for locations steeped in literary history – they just need to choose their genre. From horror to fantasy, from children's classics to high romance, we've compiled some of our favourite destinations for a bookish break.
1 Whitby
The bustling harbour town of Whitby in North Yorkshire has multiple claims to literary fame, not least because in the seventh century, it was home to Caedmon, a monk and the earliest named poet in English history.
Inspiration for… Dracula
Bram Stoker
