Spend five minutes south in your car, or 15 on a bike and you’ll find yourself hitting the boundary for this beautiful AONB. Designated in 1964, it covers 312 square miles of rural land in the counties of Lancashire and Yorkshire. There is no physical boundary of course, just beautiful countryside and along with the Yorkshire Dales National Park, means that our Holiday Park is encircled by areas with protected status.

This position ensures you’re never far from a beautiful view, a lovely walk or an interesting place to visit. AONBs are designated in recognition of their national importance and to ensure that their character and qualities are protected for all to enjoy for the Forest of Bowland, the following was viewed as having particular importance:

• the grandeur and isolation of the upland core
• the steep escarpments of the Moorland Hills
• the undulating lowlands
• the visual contrasts between each element of the overall landscape
• the serenity and tranquillity of the area
• the distinctive pattern of settlements
• the wildlife and the landscape's historic and cultural associations

In reality, this means that the population of just 16,000 live mostly in the historic villages, with the remainder in hamlets or isolated properties in the open countryside. Some live in estate villages where buildings are of a similar architecture and age, for example: Downham, Slaidburn and Abbeystead, all of which are well worth visiting.