Forest bathing at Newhailes

Newhailes is a Palladian house in Musselburgh, once home to the Dalrymple family, now cared for by the National Trust for Scotland. Around it are 34 hectares of 18th-century designed landscape, including close to ten hectares of woodland, with views out across the Firth of Forth. Look for the shell grotto beside one of the woodland paths, and the remains of an 18th-century tea house.

The grounds are open daily from dawn to dusk, and several paths lead round the estate through shady woodland and grassland. It is small enough to wander without a plan, and close enough to Edinburgh to suit an hour or two after work in the longer evenings. The woodland paths near the grotto feel the most enclosed. Paths are a mix of estate tracks and earth paths. Check the National Trust for Scotland site before you go for parking and whether the café and toilets are open, as these have changed in recent years.