Countyfile: Nottinghamshire - Sherwood Forest comes alive for summer 2012

Wood for the trees: Go Ape's Segways in Sherwood Forest

There's plenty new to do at Sherwood Forest this summer. Go Ape! Sherwood Pines (0845 643 9215; goape.co.uk) has just launched a new Forest Segway adventure, where visitors can follow an hour-long trail through the trees on the fun two-wheeled electric vehicles. Sherwood Forest Cabins (0845 130 8223; forestholidays.co.uk) now offers new luxury log cabins to hire, from £564 for a three-night weekend break. And local storyteller Ezekial Bone, aka Ade Andrews, will be leading new Robin Hood tours through the forest on 10, 20 and 28 August (07941 210986; bonecorpora tion.co.uk; £5), revealing the legends of these ancient woods.

Get down to the beach at Nottingham's Old Market Square, which has been transformed for summer into the Nottingham Riviera (mynottingham.gov.uk/seaside; free), with sand, a giant paddling pool, fairground rides and special events including a touch rugby tournament.

Nottingham has two new, indulgent venues. The Navigation Brewery (0115-986 9877; navigationbrewery.com; tours £20) occupies a Victorian stable block on the banks of the Trent. Tours are available, and brews ready for tasting, at the neighbouring pub, the Trent Navigation Inn (0115 9865 658; trentnavigation.com).

Meanwhile, Marco Pierre White has opened his latest Steakhouse Bar & Grill (0115-8720 602; mpwnottingham.com) at the Alea Casino.

The Elizabethan mansion of Wollaton Hall (0115-915 3900; wollatonhall.org.uk; free) doubles as Wayne Manor in the latest Batman film, The Dark Knight Rises. Wollaton Hall is also the site of the Nottingham Industrial Museum (bit.ly/NIndustrial; £2; open Saturdays, Sundays and most bank holidays), which has reopened after a two-year closure.

More local heritage can be found at the new "Women in the Workhouse" exhibition, which runs until 20 September at the Workhouse, Southwell (01636 817260; nationaltrust.org.uk; £6.35), this year celebrating its 10th anniversary .

Creswell Crags (01909 720378; creswell-crags.org.uk; free) is picking up the sporting baton with its Ice Age Olympics, 8-12 August. Spear throwing and horn hoopla will be among the fun activities at these 50,000-year-old limestone caves. A new free exhibition about the Bolsover Dragonflies is also on show until 10 September. It tells the extraordinary tale of the discovery of two fossilised 300-million-year-old insects, with a wingspan of nearly half a metre, which were found by miners in a seam at Bolsover colliery in 1978.

Info: experiencenottinghamshire.com.

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