ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½

With the holiday season about to start, millions of Brits are thinking about spending their summer in the UK because foreign holidays are getting too expensive.

But not only is the UK a fantastic place to take a break, as the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½'s Springwatch team have been discovering, it's also packed with wonderful wildlife that you can enjoy without spending a fortune.

If you're planning a seaside break, heading for the hills, woodlands and rivers, or simply putting your feet up at home - it's possible to have a credit-crunching encounter with Mother Nature.

Going camping

Campsites are a real wildlife hotspot. There are more than 3000 camping and caravan sites across the UK and many of them are in our most beautiful countryside.

It doesn't cost the earth and it's a great adventure for the whole family.

Camping is a great way to enjoy wildlife

"When you go camping you're only the thickness of your tent away from the natural world," said Springwatch presenter Martin Hughes-Games.

"Always make sure to take some binoculars – but you don't need to spend a fortune on a pair – and take a field guide if you're going exploring for the first time.

"Make it a basic one as some of the bird guides can be too complicated.ÌýTo let you into a little secret – the one I always take is Bill Oddie's," he added.

Some of the camping and caravanning locations you can enjoy in Derbyshire include the areas around Ashbourne (gateway to Dovedale and the Derbyshire Dales National Nature reserve) , Bakewell, Hope Valley and Buxton - and they are all handy for the Peak District National Park.

Along the 'coast'

Although landlocked, Derbyshire has its own form of coastline around some of our local reservoirs - Carsington, Foremark, Ladybower, Derwent, Linacre, Bottoms and Woodhead, for example.

They cannot provide you with the wide variety of sealife found on Britain's shores, but they do host a fantastic range of habitats - and otters, in particular, seem to be making a resurgence in Derbyshire.

Further afield, the UK coastline stretches for thousands of miles.

On a seaside break, the first instinct might be to flock to the beaches or, like moths to a flame, to the bright lights of the arcades - but by exploring a little further along the coast you can uncover a world of wildlife in the cliffs, tide pools and sea.

"There are spectacular wildlife hotspots all round our coast and it's not just birds – you can see seals, dolphins, even whales if you're lucky," said Martin.

Wildlife adventures await on the coast

Rock pools, or tide pools as they are sometimes known, are home to a wealth of sea life and provides a unique opportunity to study it at close quarters.

"I hadn't been rock pooling for years and I'd completely forgotten how much there is to see. It's fabulous, it's free and it's fun for all the family," said Martin.

"You'll see crabs, starfish, limpets, killer dog-whelks and if you catch a really low tide you might see British cowries or pipe fish – but don't forget to think safety first and keep an eye on the tide, it can come in far faster than you think."

Remember, the best sort of rock pooling means leaving no trace of your visit. Always return creatures back to the sea and leave the wonders of the rock pool for all to enjoy.

In the woods

The woods are the UK equivalent of the rainforests, they are the most diverse habitat that we have and there's always something new going on - whatever the season.

Wherever you live you're never far away from a woodland adventure.

"The woods are home to some of our most spectacular wildlife and big animals like deer, wild boar, foxes and badgers," said Martin.

"Surprisingly, it's often a wood that has lots of visitors that is a better place to see wildlife as they get used to people.

Woodland visits get you closer to nature

"You should also go very early in the morning, and I mean really early - like first light, as this is when the animals are at their busiest.

"Getting up that early is a real adventure and just think how delicious your breakfast will taste when you get home," he added.

In Derbyshire, popular locations for exploring woodland habitats include Chatsworth, Kedleston, Renishaw and Elvaston - and, of course, the National Forest and the visitor centres near Moira and Rosliston.

Holidaying at home

If you're deciding to holiday at home this year, one of the most exciting wildlife habitats can be found in your own garden or from a visit to the local park.

"I love spending time in my garden, but if I'm not at home there's always a green space somewhere nearby that'll act like a magnet for wildlife," said Martin.

Take a wildlife adventure in your garden

"I'm passionate about insects as they have some of the best stories. Forget looking up at the birds, look down and under things and you'll find a bizarre and fascinating world.

"Again, get yourself a basic guide book and a magnifying glass. There are 20,000 different species of insect in Britain so you'll never be short of new discoveries."

There are so many areas in Derbyshire to explore that we can't possibly mention them all here - but, in addition to all the locations mentioned above, consider the Derbyshire Dales, a walk along one of our many rivers and canals or one of the 42 nature reserves maintained by the Derbyshire Wildlife Trust (though not all are open to the public).

Many of our local stately homes have wildlife habitats 'built-in' to their surrounding areas where you can see deer, bats, birdlife, weasels - Calke Abbey, Kedleston Hall, Chatsworth, Melbourne Hall, Elvaston Castle, Peveril Castle, Hardwick Hall, Renishaw Hall and Bolsover Castle to name but a few.

Our local national park

And don't forget that one of the finest national parks is just on our doorstep - the Peak District. It was Britain's first national park and is visited by people from all over the world.

It is home to some of England's most spectacular scenery and the towns, villages and hamlets are amongst the prettiest in the country.

There is a multitude of wildlife habitats there such as heather moorland, blanket bog and pasture. Woodland forms around 8% of the area - some of it coniferous and some of it broad-leaved.

Some of the habitats have been shaped by man. As well as wildlife corridors along the park's hedges, walls, railways and roads we have also created unique habitats with our industrial history of mining and quarrying.

Explore the Peak District's diverse habitats

Other habitats represented are rivers, streams, species-rich scrub, heath on limestone, lead spoil, flushes, dewponds, screes, rocks and caves.

With an estimated 22 million visitors to the Peak District each year, it is thought to be the second most visited national park in the world.

From villages to cities, the countryside to the coast – wildlife is everywhere you look.

To help you make the most of it, a number of free pocket guides are available from ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ Breathing Places.