Jane Austen's House Museum Hampshire

Fittingly, there's a touch of period drama about the former home of Jane Austen (1775–1817). This appealing red-brick house is where the celebrated English novelist lived with her mother and sister from 1809 to 1817. While living here, Austen wrote Mansfield Park, Emma and Persuasion, and revised Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice and Northanger Abbey. The museum is 18 miles east of Winchester; take bus 64 from Winchester to Chawton Roundabout (45 minutes, hourly), then walk 800m to Chawton village. The interior depicts a typical well-to-do Georgian family home, complete with elegant furniture and copper pans in the kitchen. Highlights include the occasional table Austen used as a desk, first editions of her novels and the delicate handkerchief she embroidered for her sister.