Pint pots at the ready. It's time for the Battle of the Beers

British breaks: Derbyshire

What's on

Catch the end of the Well Dressing season (visitpeakdistrict.com) this month. Springs and wells are decorated, following a tradition thought to stretch back to Celtic times. Villages across the county will be displaying the unusual pictures, created with natural materials such as clay, wool and flowers.

Listen to classical music beneath Chesterfield Cathedral's crooked spire at the Chesterfield Markets Festival (visitpeakdistrict.com/ chesterfieldfestival) from 29 to 31 October. This three-day celebration of the town's open-air markets – among the largest in the country – will feature a Battle of the Beers and the transformation of the Victorian Queen's Park into a "Garden of Light". Performers will include the London Mozart Players and the comedian Rich Hall.

Catch the new family festival Spookyshire (visitpeakdistrict.com/ spookyshire) from 24 October to 1 November. The Halloween and firework-themed events will take place at venues across the county as diverse as Chatsworth House and Swadlincote Ski & Snowboarding Centre.

See the sights

Travel back to pre-historic times at the new Creswell Crags Visitor Centre (creswell- crags.org.uk). The limestone gorge and its network of caves in the north-east of the county provides the stunning backdrop for Britain's first national centre for the Ice Age which features exciting ways to explore this distant era.

Follow the Monsal Trail, an abandoned railway line popular with walkers and cyclists, which takes in the Monsal Head Viaduct. Running for more than eight miles from Bakewell to Buxton, the route follows the limestone valley of the River Wye ensuring great views.

Get in some retail therapy at Derby's new Westfield shopping complex, part of the multi-billion pound development of the city ahead of the 2010 British Formula 1 Grand Prix at the Donington Park racing circuit. And check out the multi-million pound replanning of Cathedral Green, with its swing action bridge over the River Derwent (visitderby.co.uk).

Further information

For more ideas and details on accommmodation, go to visitpeakdistrict.com