Local lore says that Jane Austen based Mr Darcy's home in Pride and Prejudice on Chatsworth House in Derbyshire, England, one of England's most lavish stately homes. [Photo by Alina Hartounian/Associated Press]

Millions flock to Derbyshire to explore the towering Peak District, England's first national park. Walking trails wind throughout the Peaks, including the bike-friendly Monsal Trail and the Dovedale Trail, which leads to an isolated village. Bakewell provides a convenient hopping-off point for hikers, especially those with a sweet tooth. The town is known for its eponymous Bakewell Tart and Bakewell Pudding. The tasty pastries are said to have been invented by a local hotel cook who mixed up a recipe. Travelers can also visit the town's All Saints Church which sits above a hilltop and offers lush valley views and a history that stretches back to Anglo-Saxon times.

Drinking tour of Derby

For Peak District explorers parched at the end of a hard day's walk, Derby's city center offers a thriving pub scene steeped in history. The recently redone Silk Mill, a nod to Derby's industrial past, has plenty of flat English beers to wash down decadent pub grub. The Greyhound, which once sported all the hallmarks of an Old Man's Pub, is now a vibrant nightspot with an array of ales and lagers on tap. The oldest pub in Derby, and one of the oldest in England, is Ye Olde Dolphin Inn, circa 1530. Its rooms, warped by the centuries, are often crammed with both beer gourmets and gourmands. Tourists can also go on ghost walks that crawl through the city's pubs and underbelly, during which they can take in history lessons alongside other-worldly tales.