Higher Uppacott

Higher Uppacott is a Grade I listed medieval farmhouse near Poundsgate, a long, low granite longhouse where a family and their cattle once shared one roof. It is part of a farm rather than a conventional museum, and it's worth choosing if you like historic buildings you can read from the fabric. The original lower shippon, or cattle end, survives unusually intact. I'd keep this on the list for the chance to see a real Dartmoor longhouse rather than a reconstructed display.

Inside, the arrangement explains the old way of life: the family lived at the upper end, while animals occupied the lower end, with a central passage between. The building began as a one-room house around the 14th century, with an open central fire. Later changes added a fireplace and chimney, then upper rooms. Some of the thatch retains smoke-blackening from that early phase. The interest is in spotting how a farm building adapted as living standards and farming changed, not in a large collection of objects.

This isn't a daily walk-in. Tours are scheduled and last about an hour and a half, booked through Postbridge Visitor Centre. The interior has several steps, low beams, uneven floors and limited heating, and official guidance says it suits children roughly eight and over. Assistance dogs only. Factor that in if mobility or head clearance is a concern.