Fodor's Expert Review Buckler's Hard Maritime Museum

This restored 18th-century shipbuilding village, two miles south of Beaulieu, is home to a re-created Shipwright's Cottage along with a Shipwright School in a replica 18th-century timber workshop, where courses are given in traditional shipbuilding techniques. There's also a fascinating Maritime Museum, which traces the village's role in British history, including the building of Nelson's warships (the New Forest lost many of its trees from the 16th to 18th centuries, when it served as the principal source of timber for British Navy ships). From Easter through October, you can cruise down the privately owned Beaulieu River. The Master Builder's House Hotel has a bar and restaurant.