YEOVIL'S glove-making years might be behind us, but there are still plenty of reasons to love the ‘town on the river’ in South Somerset. 

From Europe's largest naval aviation museum to its stunning countryside scenery, here are five reasons we think Yeovil is well worth visiting.

Yeovil Country Park 

Visitors can explore woodlands and waterfalls at Yeovil Country Park, a 157-acre site at the southern and eastern edges of the town. 

The park has five main areas with different characteristics and land features, ranging from Ninesprings to the Riverside walk. 

Visitors can take a well-earned break by enjoying a coffee and slice of cake at Ninesprings Café. 

Entertainment scene

The Octagon Theatre and Westlands Entertainment offer locals and visitors plenty of variety for music, comedy and the arts. 

Big names to look out for at the venues over the next year include Chris McCausland, Peter Andre and Tim Vine.

And the future looks bright: The Octagon has recently been given permission to expand into a “flagship centre for the creative arts”.

Fleet Air Arm Museum

Yeovil is the ‘home of British helicopters’ and has a nearby Royal Navy Air Station, so it should come as no surprise that the town is proud of its aviation links.

The best place to experience this is the Fleet Air Arm Museum, located just a short drive from Yeovil, which features a Concorde and the Aircraft Carrier Experience.

Montacute House

The National Trust describes this property, found to the west of Yeovil, as a “masterpiece of Elizabethan Renaissance architecture and design, with towering walls of glass, glowing ham stone and surrounding garden”.

Make sure to explore the house, gardens and porters' lodges, while making time to stop off in the Courtyard Café for brunch, lunch or a snack. 

Yeovil Railway Centre

The railway centre - which was founded in 1993 and is part of Yeovil Junction station - offers steam train days, annual Santa Specials and even driver experience days.

The centre says its driver experience days are “great” for friends or colleagues. It also has a shop that opens on Sundays between 10am and 12 noon.