Air Sea Rescue

The Air Sea Rescue museum sits just outside Penzance, telling the story of the men and women who've spent decades pulling people out of the sea around Cornwall's treacherous coast. It's a small but serious place - no gimmicks, just genuine artefacts and equipment from real rescues, alongside photographs and accounts from crew members who were actually there.

You'll see vintage helicopters, lifeboats, and the kind of gear that looks simultaneously fragile and impossibly robust. The exhibits walk you through how air-sea rescue evolved from its early days into the sophisticated operation it is today. There's something properly moving about standing next to the actual machines that saved lives - not the sort of place where you'll find yourself rushing through.

Allow a solid hour and a half if you're reading the details. Families with older kids will get more from it than those with toddlers - there's not a lot of interactive stuff, so you need to be genuinely interested in the history. History buffs and anyone with a connection to the services will find it genuinely worth the visit. Walkers heading to or from Land's End will pass close enough that it makes sense as a stop.

If you're camping at Lands End Camping & Glamping - barely half a mile away - this is an easy rainy-afternoon option. Roselands is a bit further but still manageable as part of a day out. Opens daily from 10 to 5. Worth checking ahead on admission costs and current exhibits.