Beetle

Beetle is a contemporary art gallery tucked away in the Oxfordshire countryside, a short drive from Henley-on-Thames. It's the sort of place you'd miss if you weren't looking for it - which is rather the point. The space showcases rotating exhibitions of visual art, with a real emphasis on emerging and established artists working across painting, sculpture, and mixed media.

The gallery itself is intimate rather than sprawling. You're not going to spend three hours here, but that's fine - it's designed for proper engagement with the work rather than ticking off a checklist. Expect to walk away with something to think about, which is more than you can say for most commercial art spaces.

This works best if you're already a gallery person or you've got a genuine interest in contemporary art. Dragging reluctant teenagers round here would be a bit of a stretch, unless they happen to be into that sort of thing. Walkers doing a loop in the area might swing by, though it's not a casual drop-in kind of spot.

If you're camping at Swiss Farm or Henley Four Oaks, it's close enough to make a morning or afternoon visit feasible. Check ahead for opening hours and what's on - the exhibitions change - but admission tends to be free or very reasonably priced. It's the kind of place that rewards a bit of local exploration when you're based in the Henley area.