Bingham Leisure Centre

The leisure centre in Bingham sits on the edge of this Nottinghamshire market town, about eight miles southeast of Nottingham itself. It's a proper working sports facility - swimming pools, gym equipment, sports halls - the sort of place locals actually use rather than tourists typically queuing up to visit. That said, if you're camping nearby at Janson Fishery or Boat Lane and the weather turns, it's a solid fallback for keeping kids entertained or burning off some energy before heading back to the caravan.

The pools are the main draw. There's an indoor heated pool that works year-round, which matters more than you'd think when you're three days into a rainy spell in the Midlands. The gym and sports halls host everything from badminton to basketball, so if your family's the sporty type, you can actually do something structured rather than just wandering around a field.

It's not a destination in itself - you're not driving an hour to visit a leisure centre. But if you're based at one of the nearby caravan parks and need an activity that doesn't depend on sunshine, it's convenient and does exactly what it says on the tin. Admission isn't free, but it's reasonable. Bingham's the sort of town that keeps things running without fuss, and this place reflects that. Straightforward, useful, no pretence.