Moorways Sports Village and Water Park

The sprawl of Moorways sits just outside Derby, a leisure complex that's more functional than fancy but genuinely useful if you're camped nearby. It's essentially a sports and water facility - think swimming pools, water slides, and various sports courts all under one roof. On a rainy Derbyshire afternoon, when the Peak District walks are off the table, it does the job.

Families with younger kids will get the most mileage out of the water park side of things. The slides keep children occupied for a couple of hours, and there's enough pool space that it doesn't feel rammed even during school holidays. Older kids and teenagers tend to migrate toward the sports facilities if they've got a particular interest - badminton, squash, that sort of thing.

The real strength of Moorways is its proximity to the camping parks dotted around the area. Hill Farm Camping is only 2.2 miles away, which means you can swing by for an afternoon without needing to drive across half the county. Field of Dreams Glamping and Broadleaves are slightly further out, but still reasonable. It's the sort of place that earns its keep as a rainy-day backup rather than a main attraction in itself.

Budget a couple of hours if you're just doing the pools, longer if you're making a proper day of it. Admission isn't free, but they tend to have reasonable family rates. Check their website for current prices and opening times before you head over - nothing worse than arriving somewhere on a Tuesday only to find it's closed for maintenance.