Rutland County Library

The local library in Oakham is one of those places you'd walk past without thinking twice, until you actually pop inside and realise it's rather well done. It's housed in a proper Victorian building with decent natural light, the kind of space that doesn't feel like you're being herded through a museum of books.

You get the standard library fare - fiction, non-fiction, a reference section - but what makes it worth a visit is the local history collection, which is genuinely useful if you're trying to get a grip on Rutland's past. There's also a decent children's section if you've got small ones in tow, though it's not enormous. The staff know their stuff and won't treat you like you've wandered in by accident.

It's free to browse, though you'll need to register if you want to borrow anything. Allow an hour if you're just having a look round, longer if you're settling in with a book. Weekday mornings tend to be quieter.

For a park holiday at Greendale Farm Caravan & Camping Park - just under four miles away - this is genuinely useful on a rainy afternoon when you've had enough of the outdoors. Rutland's not huge, and you'll run out of things to do faster than you might think, so having somewhere dry to sit with a book beats sitting in the caravan playing cards. Not a highlight of your trip, but practical.