Southport Contemporary Arts

The gallery sits right in Southport town centre, which makes it dead convenient if you're staying at one of the nearby caravan parks. Southport Contemporary Arts is a proper modern space - the kind of place that doesn't take itself too seriously but does show work worth stopping for. They rotate exhibitions fairly regularly, so what's on depends when you visit, but expect contemporary painting, sculpture, photography and installations from both established and emerging artists.

It's ideal if you've got a few hours to kill between beach walks or if the weather turns grim. The space itself is clean and well-lit, never feels cramped, and most exhibitions take about 45 minutes to an hour to get through properly. Free entry as far as I can tell, which is always a bonus. Kids will either love it or find it deadly dull - depends entirely on the show and how old they are. Teenagers with any artistic leanings tend to get more from it than younger children.

What works well is that Southport's got enough going on around it - the seafront, the pier, decent cafes - that a gallery visit fits naturally into a day rather than feeling like a standalone trip. If you're camped at Southport Caravan and Motorhome Club or any of the parks a few miles out like Riverside or Four Seasons, this is worth half an afternoon. Check what's on before you go - that'll make the difference between a worthwhile detour and a wasted twenty minutes.