Stanley Road Department Store

Brighton's Stanley Road Department Store is one of those places that rewards a bit of poking about. It's a proper old-school department store - the kind where you half expect to find things you didn't know you needed tucked away on some forgotten shelf. The building itself has that solid, early-20th-century feel that tells you this was once a serious shopping destination before the out-of-town superstores changed everything.

It's worth a wander if you're into retail history or you actually need something practical - clothes, housewares, that sort of thing. Not a theme-park experience, mind you. Families won't get hours out of it unless they're shopping anyway, but it's a genuine bit of Brighton's past that hasn't been smoothed over into some twee tourist attraction. Real locals still use it.

If you're camping nearby - Pegs and Pitches is only just over a mile away, or there's Brighton Caravan and Motorhome Club at 1.8 miles - Stanley Road fits easily into a morning potter round the town before heading back to base. It's close enough to the seafront that you can tick it off and move on without losing half your day. Admission details aren't widely advertised online, so ring ahead or just turn up and see what's what. Best visited on a weekday if you want to browse without queuing.