Stanmore Community Library

A library tucked away in Hampshire that most visitors to Winchester completely miss. Stanmore Community Library operates from the Carroll Centre and pulls in local readers and researchers rather than tourists, which honestly makes it all the more worth a visit if you're the type who likes browsing independent book collections away from the usual high street chains.

It's a proper working library - the kind where you'll find actual librarians who know their stock and can point you towards local history resources. The opening hours are weekday mornings and afternoons (9am to 4pm Monday to Friday), so you'll need to time a visit during a caravan stay carefully. Don't expect the flashy setup of a major city library. This is intimate, community-focused space where people actually come to read rather than just grab a coffee.

If you're staying at one of the nearby sites - Holden Farm Camping with its on-site cafe is particularly good, or the excellent Hookpit Farm a few miles out - you could easily pop into Winchester proper and visit the cathedral, then swing by here for a quieter hour. History enthusiasts doing research on the area will find it useful; families with younger kids might find the visit a bit limited unless the children are genuinely keen readers.

Not a headline attraction, but the sort of place that reveals what a place is actually like beyond the tourist trail. Worth thirty minutes if you're in Winchester and the weather's turned damp.