The Marlpool Brewing Company

The Marlpool Brewing Company sits just outside Alfreton, making it a solid addition to a Derbyshire caravan holiday if you fancy escaping the campsite for an afternoon. It's a proper working brewery - the kind where you can actually see what's going on rather than just being herded round a visitor centre. They brew craft beers on site, and depending on when you visit, you might catch them mid-production or pick up some stock from their own selection.

What you get out of it depends entirely on whether you're into beer. If you are, this isn't a bad spot to understand how a small independent operation works - it's refreshingly unpretentious. If you're not, you'll be standing around watching fermentation tanks, which loses its appeal after about ten minutes. They do have a shop, so there's an opportunity to take something back to Golden Valley or Riddings Wood with you, but it's not the kind of place that'll keep a family entertained for hours.

The brewery works on a small scale, so it's worth ringing ahead before you go - opening hours aren't straightforward, and you'll want to check what tours or visits they're actually offering that day. It's the sort of place that feels more like visiting someone's passion project than a slick tourist operation, which you'll either find brilliant or slightly awkward. No more than an hour's detour from the caravan parks nearby.