The Xcel Leisure Centre

The Xcel Leisure Centre sits just outside Kenilworth and is the sort of place where you'll find proper serious swimmers sharing lanes with families splashing about on a Thursday afternoon. It's a working leisure facility - indoor pool, gym, sports halls - so don't expect theme park theatrics. What you get instead is a genuinely useful stop if you're staying at Gate Farm Caravan Club nearby and the weather's turned miserable.

The pool is the main draw. There's a main pool for lap swimmers and a learner pool, which means if you've got kids who aren't confident yet, they won't be flailing about in the deep end while someone's doing butterfly strokes above their heads. The changing facilities are clean and modern enough. It's not luxurious but it does the job.

Where it really works is as a half-day activity during a park holiday. You're literally minutes from Gate Farm, so you can pop in for an hour or two without the faff of a long drive. Admission and pricing aren't publicly listed online, so ring ahead - but expect standard leisure centre rates, nothing extortionate.

Best for families with younger kids or anyone who simply needs to burn off energy indoors. Serious swimmers might find the facilities a touch basic compared to larger regional centres, but for a caravan park stopgap on a wet afternoon? It's spot on. Worth checking what's on - they run various classes and activities depending on the week.