Tregony Contemporary

Tregony Contemporary sits just outside Truro and is exactly the sort of gallery that rewards a slightly off-the-beaten-path detour. It's a proper working artist space rather than some grand institution, which means you're seeing contemporary work in an intimate setting where you might actually bump into someone who made the thing you're looking at.

The gallery itself focuses on contemporary art - paintings, sculpture, mixed media - and rotates exhibitions regularly enough that repeat visits make sense. It's not massive, so you won't lose half a day here, but that's rather the point. An hour or so is realistic, longer if you want to chat to staff about what's on the walls.

For artists themselves or anyone who gets genuinely interested in what working contemporary galleries do, this is worth the trip from Truro. Less so if you're just after something to tick off. Families with younger kids might find it a bit slow-paced, though teenagers who actually care about art will get more out of it than a blockbuster exhibition would give them.

If you're staying at either Trethem Mill Touring Park or Carnon Downs, Tregony Contemporary makes a sensible half-afternoon stop before heading back to base. Combine it with a wander round Truro itself - the cathedral's worth seeing - and you've got a solid cultural couple of hours sorted. Don't expect flash facilities or a cafe, but do expect to see work that someone genuinely cared about making.