USN P-22 Gunboat

A proper slice of Cold War history sits quietly on the Sandwich waterfront - the USN P-22, an American patrol gunboat that's been converted into a floating museum. You're essentially stepping aboard an actual working vessel from the 1960s, which means cramped corridors, narrow ladders, and a genuine sense of what life was like for the crew crammed into these steel boxes.

Inside, you'll find the gun turrets, the engine room, and various operational stations all preserved as they were. It's hands-on in places, which keeps things from feeling like a dusty archive. History buffs will spend a solid hour poking around; younger kids might manage 30-40 minutes before the novelty of "look, a really old boat" wears off. The setting on the river is atmospheric, especially if you arrive when the light's right.

Sandwich itself is worth your time - proper medieval town with intact walls and the sort of quiet you don't find much these days. If you're camping at Sandwich Leisure Holiday Park, just half a mile away, the gunboat makes an easy morning visit before heading out properly. It's the kind of thing that works best as part of a broader day rather than a destination on its own, but if you've got the time and the curiosity, it's worth the walk down to the water.