Winter Garden Cinema

The Winter Garden Cinema sits in Dunoon, a proper seaside town on the Cowal Peninsula that's seen better days but still has character. It's an old-school picture house - the kind with creaky seats and a single screen where you're watching films the way they were meant to be watched, without seventeen trailers and someone's phone lighting up the auditorium.

What you get is straightforward: independent and mainstream films in a venue that's been doing this for decades. The building itself has that faded theatrical charm, all ornate plasterwork and sticky carpets, which somehow adds to the experience rather than detracting from it. It's genuinely intimate.

Histories of cinema will find this worthwhile. So will anyone after an evening out that doesn't involve a multiplex. Families with younger kids might struggle if they're used to cup holders and recliners, but teenagers who appreciate the oddness of it tend to enjoy the novelty. Don't expect luxury; expect authenticity.

The catch is you'll need to ring ahead or check their website for what's on and specific times - details are thin on the ground. Admission won't break the bank compared to modern cinemas. Allow two hours from Dunoon town centre.

Combine it with a stay at Beach House Pods nearby, and you've got a proper coastal break without the pretence. The cinema gives you a reason to linger in Dunoon past a casual afternoon walk.