Alnwick Library

The library sits right in the heart of Alnwick, a proper working public space that locals actually use - not a museum piece gathering dust. You'll find it's housed in a Victorian building with decent bones, all dark wood and high ceilings that remind you libraries were once treated as important institutions. The collection is what you'd expect from a busy Northumberland town library: books, a reasonable local history section, computers you can book, and that particular smell of old paper and carpet that either soothes or irritates you depending on your mood.

It's genuinely worth a stop if you're into local history or need to kill an hour while someone else does the tourist trail round Alnwick Castle. The staff know their stuff about the area, and the local studies section has proper gems if you're researching family history or just curious about what life was like in medieval Northumberland. Free to pop in and browse, though borrowing requires a membership.

Honestly, it's not a destination in itself. But if you're based at one of the nearby parks - Proctors Stead Caravan Park is under six miles away - and you fancy a quiet morning away from the seaside crowds, it beats sitting in a cafe. The building itself is charming enough that even library-sceptics often end up spending longer than expected. Pop in on a weekday morning when it's less hectic. Allow forty-five minutes to an hour if you're having a proper look round.