Dorset Teddy Bear Museum

Thousands of teddy bears staring down at you from glass cases - it's either delightful or slightly unsettling, depending on your tolerance for button eyes. The Dorset Teddy Bear Museum, near Bincombe, is exactly what it sounds like: a collection focused on stuffed bears spanning decades, from vintage Steiff specimens to modern interpretations. You'll find bears from the early 1900s through to contemporary craft bears, arranged thematically across the space.

This one's pure nostalgia, which means it lands differently depending on who you take. Young children often find it magical - there's something magnetic about seeing hundreds of bears at once. Adults who grew up with a particular bear get a genuine hit of recognition. Teenagers and reluctant visitors, though, will likely shuffle through in 45 minutes and want to leave.

The museum sits well within reach of the holiday parks clustered around Weymouth and Warmwell - Haven Seaview and Haven Weymouth Bay are both around five miles away, as is Green Valley Yurts if you're after something more low-key. It's the kind of rainy-day activity that works perfectly when you're based at one of these coastal parks and the weather turns.

Admission details and current opening hours aren't readily available online, so ring ahead before committing. Not essential to a Dorset trip, but if bears are your thing - or you've got small kids who can't resist them - it's a decent break from seaside tramping.