Museums & Galleries Ltd (Studio)

Just outside Warminster, Museums & Galleries Ltd runs a working studio that opens its doors to visitors - though it's worth checking ahead on opening hours and whether admission charges apply. What you're looking at here is a proper artist's space, the kind of place where you can actually watch makers at work rather than just stare at finished pieces behind velvet ropes.

The studio itself is the draw. Depending on who's working that day, you might see painting, sculpture, printmaking, or ceramics in progress. It's interactive in the best sense - you can ask questions, understand the process, maybe even catch something being made from scratch. Art students and curious types get far more from this than casual visitors after a quick cultural tick-box.

If you're camping nearby - and there's no shortage of options, from Center Parcs Longleat Forest down to Longleat Caravan and Motorhome Club Campsite just under three miles away - this makes a decent wet-weather backup or a half-morning diversion. Don't plan your whole day around it, but if you're in the area and the studio's open, it beats another lap round the gift shop.

Bring the kids only if they're genuinely interested in art-making rather than running about. Teenagers considering art school would find it genuinely useful. Everyone else: lovely spot, but ring first to avoid a wasted trip.