Royal Albert Memorial Museum and Art Gallery

The Royal Albert sits bang in the middle of Exeter's Queen Street, a proper Victorian red-brick building that pulls you in whether you meant to spend the afternoon there or not. Inside, it's a genuine mixed bag - Egyptian mummies alongside stuffed birds, art collections that range from decent to forgettable, and enough local history to keep Devon types happy for a couple of hours.

The natural history section is where families tend to linger longest. There's something about a room full of taxidermied animals that makes kids go quiet and actually look at things. The art gallery upstairs won't blow your mind if you're used to the National, but it's got enough regional painters and occasional loan exhibitions to justify the visit. What struck me most was how unrushed it all feels - no queues, no hordes, just you and whoever else has wandered in from the street.

Free entry is the real draw here. Spend two hours, spend four, nobody's checking the clock. It works brilliantly as a rainy afternoon diversion when you're based at Devon Heaven Hideaways or another local holiday park. The location's spot-on too - you can do the museum, grab a coffee on Queen Street, wander through Exeter's centre without feeling like you've wasted your time.

That said, it's not a destination in itself. Go if you're in Exeter already. Don't drive over from Cornwall specifically for it.