School House Gallery

The School House Gallery sits in Wells-next-the-Sea, that proper little coastal town where the flint buildings meet the marshes and the light is almost absurdly good for photographs. It's exactly what the name suggests - a converted schoolhouse turned into exhibition space, the sort of place locals will send you to if you ask where to spend an hour on a drizzly Norfolk afternoon.

Inside you'll find rotating contemporary art shows, often featuring painters and sculptors with genuine connections to the region. The space itself is intimate - high ceilings, old wooden floors, the kind of bones that make a room feel like it matters. You're not shuffling through a vast warehouse here; this is browseable in 45 minutes if you're taking your time, though you could also whip through in 20 if you're not gripped.

It works best for couples and serious art types rather than families with restless kids, though older children who actually like drawing will probably appreciate the unpretentious approach. The admission situation I can't pin down exactly - ring ahead on that one. What I do know is it's free or cheap enough that it won't eat into the holiday budget.

If you're staying at one of the nearby parks like Pinewoods or Old Brick Kilns, it's an easy detour en route to the beach or the harbour. Wells itself is the real draw - the tea shops are decent, the seafront is bracing - but the gallery gives you an indoor option when the North Sea wind gets too ambitious.