Stratford Heritage Exhibition

The Stratford Heritage Exhibition sits right in the heart of Stratford-upon-Avon, giving you the local backstory without the Shakespeare crowds. It's a straightforward museum that walks you through the town's actual history - the bits beyond the Bard - with exhibits covering medieval Stratford, the Civil War period, and how the place evolved from a market town into the tourism juggernaut it is today.

You'll spend a good hour here if you read the panels properly, maybe ninety minutes if you're thorough. The displays are accessible without being dumbed down, and there's enough detail to keep history types interested without losing families with younger kids. It's the sort of place that makes sense after you've walked around the town centre - suddenly all those half-timbered buildings and street names click into context.

It won't blow your mind, but it's useful. Free entry is a genuine bonus, and it's close enough to all the caravan parks in the area - Rayford is barely a mile away - that you could easily slot it in between other activities. If you're staying at Stratford Parks or Monks' Barn Farm, it's an easy walk or short drive. Honest assessment: go if you're curious about the real Stratford rather than just the Shakespeare bits, but don't reorganise your itinerary around it. Worth an hour on a rainy afternoon, definitely.