The Port House of Portsoy

The Port House sits right on Portsoy's working harbour, a sturdy 17th-century structure that actually tells the story of this corner of Aberdeenshire rather than just standing there looking historic. You can walk round the outside and peer into the harbour itself - still busy with fishing boats - which is where the real character lies. The building itself is modest, cream-painted and functional, but that's rather the point. This is a working port, not a museum piece.

It's the sort of place history buffs and coastal walkers will appreciate far more than casual tourists. Bring binoculars if you're into bird spotting; the harbour and surrounding cliffs attract plenty of interest. Allow twenty minutes to half an hour if you're stopping by on a coastal walk - it's not a lengthy visit, but it's a proper Moray Firth working port without the tourist polish of bigger places. The setting matters more than the building itself.

Porsoy is genuinely close to several good caravan parks. Portsoy Links, just a quarter-mile away, is brilliantly positioned if you want harbour views from your pitch. Sandend Holidays sits a couple of miles down the coast and runs seasonally from April through October. If you're basing yourself at one of the parks round Banff or Whitehills, Portsoy makes an easy afternoon detour. The coastal walk between here and Sandend is cracking - worth the leg stretch whether or not you spend long at the Port House itself.