The Royal Pump Room Museum, Harrogate

The Royal Pump Room Museum occupies the striking octagonal building that once dispensed Harrogate's famous sulphur waters to Victorian and Edwardian spa visitors. Built in 1842 over the Old Sulphur Well, it stands at the southern edge of the Valley Gardens and tells the story of how a small Yorkshire settlement grew into one of Europe's leading spa towns.

Displays trace the discovery of Harrogate's mineral springs in the 16th century, the rise of the spa in the 18th and 19th centuries, and the grand hotels, treatments and international clientele that followed. You can still see the original well, and there's usually a chance to smell (and, if brave, taste) the pungent sulphur water that made the town's reputation. Other galleries cover local social history, Egyptology and Harrogate at war.

The museum is compact and easy to combine with a wander around the Valley Gardens, the Turkish Baths a short walk away, and the town centre's tea rooms. It's a good introduction to why Harrogate looks and feels the way it does, and works well as a rainy-day option or a first stop on a longer visit to the town.