Ocean Explorer Centre

The Ocean Explorer Centre is the public face of SAMS, the Scottish Association for Marine Science, whose roots go back to 1884 and which now counts as the UK's oldest independent marine research organisation. Around 160 staff and 200-odd students work on the campus here at Dunstaffnage, studying ocean currents, climate, aquaculture and the deep sea, and the centre exists so the rest of us can see what they're up to. Entry is free, donations keep it running, and it sits right on the beach at Camas Rubha na Liathaig with the Firth of Lorn out the window.

It's one room, more or less, but a well-packed one. There's a 3D globe for finding the Mariana Trench and the mid-ocean ridges, the longest mountain chain on Earth and nearly all of it underwater. An underwater camera and hydrophone let you watch and listen to what's living in the firth, and a research-grade microscope opens up the plankton, which is fair enough given SAMS keeps the most diverse collection of algae anywhere in the world. Kids get an Arctic tunnel to crawl through, a small polar-themed cinema shows short films from expeditions and the labs, and a sound display covers everything from killer whales to sonar. The mascot of the place is Flappy, a huge replica of a giant flapper skate. The real ones are critically endangered, a protected area has been set up for them in the Sound of Jura, and SAMS scientists run the photo-ID work helping to keep track of them.

The Beach Café downstairs does soup, lunches and home baking with seats inside and out facing Morvern across the water, and there's a small shop of ocean books and gifts. One thing catches people out: it opens weekdays only, 10am to 4pm, with shorter hours in winter. An hour does it, two with lunch, and it pairs naturally with Dunstaffnage Castle a few minutes' walk away. Handy on a wet day, of which Oban has a few.