Category: Animals

Animal petting party

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Have you ever wanted to pet a kangaroo, or get up close and personal to a monkey? One of the most fun birthday party themes is animals! We all love them, and whether your child is into snake or bunnies, you can add some live animal fun to create a party they’ll never forget!

1. Reptile Entertainment

Some of us get a little squeamish at the thought of reptiles, but you may have a child who loves snakes and lizards. They’re the next best thing to dinosaurs, so why not bring a live Reptile Show to their birthday? Trained professionals will give an educational demonstration on all kinds of reptiles like snakes, iguanas, turtles, insects, and sometimes even alligators or crocodiles! 

2. Farm Animal Petting Zoo

Maybe fluffy bunnies, goats, and baby calves are more your child’s thing? Try a traditional Petting Zoo! Bring the farm to your backyard and let the children spend the day cuddling baby farm animals. Keep the refreshments simple with lemonade and a barbecue. Decorate with table cloths and red or white plates and cups, and buntings and you’ve got yourself an adorable farm-themed party. 

3. Exotic Animal Petting Zoo

If you’re looking to spice up your party with something a little more exciting, try looking for Exotic Animal Entertainment! You and your guests could be face-to-face with a sloth, kangaroo, or a macaw before you know it. Learn about the animals in a way that a zoo could never do! To round out the jungle vibe, decorate the tables with bright green vines and bamboo and serve colourful fruit skewers. 

4. Pony Party 

If you have a little cowboy or cowgirl on your hands, a Pony Party could be the perfect fit! Some pony parties are mobile and can bring them right to your home (of course that is if you have a huge back garden.) Let the little ones go on slow-paced rides with gentle, friendly ponies and it’ll be a party they’ll never forget. Hand out cowboy hats or handkerchiefs as souvenirs, and have a hot dog and marshmallow campfire!!

Top Places to go this Spring

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Top of your list of fun things to do in the Spring is to throw your wellies on and get out to your local farm park. Seeing furry, fuzzy and indeed feathered friends is always a treat at any point of the year but it’s around this time that loads of newborn babies are taking their first steps. Lambing in particular is always popular and loads of farm parks let families get up close and cuddly.

Equally, if the weather isn’t playing ball, don’t worry: Getting crafty with kids is a fantastic way to fill a day and there are more than a few pottery painting cafes who’d be happy to help with your festive creations.

There’s plenty of places open over the Spring: we’ve pulled together a few of our favourite days out so take a look and start filling your calendar:

Cadbury World One word: chocolate!

Go to the source with a few hours of indulgence and enjoy rides, characters and history to boot. Take a peek behind the scenes in the factory to see where your favourites are made – taking advantage of some samples along the way, of course!

Mella Mella’s Pottery Cafe –

Get crafty this season at this place of pottery. Kids can be “experimental” with colour, paint, glitter and clay and you don’t have to clean up. Result. Plus, you’ll have a new piece of art for pride of place on the mantelpiece.

Pennywell Farm –

‘Tis the season for meeting cute and cuddly animals, and what could be more adorable than the miniature Pennywell Pigs?! That’s not all this day out has to offer though, the action packed scheduled includes multiple shows, family-friendly go kart racing, train riding and ferret encounters – to name just a few things!

Ideas for kids Spring fun

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BeWILDerwood

For an amazing day out in Norfolk, not far from Norwich, visit the enchanted, award-winning Curious Treehouse Adventure Park, BeWILDerwood. Take lazy boat rides across The Scary Lake, cross jungle bridges, visit tree-houses, whizz down The Wobbly Wires, get befuddled in the marvellous Muddle Maze, build dens with bracken and sticks and dress up and join in with the enchanting daily storytelling.

This is a world with more than a little sprinkling of fairy dust; enough for the whole family! It’s also a great place for children to have the best birthday party ever in the woods.

Bodmin and Wenford railway

Discover the excitement and nostalgia of steam travel with a journey back in time on the Bodmin and Wenford railway, Cornwall’s only full size railway still operated by steam locomotives. Relax in style and enjoy a leisurely 13-mile round trip, through beautiful countryside, taking in the sights, sounds and smells of a bygone age, as the era of a Cornish branch line in the 1950s reveals itself during the course of your journey.

Battersea Park Children’s Zoo.

There’s a world of enjoyment at Battersea Park Children’s Zoo. From feeding the farm animals, saying hello to our parrots or spying on the meerkats in the secret lookout, children will have hours of fun. With monkeys, snakes, pigs, donkeys, ring tailed lemurs, rabbits, emu, chipmunks, coati, wallabies and chickens, plus a fun-packed adventure playground with a real tractor and fire engine, it’s a great family day out.

The Zoo is offering new Keeper, Mini and Junior Keeper Experiences for children and adults. The kids will love being able to find out more about their favourite animals and what it’s like to feed and care for them. Sessions last from 1.5 to 2.5 hours, there are a variety of Keeper Experiences available, and children must be accompanied by an adult, who goes free of charge.

Free Activities

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Speke Hall – Liverpool
Speke Hall is a Tudor house set on the banks of the River Mersey and is a lovely place to bring the whole family. The house has survived a turbulent 400 years of history, been restored and here you can learn all about it. There are plenty of activities for children and the gardens are perfect for the kids to run around and explore. There is a fantastic maze for them to get lost in too!

Cycle routes at Nunnington Hall – Yorkshire
This fun and easy-to-cycle loop route is perfect for all of the family to enjoy! Start at the beautiful manor house Nunnington Hall, nestled within the banks of the River Rye, then head through the North York National Park towards Bransdale.

Great North Museum
This amazing museum brings together a world of fascinating things both natural and man-made. See Egyptian mummies, Greek artefacts and a brilliant interactive model of Hadrian’s Wall. Families can gaze into space in the planetarium and be just a little scared of the life-size T- Rex replica dinosaur!

Tollcross Children’s farm
Tollcross Children’s Farm is a wonderful place to take the kids for a couple of hours. You’ll see a random mix of adorable animals, including horses, peacocks, llamas, sheep, pigs and a pair of lovebirds. Learn all about the animal world, the life of insects and also see the story of Cock Robin in 3D!

Formby Red Squirrel Walk, Merseyside, England
Spot native red squirrels in the beautiful woodland surrounding Formby in Merseyside. Enjoy breathtaking sea views as you head out on a bracing coastal walk or find out about Formby’s fascinating coastal history with links to asparagus growing and the early days of aviation. The perfect place to get outdoors and active this winter!

Discovery Museum
If your little ones are interested in the wonders of history, science and technology be sure to take them to the Discovery Museum! Explore fascinating collections such as Turbinia, the first steam-powered turbine ship, regimental militaria and many other amazing displays!

Help the bumblebees

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Don’t get your kids to hate bees, bees are an important part of nature and are rapidly dying off. With your help your kids could help to welcome the bees back by planting bee friendly garden, and have some fun too!!

1. Plant bee-friendly shrubs, trees and flowers

You don’t need lots of space to take part in this. Pots on a patio, hanging baskets, herbs in planters, or flower beds all help bees. Fill them with their favourites! For summer, plant some fragrant lavender, look out for a hawthorn, and make your flower beds look really impressive with some Monarda (also known as ‘Bee Balm’!) Look online to find the best bee-friendly plants for each season.

2. Grow fruit and veg

Just like us, bees need a variety of food. While flowers are the obvious option, bees also love fruit and vegetables. While you get to enjoy growing your own produce, the bees will help pollinate your crop! From apples, blackberries, strawberries and raspberries, to runner beans, peppers, and onions.

3. Visit The Hive

This 17 meter tall multi-sensory experience highlights the extraordinary life of bees. The lights and the sounds inside The Hive are triggered by bee activity in a real beehive at Kew! Step inside to see the ever-changing lights and sounds.

4. Provide shelter

Hate mowing the lawn? Good news! Put the mower away and let your grass grow a little longer. Cutting less closely and less often allows bees to feed and shelter in the grass. If you like a perfectly preened lawn, another habitat option is leaving a small woodpile in the corner. It will decay over time to give a more natural look and bugs will soon move in.

5. Choose honey carefully

If possible, buy local honey from a beekeeper. Cheaper honey may seem like the more attractive option for your purse, but it’s often not pure honey. Surely it’s worth paying a little extra for the purest honey? You can also rest assured that the bees that produced it were well looked after, making it taste even sweeter!

6. If all else fails, follow David Attenborough!

When it comes to all things nature, who else will you listen to? Attenborough has warned that if bees become extinct humans will only have 4 years to live. And 1 third have already died out! To help tired bees in the summer heat, David recommends leaving a teaspoon of sugar and water out. You’ve probably seen bees looking like they’re dying before but don’t worry, they’re normally just exhausted! This simple solution will revive them in no time.

Kids love Ice Cream

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The Ice Cream Farm, Cheshire

If you’re looking for the ultimate ice cream themed day out, then look no further than The Ice Cream Farm in Cheshire in the North West. Home to the ‘World’s Largest Purpose Built Ice Cream Parlour’, it’s not only bursting with award-winning flavours made on site, but also a range of themed activities for children to turn a tasty treat into an action-packed day out.

The farm is FREE for the whole family, including Daisy’s Garden, the parlour and the farmyard animals, but with a range of low-cost activities to try you can mix and match to find all the perfect ingredients for your visit. Head to Honeycomb Canyon, Europe’s largest indoor sand and water play area, practice your putting on the Strawberry Falls adventure golf course or race to the finish at Silvercone – the themed go kart track!

Churchfields Farmhouse Ice Cream Cafe, Droitwich

Family comes first at Churchfields Farmhouse Ice Cream Cafe, with the farm having been in the family for over 100 years. Fast-forward to today and this tasty treat is a local favourite for the DOWTK team! Home to an outdoor play area and an indoor play barn with activities for the kids, the ice cream is the star of the show with more than 36 flavours in stock at any one time. With classic combinations and some more unusual flavours too, the staff are more than happy to let you sample as many as you like before taking the plunge. If you’re visiting in a big group, or for a special occasion, be sure to book a farm tour too, giving you the chance to see the cows and find out just how the ice cream is made!

Bluebell Dairy, Derby

With a host of awards under its belt, Bluebell Dairy is a fab ice cream farm that’s a real Derbyshire gem. All 25 flavours are made using fresh milk and cream from the cows living on the farm, then lovingly made in small batches for a more intense flavour! For a full family day out, this ice cream farm is also home to Bluebells Play Park, filled with fun including climbing frames, swings, a sandpit and a toddler tractors course! At the Animal Patch, a farmyard full of animals awaits with feeding and petting sessions every morning, plus seasonal events always mean there’s something new to explore.

Solley’s Ice Cream Parlour, Kent

Combining the beautiful Kent countryside with tasty ice cream, a visit to Solley’s Ice Cream Parlour is the ideal summer day out. New for 2018 are hop-on hop-off tractor rides, marked farm trails and walking routes, giving you the chance to explore the countryside in style. Whilst there are no animals to see here, the ice cream is made on the farm using fresh milk from neighbouring farms, so you can rest assured it comes with the local seal of approval.

Fun Summer Days out

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Bear Grylls Wild Survival Academy – ZSL Whipsnade Zoo, Dunstable
29th July 2017 – 3rd Sep 2017

Kids will love joining in with this brilliant, fun, exciting Summer Academy, where they can become real life explorers and learn survival skills, attempt challenges and have a go at an assault course! There will be live shows demonstrating how animals and humans can survive in extreme conditions.

AirSpace Trampoline Park, Various Locations

Spend a session bouncing, flipping and jumping at Air Space! This brand new attraction has over 100 interconnected trampolines all waiting for you to spring about on. As well as freestyle sessions you can join in with games such as dodgeball, football and basketball – just bouncier!

Thames River Services, London

Take the family on a cruise from Westminster Pier to Greenwich Pier and back! The River Thames has a long and interesting history to be explored, as do all the fantastic landmarks along the way! You’ll get to see the likes of Cutty Sark, The O2 Arena, Tower Bridge, The Shard and more!

Longleat Safari and Adventure Park, Warminster

There is so much to see and do at this amazing safari and adventure park! Take a ride on the wild side with their Safari Drive, as well as walk with penguins, visit the meerkats and hop on a cruise to see the gorillas on Gorilla Island. You’ll be given the chance to feed some Rainbow Lorikeets, deer and even giraffes!

Dinomania! – Bristol Zoo Gardens, Bristol
27th May 2017 – 3rd Sep 2017

This magnificent dinosaur exhibition is the perfect entertainment for kids and it’s at the Zoo gardens until September if you don’t get chance over the half-term holiday! Follow the dino trail, dig for fossils and chat to experts who will be able to answer all your questions!

Portsmouth Historic Dockyard, Portsmouth

Come and learn all about the Royal Navy as it is today and get an insight into what the future holds! Step on board historic ships such as HMS Victory and HMS Warrior 1860. You won’t want to miss the new‐look Mary Rose museum, which gives insight into Tudor life!

ArcelorMittal Orbit General Access and Slide, Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, London

Climb the UK’s tallest sculpture and ride the world’s tallest, longest and fastest tunnel slide. Enjoy the twists and turns as you take in London’s skyline at speed thought the ‘clear sections’. This is without a doubt, the best place to see the city from above, allowing you to discover a beautiful view of some of the country’s most famous landmarks!

The London Bridge Experience, London

Experience London’s gruesome history first hand with this interactive character led adventure tour! Be prepared for thrills, laughs and frights as you are regaled with stories from the past. Meet some of London’s most horrifying characters as they lurk in the ‘lanes’ including Jack the Ripper and Ben

Kensington Palace Family Fantastical! – Kensington Palace
18th Aug 2017 – 20th Aug 2017

Once upon a time amazing performers and brilliant minds visited this palace to entertain the princesses that one lived there. Families can visit and be entertained watching the magnificent English National Ballet perform ‘Sleeping Beauty’ while the Science Museum will perform one of their fab shows guaranteeing plenty of fun and laughter!

Oxygen Freejumping, Various Locations

Kids will be jumping for joy after a visit to this brilliant indoor trampoline park! They’ll get to bounce sky high in open jump sessions and burn off lots of excess energy!

Cheddar Gorge, Somerset

Come and explore stunning stalactite caverns and see the dramatic cliffs which rise 450 ft above the ground. There are two very different caves to explore, a museum, cliff top walk and lookout tower!

Fleet Air Arm Museum, Ilchester

Get up close to Europe’s largest Naval Aviation Collection, featuring some of the most powerful and interesting naval aircraft to have taken to the skies! With the museum being located on a working naval air station there is even the chance of spotting real naval aircraft taking flight!

The Gruffalo and Friends: The Art of Axel Scheffler Family Trail – Mottisfont Abbey & Garden, Hampshire
15th July 2017 – 3rd Sep 2017

This Summer don’t miss the opportunity to bring the family here to explore the wonderful grounds and follow a fun family trail looking out for the Gruffalo in his den! Along the way there are puzzles and activities to join in with as well as a Stick Man climbing area the kids will love!

Discover Longleat

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Enter a land of adventure. Where lions roam. Tigers stalk. And monkeys swing. Travel through time in a grand stately home. Lose yourself in one of our magical mazes. Hold exotic creatures from the ends of the Earth. Fun and adventure for all the family.

Predators

See some of the biggest, fastest, strangest predators come to life with Longleat’s animatronic exhibition. Featuring modern day predators as well as those that roamed the world thousands of years ago, you can come face to face with a giant cobra and stand near the terrifying jaws of the anglerfish!

Pop-Up Pandas

More than 50 cute panda statues have taken over the Wiltshire estate – with some even popping up within the Safari Park! The pandas have been designed by artists in China and are each one has been hand-painted. Each of the sculptures has its own unique design incorporating everything from English seasonal events to the different artistic styles and elements of Chinese culture.

Railway

Jump on board the miniature railway for a 1.25 mile journey around the park’s scenic woodland. Opened in 1965, the railway is older than even the safari park! You might even spot the two Ugandan hippos whilst on your journey.

Safari drive through

How many different types of animal can you spot? Wind up your windows and hide your lunch! Everyone will love this chance to get up close to the monkeys and lions.

Parrot show

Head along to one of the daily parrot shows to meet the colourful macaws. You can admire the parrot’s skills while the knowledgeable keepers tell you more about these beautiful birds and how you can care for the world they live in.

Animal Encounters

Fancy holding a snake, stroking a tarantula or cuddling a guinea pig? Our keepers can arrange a personal introduction for you and your family. Available free with a valid day ticket or annual pass, just contact Longleat for more information.

 

Great Parks for picnics

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Bute Park, Cardiff

Right in the heart of the central business district in Cardiff is this beautiful park. There are numerous natural play areas, acres of green space, trails to follow and even three café’s to grab some refreshments. If you are visiting the city it’s well worth a visit, you can spend fifteen minutes or even a whole day here.

Holyrood Park, Edinburgh

Not far from Old Town in Edinburgh is this piece of ancient Scottish countryside. The family can hike around the park exploring the expanses of wilderness where you will find crags, cliffs, lochs and the famous Arthur’s Seat.

Boscombe Coastal Activity Park, Bournemouth, Dorset

Stretching one kilometre either side of Boscombe Pier you will find the Coastal Activity Park. You can walk along the beach, join in with the organised activities or even have a go at the fun free swingball, table tennis and bouldering.

Richmond Park, London

Richmond Park is the largest of the Royal Parks in London (2,500 acres) and has hills, fields and woodlands full of wildlife. The family can try to spot some of the 350 Fallow Deer or 350 Red Deer among many other creatures that call the park home, or even play in the playgrounds or follow the cycle paths that criss-cross the park.

Heaton Park, Manchester

There’s plenty to see and do at Heaton Park! Visit the animal centre to meet cows, alpacas, goats, rabbits and many other adorable animals or have a go at one of the of the many fun children’s activities on offer. You can hire a rowing boat, play a game of golf, hop onto a tram or you can grab some refreshments in the tea room.

Ashton Court, Bristol

This huge park of 850 acres once belonged to the Smyth family, now it’s an historic park with woodlands and grasslands ready for you to explore. There are grazing deer to spot, mountain bike tracks of different difficulty levels, two 18-hole pitch and putt courses and a miniature railway. You will also find many walks that the family can take, panoramic views and plenty of space to play games. Throughout the year there are events held in the park including the International Balloon Fiesta.

Lower Leas Coastal Park, Kent

This park is split into three broad recreational zones. There’s the largest free playground in the southeast of England with slides, a spiral helter-skelter, aerial runway and even a large toddler’s sandpit, plus there’s landscaped gardens and wildlife zones. It’s a great place to spend the day having a picnic, playing or enjoying a gig at the outdoor amphitheatre.

Great Notley Country Park, Essex

Great Notley Country Park has over 100 acres of open space for the family to explore. There are two fantastic wooden play areas for the children to let off some steam, football pitches that can be hired, fishing is permitted and there are a range of great walks.

Try Pond dipping

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For fun family days out, here are a few essentials to ensure the trip is rewarding and fun:

  • Waterproofs, warm clothes and wellies
  • A shallow tray or container
  • A net (like the ones we use at the seaside, or you can make one with a coat hanger and pair of Mums tights).
  • Magnifying glass can be very useful if you have one.
  • An ID guide (which can be found online).
  • A camera or phone can be helpful for identifying tricky ones later!

Here’s what to look out for…

Amphibians -The time to look out for frogspawn is around February-March.  Frogs can lay over 5000 eggs in one go! Also look out for toads around the pond margins and newts in the water! Can you tell the difference between toad and frogspawn?

Minibeasts – You should find a wide range of snails, beetles and other insects in the water. How many can you identify?

Fish – Sticklebacks or minnows are the most likely fish that you will see.

Where to pond dip?

The UK has literally thousands of ponds; they could be ornamental ones in the garden, the local duck pond or out in the countryside. A good place to look is at your local nature reserve. Often ponds are created to encourage wildlife and there may even be staff on hand to help!

Take care!