Tag: kids

5 favourite family days out in the Midlands

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1. Cadbury’s World, Birmingham

Just a short drive away from Birmingham’s bustling city centre comes a factory that needs no introduction, Cadbury’s World is every kids dream, with chocolate confectionery wherever you look!

 

Discover the origins of the cocoa bean, jump on board the Crunchie Rollercoaster or simply dive into a bowl of liquid Dairy Milk. And with a restaurant, playground park and picnic area, there’s something for everyone. You could be there for hours.

 

Best for: 4D interaction (and chocolate lovers, too!)

2. National Space Centre, Leicester

For all you space lovers out there, this one is not to be missed when hitting the Midlands. The exhibition holds galleries, interactive displays and an incredible Planetarium all surrounding the history (and future!) of space travel. And that’s not all; they hold themed special events for kids during the holidays.

 

Best for: Science buffs

3. Holme Pierrepont Country Park, Nottinghamshire

This one’s for all you action-adventure types! If your kids are into trying out new children’s activities, from Whitewater Rafting to Sailing, Wakeboarding to Segways, this activity-packed park is a fantastic day out and great for children’s entertainment of all ages. Kids can get lessons on the water, try out the army-inspired assault course or try their hand at some mini golf or high ropes. The Rambo-inspired, Combat Experience gives your kids the chance to engage in thrilling military missions, live on the battlefield!

 

Best for: Teens

4. Plantasia and Maze World, Warwickshire

The kids will love this amazing fun adventure into Plantasia where there’s something for everyone. From the Maze world and Interactive exhibition, to the wildlife park and nature trails, enjoy a fun-filled day out in one of Warwickshire’s most beautiful, natural settings. Conquerors of the maze even receive a very special gift.

 

Best for: Your budget

5. Drayton Manor, Staffordshire

You might be expecting a grand, country house, but Drayton Manor is actually the setting of one of the UK’s top rated theme parks! There are hundreds of things to do, from thrilling rides and attractions, ‘Thomas Land’ for the tots, and an activity park, museum and crazy golf for all the family! There’s even a zoo with dozens of wildlife, reptiles and primates. Remember to book a week in advance as on-the-day prices are almost double.

 

Best for: Hours of fun

 

Pigtastic days out

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Marsh Farm Animal Adventure Park, Chelmsford, Essex

All the family will enjoy their day out here down on the farm! There are plenty of fascinating animals and birds to see, meet and greet as well as brilliant indoor and outdoor children’s play areas, where the kids can go wild and have loads of fun!

Paradise Wildlife Park Farmyard, Broxbourne, Hertfordshire

For a wild day out with the family there is no place better than Paradise Wildlife Park! You can even get hands-on with the animals at the farmyard and help feed the goats, sheep and pigs. Kids can burn off excess energy in the various playgrounds around the park or you can take a relaxing ride on the miniature railway to see what is hidden in the woodland.

Vauxhall City Farm, London

Visit this free farm for a little piece of the countryside in central London! It’s not far from Vauxhall station and is home to lots of very cute animals to meet including Edward the beautiful piggy!

Farmer Palmer’s Farm Park, Poole, Dorset

This brilliant farm park is perfect for under 8’s and has plenty to keep them occupied from exciting attractions to seriously cute animals (and of course pigs).

Whitehouse Farm Centre, Morpeth, Northumberland

There’s plenty to see and do at this lovely family run farm, and lots of animals to meet including sheep, bunnies, alpacas and pigs. There is the chance to handle and feed some of the animals, and kids will love a ride on the bumpy tractor!

 

A children’s party with a difference

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Farmer Palmers Farm Park, Poole, Dorset

£14.95 per family

This lovely farm offers so much fun for little (and big!) animal lovers alike. You’ll get to see live milking demos, pig races, have a go on a bouncy castle and more! Tickets include one child, two adults, food and drink, a tractor ride and full use of the park… which would normally retail at £35 each!

AMF Bowling, Various Locations

From £7.99 per child

What could beat a round of bowling for a fun, competitive and much loved classic children’s birthday party? Fab food is all included in the price too!

Go Ape, Various Locations

From £17 per child

Swing, zip, balance and jump your way through the trees on the Tree Top Adventure courses, suspended high above the forest floor. Younger adventurers will love Tree Top Junior, a lower and easier version.

Adventure Wonderland, Christchurch, Dorset

Various Price Packages Available

With over 30 fab rides and attractions, Adventure Wonderland offers lots of fun for everyone! Battle it out on the Battle Boats (be prepared to get wet!), go on the Dragon’s Drop Mega Slide or even go see some adorable animals in the Cuddle Corner Farm.

Mattel Play! Albert Dock, Liverpool

£15 per child

With over 13,000 square feet of themed exciting children’s entertainment, including well known characters such as Thomas and Friends, Fireman Sam and Bob the Builder, kids will love exploring this amazing play centre! Yummy party food is included.

The Rainforest Cafe, Piccadilly Circus, London

£15.50 per child

Bringing together the fascinating sights and sounds of the jungle, this fab cafe is the perfect place for a wildlife mad partygoer! See the animals brought to life, experience thunderstorms and, of course, eat lots of super yummy food too!

Go Air Trampoline Park, Ty-glas Avenue, Cardiff

£16 per person

With 60 minutes of pure trampolining fun in their open space, 40 minutes in their dedicated special party room, socks, invites AND food (you’ll get either a choice of Papa John’s pizza or a delicious deli sandwich), Go Air is the place to take your active little ones looking to blow off some steam on their big day!

Funky Monkeys, Cityside, Belfast

From £8 per child

With jungle themed play rooms, an interactive kitchen area, car track with crazy coupe cars and more, Funky Monkeys will not disappoint and is sure to provide lots of fun on your little monkey’s big day! There’s a range of party options available to suit all needs, so be sure to check out their website!

Waterworld, Newquay, Cornwall

From £17.99 per person

With a 6 lane 25m pool, tropical fun pool, 2 water flumes, cannons, tippers and a snake fountain, this is the perfect place to host your pool mad little ones party! Prices include unlimited pool use, small buffet package, free return for the birthday child, 50% off future visits for all guests and more!

Sea Life Centre, Great Yarmouth, Norwich

From £10.50 per child

Sea Life is fab for aquatic mad little ones! Price includes entrance to the centre, a dedicated VIP tour by one of the crew, hot meal, free local annual pass for the birthday child, free downloadable invites and more!

 

Go on a fairy hunt

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Acorn Bank, Penrith, Cumbria

Come and explore this magnificent forest and see what you can find! Hidden doors, a hollow tree and a wild play area are sure to bring your little elves and fairies imaginations to life!

Trentham Gardens, Stoke on Trent, Staffordshire

Explore this magical garden and see how many fairies you can spot on their lovely fairy trail! You’ll also find a fab adventure playground too where your little kids can let off some steam.

Puzzlewood, Coleford, Gloucestershire

Discover ancient trees, bridges, lookouts and twisted rocks at Puzzlewood! Around every corner there’s something different to see! The beautiful scenery is so magical that it’s often used in movies.

Shervage Wood, Somerset

Rumour has it that Shervage was once home to a mystical fire breathing dragon named Gurt the Worm! Be careful where you tread whilst exploring this whimsical wood… you’re walking on an enchanted path! Be sure to visit Honer Wood where you’ll see ancient trees draped with mosses and rare lichens!

Furzey Gardens, Lyndhurst, Hampshire

With wonderful walks, gorgeous trees and shrubs, as well as stunning views and a fascinating history, Furzey Gardens is sure to get everyone in the fairy hunting mood! Kids can head to the outdoor children’s play area and hunt for fairy doors around these gorgeous gardens.

Ashridge Estate, Abbots Langley, Hertfordshire

Come and discover a rare breed of deer, bats and songbirds as you hunt for fairies in this mystical forest! This stunning estate was also the setting for Disney’s Maleficent where certain scenes were filmed within the trees.

New Forest Fairy Festival, Burley, New Forest

Immersed in ancient oaks, tree spirits and woodland creatures, this fab family friendly festival will be hosting a range of wonderful workshops, classes, music and more. You’ll be sure to spot a fairy or two (as well as a dragon!) as festival-goers dress up for the occasion!

 

Family BBQ days out

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London Field, Hackney, London

In the heart of the big smoke, London fields has a designated BBQ area, as well as a cricket pitch, heated 50m lido and lido cafe, grass areas, a BMX track, tennis courts, a table tennis table and two kid’s play areas! Perfect for children entertainment and fun for all the family.

Tatton Park – Knutsford, Cheshire

This 1,000-acre parkland provides ample opportunity to walk, run, cycle, fly a kite, horse ride and of course, have a BBQ! There are beautiful trails and a sound garden to explore. With over thirty rides, Tatton Park’s adventure playground is one of the young ones main reasons for visiting. BBQ’s should only be used in the designated areas.

New Forest, Hampshire

Originally a royal hunting preserve, the thriving working forest that you see today has survived for nearly 1,000 years. BBQ’s are welcome in the picnic areas at Bolderwood, Blackwater and Wilverley.

If you are catering for bigger parties, then there are also two sites for hire in the New Forest at Anderwood and Wilverley. Both these sites have BBQ’s that will cater for up to 100 people and are a great for large family get-togethers.

Note: When fire risk is ‘extreme’ the use of BBQ’s, anywhere in the New Forest is prohibited – So call ahead to check.

The Meadows, Edinburgh, Scotland

The Meadows and Bruntsfield Links in Edinburgh are the place to be on a sunny afternoon for visitors and townsfolk alike! There area has over twenty BBQ spots across its expanse to ensure that you can enjoy a BBQ in this glorious spot, whilst only being a stone’s throw from the sights and sounds of this beautiful city.

Kielder Water and Forest Park, Northumbria

Home to the biggest man-made lake in Northern Europe and, at over 250 square miles, Kielder Water and Forest Park is the perfect BBQ spot for nature loving families! There are three great visitor centre’s, at Tower Knowe, Leaplish or Kielder Castle. Leaplish Waterside Park has a designated BBQ site with panoramic views of the reservoir. This is the ideal base to recharge and refresh with your friends, family and favourite flamed foods!

 

Family days out for little historians

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York, Yorkshire

This picturesque town, located in North Yorkshire, is the perfect place to bring your budding little historians! Head to the York Castle Museum to get an insight into Edwardian and Victorian life in York, or pay a visit to the Jorvik Viking Centre to discover why they’re so popular. It’s also a must for chocolate lovers with the fab York’s Chocolate Story! If you’ve got a little thrill seeker in tow, be sure to check out Lightwater Valley to take on Europe’s longest rollercoaster; The Ultimate!

Cardiff, Wales

This beautiful town offers lots of varied and entertaining fun for all of the family! Explore Cardiff Bay on The Open Boat; a lovely steam boat that offers amazing views of the harbour, or head over to Cardiff Castle to learn all about this town’s fascinating medieval history. Fans of Doctor Who will love the Doctor Who Experience for an immersive journey through space and time!

Lymington, New Forest

For those after an escape to the forest, Lymington is the place to be! Situated on the edge of the New Forest, this port town is renowned as a sailing resort and is home to lots of lovely independent boutiques… perfect for budding little fashionistas! For those after a slice of culture, head on over to St. Barbe Museum and Art Gallery to marvel at amazing artwork and have a go at one of their family friendly trails. Hiring a bike and exploring the nearby woodland is also a must for active families looking to work up a pre-pub appetite!

Dartmouth, Devon

If you’re looking for active filled family day out with a spectacular backdrop, Dartmouth is your one stop destination! From cycling, walking and an array of outdoor activities, you really are spoilt for choice. This is as well as amazing historic houses, gardens, castles and museums, such as Dartmouth Castle. If you’re looking to delve deeper into the countryside, the Dartmoor National Park is only a short drive away from the town centre!

Falmouth, Cornwall

If you’ve got a budding surfer dude or dudette in tow, or are a lover of the seaside, Falmouth is the place to be! With a stunning beach that offers a variety of children’s activities such as rock pooling, sailing, snorkelling and SUP paddle boarding, your little beach bums won’t know where to start first. Head on over to the National Maritime Museum to find out all about this lovely town.

 

Get close up with animals

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From tigers, penguins, monkeys and more,

There’s lots of amazing animals to meet and attractions to explore!

Let’s go on a safari, head to the farm or zoo,

You’ll spoilt for choice with these fab places waiting for you!

Marsh Farm Animal Adventure Park – Chelmsford, Essex

With special events all year round Marsh Farm is a different experience every time you go. Have a go on bouncy pillows, mini tractors and join them to enjoy the Pesky Pet and Magic shows!

Paradise Wildlife Park – Broxbourne, Hertfordshire

An award-winning experience that lets you get up close and personal with animals from all over the world. Although don’t get too close at the big cat enclosure!

Liberty’s Owl, Raptor and Reptile Centre – Ringwood, Hampshire

One of the best collections of birds of prey, reptiles and creepy crawlies. This is one of our favourite rainy day activities!

ZSL London – Regent’s Park, London

Set in the wide open space of Regent’s Park you’ll find gorillas, tigers, armadillos and more at ZSL London.

ZSL Whipsnade – Whipsnade, Bedfordshire

Explore over 600 acres and see over 2,500 animals at ZSL Whipsnade. With multiple play areas, a steam train and a farm yard you’ll have to drag them away at the end of the day!

Longleat – Warminster, Wiltshire

For a real safari experience Longleat is second to none! This drive-through experience allows you to get closer than ever before so your kids can get a real sense of the wild.

Welsh Mountain Zoo – Colwyn, North Wales

Be captivated by the birds’ flying displays, meet a family of chimps or watch the penguins waddle along.

Birmingham Wildlife Conservation Park – Edgbaston, Birmingham

Committed to protecting and improving the welfare of animals the Birmingham Wildlife Conservation Park is able to work with some endangered species of lemurs, monkeys and more.

Walby Farm Park – Carlisle, Cumbria

An award-winning, all-weather Farm Park in the North of England you can meet a whole host of rare breeds, raise your adrenaline on the fun 24 demon slide or bounce around on the trampolines.

Farmer Palmers – Poole, Dorset

The complete farm experience with everything from a bumpy tractor trailer ride to cow milking!

Cannon Hall Farm – Barnsley, South Yorkshire

So much more than just a farm, Cannon Hall offers outdoor and indoor adventure playgrounds, restaurants and working farmyard machinery!

Bristol Zoo Gardens – Clifton, Bristol

Get up close and personal with the gorillas, feed the lion or even adopt your favourite animal at Bristol Zoo. Find out more.

Vauxhall City Farm – Central London

Nestled in the buzz of London Vauxhall City Farm is peaceful escape with fun and educational activities for children to see and interact with a wide range of farmyard animals.

Edinburgh Zoo – Edinburgh, Scotland

Set in 82 acres of parkland and home to over 1,000 rare and endangered animals one day just isn’t enough to see everything at Edinburgh Zoo.

Hobbledown Children’s Farm – Epsom, Surrey

For a more magical and mystical animal experience Hobbledown is the number one place to be.

Church Farm – Stow Bardolph, West Norfolk

Meet and play with tame animals and your kids can even meet the little ones at close quarters.

Bucklebury Farm Park – Reading, Berkshire

With over 70 acres to explore in the stunning Berkshire countryside the Bucklebury Farm will keep the whole family entertained all day.

 

Toddler parties

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We all want our kids to learn their ABC’s but it always seems to be not that fun in learning them. Why not create an ABC party and bring the fun back into learning!!

Decorate your party room with punched out letters (you can buy these in any stationary shop and even supermarkets.  Use primary colours on tableware, tablecloths and balloons to match your primary coloured decorations. On each balloon spell out each child’s name attending the party, using sticky letters.

Kids Party Food

For the children make letter cut-out sandwiches (tuna, egg, or ham using white and brown bread to add colour. Serve alphabet cookies and make a cake to resemble a big alphabet block. If your child has a four or five letter name put one letter on each side of the cake with the first one on top if he/she has 5 letters!

Party Bags

Buy brown paper bags with handles and make the front of each bag look like an alphabet block by painting a thick border around the perimeter with a cut-out letter pasted in the front, the first letter of each guest’s name.  Fill the bags with a word search book (according to age of child); or an alphabet book; or you could buy fridge magnet letters and make sure the child’s name is in their bag.

Games/Crafts.

Buy white t-shirts and iron on transfer paper for your computer. Find a program that will let your print alphabet letters.   Print each child’s letter on paper and then iron on to the front of each shirt; the day of the party of each child find their letter and have them imprint their hands on the back of the shirt (using fabric paint).  Do at the beginning of the party so hopefully they will be dry before they go home.

You could also play a game ‘what letter am I?’ Place a sticky letter on your guest’s forehead and he/she has to ask questions about the letter, for example what words do my letter come in? It may seem easy to you and I but a 3 or 4-year-old may find this a bit tricky, but on the other hand it’s a great learning game without them even knowing!!

 

Ice-skating party

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My daughter’s tenth birthday party was fastly approaching and we needed to plan a children’s birthday party that wouldn’t require too much money. That is when my daughter asked if we would be able to do an ice skating party. Of course, I thought this would be a great idea since it was not our home, so we wouldn’t need to clean up or plan much. So, the next day I called up the local skating rink and they told me I could rent a party room for 3 hours for only £80. This was great!

Then, my daughter and I picked up some nice stationary from a hobby craft shop and wrote all the information down on a piece of it – one for each guest (we invited 12).

The day of the party, we went to the rink early to set up the tables and decorations, and to rent the skates (we had called everyone in advance and asked what shoe size they were). The skates were complimentary with the party room.

An hour later, almost all of the guests had arrived so they got their skates on and met up with one of the rink instructors who would be leading the party. For about an hour, she showed them tricks and they played a variety of skating games.

Later, they were called to lunch where they were given their choice of pizza, hot dogs, or chicken nuggets. We also laid out hot chocolate so they could come back from skating to get some whenever they wanted.

When they finished lunch, they went back to skating and there was disco lights and music playing! They all had great fun and skated to a light show for about 30 minutes, when they got tired and decided to come back in and open gifts. Before they knew it, it was time to go.

They were each given their goodie bags which were supplied by the rink. They were a plastic bag with an ice skate on it, an ice skate keychain, sweets, ice skating pencil, and other traditional party bag treats.

This party was great – they had fun, there was no clean up, it was extremely inexpensive, and it required about 30 minutes of planning!

Joint Birthday Parties

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Admittedly, children’s entertainers and children’s magicians can be quite pricy, and that’s only half the cost. With the credit crunch still looming, a great way to save money can be to have a joint children’s birthday party with another parent. That way you don’t lose out on the fun of having a children’s entertainer at half the cost. Aside from the cost benefits, you can also share the organisation and work load that goes with planning a children’s birthday party. That said, does sharing a children’s birthday party with another parent create a headache in itself?

Common problems can be found amongst parents trying to jointly organise kid’s birthday parties, like not being able to decide on what type of party to have. Children’s party entertainers alone can be a tricky thing to decide on. Do you have a themed children’s party or children’s magician, clown, etc.? Kids party entertainers can be one of the trickiest things to decide on when having to liaise with another parent. As your child might want something entirely different to what the other parent’s child wants.

Additionally, many parents can find that they have to compromise more than they bargained for, or workload is not shared out equally, and then after having spent a great deal of time and effort organising most of the children’s birthday party, the parent they’re sharing it with isn’t entirely happy with what has been arranged and in the end you’re left wondering if it would have been better to spend a bit extra and be left to organise your own children’s birthday party.

If you’re planning on sharing a children’s birthday party with another parent, it’s best to do it with someone who has the same ideas as you and who is in the same class as your child so the numbers of children don’t instantly double, otherwise your costs go up and you’re saving is far less.

When organising kid’s birthday parties together, the key thing is to have a clear idea of what you both want right from the start. Have a budget set and decide who is going to do what. Look at different types of children’s party entertainment packages that are on offer.

You’ll also need to figure out who you’re inviting to the party, will it be at home or in a hall, who will organise the food, or if you’re sharing it who will do what. Once you’ve set a clear outline for what you’re going to have and who will do what, that should help prevent there being disagreements along the way.

It can be a great thing for kid’s birthday parties to be organised together. The initial liaising with another parent can definitely be worth the saving, as kid’s birthday parties are not always cheap. Kids party entertainers alone are usually a large part of the cost, so halving that cost can be very helpful. If the workload is shared equally that helps a great deal too. You might also find you can benefit from the expertise of another parent who has organised kid’s parties before. Just make sure you both know if you want similar things before you get too far down the planning stage.