Great Days Out!
In this article you will find links to all sorts of different places that make great days out! From parks and museums to castles and landmarks. Some of the places are free and some have an entrance cost. All of these places offer opportunities for children to further enhance their learning and find out more. To find out more about each place click on the links to visit the official websites.
Brockholes
At Brockholes you can explore a beautiful nature reserve, see the wildlife that call it ‘home’ or hunt out the Visitor Village which floats (yes really!) on one of the lakes. There is a great wooden adventure playground and on certain days there are different activities for children to do at a very small cost. Best of all entry is free and only car parking is paid for to help up keep the reserve. The floating visitor village provides stunning views across the lake. Also, you can discover an interactive Welcome Centre and learn all about the wildlife that you could see on-site.
Eureka
This National Children’s Museum makes a great day out and once the entry fee has been paid you get a full years pass, so that you can visit the museum as many times as you want. It is fully hands on for children, allowing them to experience how everyday things work and explore all of the interactive galleries. There is plenty of outdoor space for a picnic and for children to run around.
Underwater Street
Discover a real “hands-on” day out at Underwater Street, Liverpool’s Discovery Centre for Children- more stimulating than a play centre more fun than a museum!! Underwater Street is a unique venue for families of children aged 2-10 years If you’re looking for hi-tech gadgets then Underwater Street is not the place for you. It’s all about good old fashioned hands-on play, stimulating the little-ones’ imaginations and providing adults the opportunity to join in or sit back and observe.
Hollingworth Lake Country Park
This country park is completely free and is a great place for a long walk, bicycle ride or scooter trail. As you wander around the lake there is a wooden play area, bird watching hut, café and loads of paths leading to other walking trails. Lots of water sport activities can be undertaken and the visitor centre offers other activities for children to do.
Queens Park Heywood
This is a compact park with a range of different facilities. There is a large adventure playground, climbing wall, bmx track, lake, bowling green, tennis courts, café, outdoor gym and open air theatre. Throughout the park there are a range of paths that provide different walks to all the different areas and plenty of spaces for picnics.
Museum of Science and Industry
Right in the centre of Manchester, this free museum has lots of different exhibitions for children to see and on the top floor there is a hands on experiment area where children can try out a range of different activities to see what happens for themselves.
Museum of Science and Industry
Yorkshire Sculpture Park
This is a free sculpture park to have a walk around, with just the car park to pay for. Throughout the park are all sorts of different sculptures to walk right up to, touch and read about the meanings behind them. a great place to take a picnic to and experience sculpture on a large scale.
Skipton Castle
Skipton Castle is over 900 years old and is the most well preserved Medieval castle in Britain. There is a cost per person as an entrance fee, but it is a great place to visit to get a feel for what life was like in a castle and to see all the different rooms. When visiting you get a really comprehensive visitors tour sheet to lead you around the castle. There is also a great open space for a picnic and run around!
Shibden Hall Park and Gardens
This hall is set in 90 acres of rolling parkland, with a variety of attractions including woodland, walks, boating lake, children’s rides, adventure playground, mini railway, orienteering, pitch and putt course and large spaces for playing games or having a picnic. It is a great place for a full day out and the hall itself has a very colourful historical past.
Bolton Abbey
Bolton Abbey is in the heart of the Yorkshire Dales on the banks of the River Wharfe. With just under 30,000 acres of beautiful countryside, over 80 miles of footpaths and ample space to run around and enjoy the fresh air, there is something for all ages. Explore the ruins of the Priory and discover a landscape full of history and legend, wander along the riverside, woodland and moorland paths or simply relax beside the river with a picnic whilst the children play.
Apple Jacks Adventure Park
Apple Jacks Adventure Park is a day out primarily for children aged 4-12. Many attractions involve physical challenges and activities. Racing Zip-wires, Jack’s Ball Blast, Roller Skating, Adventure Tractor Hayride, the Maize Maze and the Jumping Pillow are some of the attractions available. Food, drink, toilet and baby changing facilities are available.
Bury Fusiliers Museum
The Fusiliers Museum in the centre of Bury tells the story of one of Lancashire’s most famous regiments. Once the entrance fee is paid, the ticket is valid for unlimited re entry for the rest of the year. The galleries are fully interactive for children and offer a re insight into the stories behind the real soldiers within the regiment.
Manchester Spy Mission Treasure Trail
This is one of many trails that can be bought for around £6. On this Trail you must find the answers to clues spread around the historic Castlefield area of Manchester which will help you to work out the code to de-activate Titus Hardgrind’s rain-making machine. You may win a cash prize if you submit the correct answer to the puzzle!
Manchester Spy Mission Treasure Trail
Moss Bank Park
This large park in Bolton has a large playground, walled garden, large open spaces, small funfair and an eco garden known as the Hive. Ideal for letting of steam, having a good run around or playing ball games.
Lyme Park Hall and Gardens
This National Trust property is a great day out for all the family. Currently around the grounds and gardens their is a Gruffalo hunt, which leads to an exhibition of all the original art work by Alex Sheffler. Inside the house children can explore the school room, nursery and stage area being able to play with all of the artefacts! In Crow Wood there is a fantastic large wooden play area and den building materials that provides hours of fun for all the family. National Trust Family membership is a bargain and well worth the monthly cost for all of the places that it opens up!
Chadderton Hall Park
This park is set in a picturesque woodland and is a great free day out. There is a large children’s play area that includes a zip wire and just behind this is a rock garden that can only be described as the perfect place to play hide and seek. This large scale rock garden is a real hit with children who love climbing into all sorts of little den areas and exploring all spaces in the trees and bushes. There is a bowling green, football pitch, ornamental gardens and large spaces for playing games. Alongside the Cafe Pavillion entrance is the start of the riverside woodland walk, which leads onto a trail of various different wooden challenge structures. It is well worth a visit.
Snighole Park Helmshore
This small park in Helmshore is great for a morning or afternoon and a lovely spot for a picnic. Refurbished in 2014, it has a small contained area for very young children and a larger open area for older children which includes a zip wire, trampoline, wooden trim trail and football pitch area. A short walk by the river is also a possibility.
Dunham Massey
Another National Trust Property that provides a whole day of fun for all of the family. Children will love exploring the Tree Trunk Trail where there are allsorts of tree stumps and trunks to climb or balance on in the large open picnic area. The house and gardens provide lots of spaces to play, walk and relax.
Tandle Hill
It is a country park in Royton, Greater Manchester, England. It consists of approximately 110 acres (45 ha), a combination of beech woodland and open grassland. The park contains a countryside centre (opened in 1994), picnic areas, children’s play area and numerous trails and paths into the surrounding area. Two countryside rangers are based at the countryside centre. In fine weather conditions, it offers views of Manchester and the Welsh mountains.
Nostell Priory & Parkland
This National Trust property near Wakefield in West Yorkshire is a great day out for all the family. The huge grounds offer fantastic walks for exploring the lakes, woodland and ornamental gardens, whilst the house offers a glimpse into the past. Children are challenged in the house to find the bars in each room and use the historical clues to find out their names. Behind the house is a great wooden adventure area that includes a zip wire, climbing wall and some different trim trail equipment, as well as a multitude of woodland dens to hide in!
Fountains Abbey & Studley Water Gardens
A great place to go for a picnic and unwind in the large open outdoor paces. The Abbey is a fantastic space to explore and children love to explore all the chambers, corridors and flights of steps. A fantastic space for a game of hide and seek. Around the Abbey are paths that lead to Studley Water Gardens, which are a great site to see. There are lots of hidden views and temples/grottos to find.
Fountains Abbey & Studley Water Gardens
East Riddlesden Hall
Just over an hour away in Keighley West Yorkshire is this 400 year old hall. It is the perfect place to take a picnic with a large grass maze and riverside walk, but if you go wandering through the garden, you will find the discovery garden. Through the trees, the discovery garden is home to a Hobbit hole, mud kitchen, natural den building and a tree trunk balance. This garden is a real hit with children, as well as the small wooden playground at the entrance to the hall. There is also a lake and a bird hide with different charts to identify the wildlife that can be spotted.
Tatton Park
This historic estate can be found in Knutsford Cheshire and has something for everyone, from gardens and an historic house, to a farm and large play area.
Lancaster Park and Animal Farm
This park and animal farm offers a great day out for the family. There are opportunities to meet all types of animals including horses, donkeys, pigs, goats, sheep and chickens. Children are encouraged to hold and stroke the animals and they will learn lots of fascinating facts about them from the highly experienced staff who work at the farm. Kids will love the Caterpillar Ride or the play areas with swings, slides and mini zip lines. It is an ideal place to take a picnic to.
Lancaster Park and Animal Farm
Cheshire Ice Cream Farm
Renovated and reopened in Summer 2015, entry is free to use the adventure playground and farm, with other attractions costing £2.50. There is a mini golf course, go karts, diggers, Europe’s largest indoor sand/water indoor play area, soft play centre, games area and of course fantastic ice cream.
Speke Hall
This National Trust property located next to Liverpool Airport is a fantastic place for a family day out. There is a children’s play area, maze, woodland trail, adventure trail, huge grounds for a picnic and the historic house. They also have a children’s area.
