Wildlife · 10:00–13:30 (3h30m)
Monkey World - Ape Rescue Centre
Catch a keeper talk; lunch on site.
An outdoor wildlife park in Wareham.
Check pricesOutdoors
- Accessibility
Day one pairs an ape rescue centre with a hangar full of tanks next door. Day two takes the steam train to Corfe Castle and ends on the clifftops at Durlston.
WeekendAges 8–12Cost £££5 stops
Day 110:00–16:45
- 10:001
- 14:002
Museum · 14:00–16:45 (2h45m)
The Tank Museum
Indoor halls - a good finish if the weather turns.
An indoor and outdoor museum in Bovington Camp.
PaidIndoors & out- Pushchair friendly
- Baby changing
- Café on site
- Toilets
- Accessibility
- Parking
- Good on a rainy day
Photo: Louise M Evans
Day 210:30–16:30
- 10:303
Food stop · 10:30–10:50 (20m)
Swanage Railway
Ride from Swanage to Corfe Castle; sit on the left for the castle view.
Photo: LordHarris at English Wikipedia
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Castle · 11:00–13:30 (2h30m)
Corfe Castle
Climb the ruins, then lunch in the village before the train back.
An indoor and outdoor castle in Wareham, aimed at ages 4 and up.
Check pricesIndoors & outPhoto: Tallguyuk
- 14:305
Nature & gardens · 14:30–16:30 (2h)
Durlston Country Park
Visitor centre in the castle, family trail and the giant stone globe.
A clifftop country park and nature reserve just south of Swanage, with a Victorian castle housing a visitor centre, café and exhibitions. Family trails, minibeast safaris and a giant stone globe make it an easy, mostly free outing.
FreeIndoors & out- Café on site
- Toilets
- Accessibility
Photo: Ben Gamble
More days out in South West
South WestA Dartmoor barn weekend with otters and piglets
Shuttaford Barns, Holne
Base yourselves in a converted barn in a quiet Dartmoor valley with a games room for wet evenings, then spend a day around Buckfastleigh: piggy cuddles and tractor rides at Pennywell Farm, lunch at Buckfast Abbey, steam engines at Buckfastleigh station and otter feeding time at the sanctuary next to the steam railway. Everything is within 15 minutes of the barn.
Shuttaford Barns → Pennywell Farm → Buckfast Abbey restaurant → South Devon Railway, Buckfastleigh station + 1 more
WeekendAges 3–7Cost ££
South WestEden and Falmouth: two days in mid-Cornwall
St Austell or Truro
Day one inside Eden's giant rainforest dome, day two by the water in Falmouth with a hands-on maritime museum and a Tudor castle on the headland. Both days hold up if it rains.
Eden Project → National Maritime Museum Cornwall → Pendennis Castle
WeekendAll agesCost £££
South WestRainy day on Bristol's harbourside
Bristol city centre
Three indoor stops a short walk apart around Bristol's floating harbour: hands-on science, the free city museum and Brunel's great ship. Good for curious 6-12s when the weather is grim.
M Shed → Brunel's SS Great Britain
One dayAges 8–12Rainy dayCost ££