Guides · Family days out
Days out,
already planned.
Whole days worked out for you: where to start, when to stop for lunch, how to get between places and what to do if it rains. Every stop links to its own page with opening times, prices and a map.
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East MidlandsCastleton caves and hills: two days in the Hope Valley
Castleton
Day one goes underground: a boat ride through a flooded mine, Blue John caverns and a hike up to a Norman castle. Day two heads up Mam Tor for big views, then out to the Derwent dams for an easy lakeside cycle or walk.
Peveril Castle → Treak Cliff Cavern → Speedwell Cavern → Mam Tor + 1 more
WeekendAges 8–12Cost ££
East of EnglandNorwich Castle and the Broads: a two-day Norfolk break
Norwich
Day one pairs the newly reopened Norman keep in the middle of Norwich with an easy lakeside walk on the edge of the city. Day two heads into the Broads for old boats, a short river trip and a wildlife reserve on Hickling Broad.
Norwich Castle → Whitlingham Country Park → Museum of the Broads → NWT Hickling Broad and Marshes
WeekendAll agesCost ££
East of EnglandA farm-stay weekend on the Suffolk coast
Restaries at Paradise Farm, Westhall
Settle into a converted barn on a Suffolk farm, swim in the heated covered pool and meet the goats and alpacas, then spend a day on the coast: giraffes and lions at Africa Alive, lunch on Southwold Pier, Tim Hunkin's eccentric machines and a run on the beach. Works for toddlers through to tweens.
Restaries at Paradise Farm → Africa Alive! → Boardwalk Restaurant, Southwold Pier → Southwold Pier
WeekendAll agesCost £££
LondonWeekend in London: Tower and Greenwich, then South Kensington
Tower Hill / Greenwich (Day 1); South Kensington (Day 2)
Day one goes east: the Tower in the morning, lunch by the boats at St Katharine Docks, then a river bus down to Greenwich for the Queen's House and the park. Day two stays west with free museums and a boat on the Serpentine. Two separate, walkable clusters joined only by public transport.
Tower of London → St Katharine Docks → Uber Boat by Thames Clipper → Queen's House + 5 more
WeekendAll agesCost £££
LondonThree days in London: Greenwich, the river and South Kensington
Greenwich (Day 1); South Bank/Trafalgar (Day 2); South Kensington (Day 3)
Three compact days, each in its own walkable patch: maritime Greenwich, the South Bank and Trafalgar Square with a London Eye ride, and the Exhibition Road museums. Indoor options on every day mean it survives a wet spell.
Cutty Sark Clipper Ship → Greenwich Market → Queen's House → Greenwich Park + 8 more
Three daysAll agesCost £££
North EastCastles and sand: a Northumberland coast weekend from Belford
East Lodge, Home Farm, Belford
Settle into East Lodge and its willow den, then head to Bamburgh's huge beach before dark. The next day is all castles and gardens: Bamburgh Castle in the morning, lunch in Alnwick's old station, and the fountains and labyrinth of The Alnwick Garden in the afternoon.
East Lodge, Home Farm → Bamburgh Beach → Bamburgh Castle → Barter Books + 1 more
WeekendAll agesCost ££
North EastTwo-day Durham and Teesdale weekend
Durham / Barnard Castle
Day one explores Durham's cathedral peninsula and riverside priory ruins. Day two heads into Teesdale for a medieval castle in a deer park with a giant timber adventure playground, followed by the Silver Swan at a chateau-style museum where under-18s go free.
Wharton Park → Durham Cathedral → Finchale Priory → The Plotters’ Forest at Raby Castle + 1 more
WeekendAges 3–7Cost ££
North EastTwo-day Tyneside coast and Beamish weekend
Newcastle / Tynemouth
Day one is a car-light coast day: Tynemouth's headland priory, the ferry across the Tyne and a South Shields seafront afternoon. Day two is all-in at the open-air museum at Beamish, with a short gorge walk to finish.
Tynemouth Priory and Castle → Shields Ferry → Colmans Seafood Temple → South Marine Park + 3 more
WeekendAll agesCost £££
North EastThree-day Northumberland coast: Alnwick, the Farnes and Holy Island
Seahouses / Alnwick area
Three unhurried days on the Northumberland coast: a bookshop station and a duke's walled park in Alnwick plus Howick's gardens; sandcastles at Bamburgh and a boat out to the Farne seals; then a tide-timed crossing to Holy Island with Berwick's walls and the Etal mill.
Barter Books → Hulne Park → Howick Hall Gardens & Arboretum → Bamburgh Beach + 6 more
Three daysAll agesCost ££
North WestBlackpool in lights: a two-day autumn break
Blackpool
Day one keeps you mostly indoors at the Tower, the aquarium and Showtown, then ends with the free Illuminations along the promenade. Day two is for rides at the Pleasure Beach, with a gentle finish beside Fairhaven Lake.
The Blackpool Tower Ballroom → SEA LIFE Blackpool → Showtown Blackpool → Blackpool Illuminations + 2 more
WeekendAll agesCost £££
Northern IrelandCauseway Coast and Glens over two days
Ballycastle
Two days on the north-east coast. Day one crosses Carrick-a-Rede and explores hidden harbours and beaches; day two heads into the Glens of Antrim for a riverside walk, a bucket-and-spade stop and a castle garden.
Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge → Ballintoy Harbour → White Park Bay Beach → Ballycastle Beach + 3 more
WeekendAges 8–12Sunny dayCost ££
ScotlandCastle, monument and safari: two days around Stirling
Stirling
Day one is Stirling's big history double: the royal palace and great hall of Stirling Castle, then the climb up the Wallace Monument for views across the Forth valley. Day two heads north-west to Blair Drummond Safari Park, with a stop at Doune Castle on the way home.
Stirling Castle → The National Wallace Monument → Blair Drummond Safari and Adventure Park → Doune Castle
WeekendAges 8–12Cost £££
ScotlandThree days in Aviemore: steam, wildlife and reindeer
Aviemore
A base in Aviemore puts the best of the Cairngorms within half an hour. Ride a steam train and walk round a castle loch on day one, see polar bears and a 1700s township on day two, and meet free-ranging reindeer before a beach afternoon at Loch Morlich on day three.
Strathspey Railway → Loch an Eilein → Highland Wildlife Park → Highland Folk Museum + 2 more
Three daysAll agesCost £££
South EastIsle of Wight in two days: a queen's beach, castle donkeys and the Needles
East Cowes and Yarmouth
Day one crosses to East Cowes for Queen Victoria's holiday house, gardens and her private beach, then heads inland to a hilltop castle where donkeys still work the well wheel. Day two is in the West Wight: animals and indoor play at a farm park, then a chairlift down to Alum Bay to see the Needles.
Osborne House → Carisbrooke Castle → Tapnell Farm Park → The Needles Landmark Attraction
WeekendAges 3–7Sunny dayCost £££
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 WestPurbeck in two days: apes, tanks, steam and castle ruins
Wareham or Swanage
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.
Monkey World - Ape Rescue Centre → The Tank Museum → Corfe Castle → Durlston Country Park
WeekendAges 8–12Cost £££
WalesSteam trains, slate caverns and the Meirionnydd coast: a weekend at Llanfendigaid
Stable Cottage, Llanfendigaid Estate, Rhoslefain (near Tywyn)
A weekend based at a cottage on the Llanfendigaid Estate, between Tywyn and Fairbourne, with a heated indoor pool to come back to. Break the drive with a boat ride into King Arthur's Labyrinth and a beach stop at Aberdyfi, then spend Sunday on the Talyllyn steam railway and Tywyn's beach.
King Arthur's Labyrinth → Corris Café, Corris Craft Centre → Stable Cottage, Llanfendigaid Estate → Talyllyn Railway + 1 more
WeekendAll agesCost ££
WalesTwo days around Tenby: farm zoo, then three castles
Tenby
Day one is spent at a big farm park and zoo near Kilgetty with animals, rides and plenty of indoor space. Day two follows the medieval trail west: Pembroke's great round keep, a ruined bishop's palace at Lamphey, then lunch and a tidal mill at Carew.
Folly Farm Adventure Park and Zoo → Pembroke Castle → Lamphey Bishop's Palace → Nest Tearoom, Carew Castle + 1 more
WeekendAges 3–7Cost £££
WalesTwo days in Eryri: Snowdon by train and Portmeirion
Llanberis, then Porthmadog
Ride the rack railway up Yr Wyddfa, then wander to a lakeside Welsh castle tower and the woods of Padarn Country Park. Day two takes in the Italianate village of Portmeirion, lunch at Porthmadog harbour station and a run on the wide Black Rock Sands.
Snowdon Mountain Railway → Dolbadarn Castle → Padarn Country Park → Portmeirion + 2 more
WeekendAges 8–12Cost £££
West MidlandsTwo days in the Black Country
Dudley
A proper Black Country weekend: a day in the rebuilt streets of the living museum and a fossil hunt nearby, then a zoo on a castle hill and a Victorian park with two playgrounds.
Black Country Living Museum → Wren's Nest National Nature Reserve → Dudley Zoo and Castle → Haden Hill Park and Haden Hill House
WeekendAll agesCost ££
West MidlandsWarwick and Kenilworth castles weekend
Warwick
Two very different castles a few miles apart: a full day of towers, shows and dungeons at Warwick, then the vast red ruins of Kenilworth and an afternoon of play and pools at Ryton.
Warwick Castle → Kenilworth Castle → Ryton Pools Country Park
WeekendAges 8–12Sunny dayCost £££
YorkshireTwo days on the Yorkshire coast: Scarborough's two bays, then Whitby
Scarborough (overnight), then Whitby
Day one is a classic Scarborough loop: seals and penguins at the far end of the North Bay, the pagoda lake at Peasholm Park, the castle on its headland and a harbourside ice cream to finish. On day two, drive up to a hidden woodland waterfall on the moors before a Whitby afternoon of fish and chips and the clifftop abbey.
SEA LIFE Scarborough → Scarborough Castle → The Harbour Bar → Falling Foss and Sneaton Forest + 2 more
WeekendAges 3–7Cost ££
Written by Tumble from each place's own published information, checked October 2026. Times are suggestions, not bookings. Opening hours and prices change, so check each place's page before you set off.