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 MidlandsRainy day in Nottingham: castle, caves and a windmill
Nottingham city centre
Spend the morning at Nottingham Castle, where the Robin Hood gallery and optional cave tour keep children busy under cover. After lunch, head beneath the streets on a guided caves tour, then finish with hands-on science experiments at a free windmill museum in Sneinton.
Nottingham Castle → City of Caves → Green's Mill and Science Centre
One dayAges 8–12Rainy dayCost ££
East MidlandsSpace, Egypt and dinosaurs: a rainy day in Leicester
Leicester
The National Space Centre fills a morning with rockets, astronaut kit and a planetarium show. Afterwards, swap space for dinosaurs and mummies at the free museum on New Walk.
National Space Centre → Leicester Museum & Art Gallery
One dayAges 8–12Rainy dayCost ££
East of EnglandWhales, mummies and polar explorers: a free rainy day in Cambridge
Cambridge city centre
Three free university museums sit within a ten-minute walk of each other in central Cambridge, so a wet day costs nothing but lunch. Start under the giant whale skeleton, eat at the Fitzwilliam's courtyard cafe, then finish with sledges and snow goggles at the Polar Museum.
University Museum of Zoology → The Fitzwilliam Museum → The Polar Museum
One dayAges 3–7Rainy dayFree
LondonCentral London rainy day: paintings, a crypt and the Foundling
Trafalgar Square / Bloomsbury
Indoor almost all day: the National Gallery's family spaces in the morning, a warm lunch beneath St Martin-in-the-Fields, a browse among toy theatres in Covent Garden's covered market, and the moving story of London's first home for abandoned children in the afternoon.
The National Gallery → Café in the Crypt → Benjamin Pollock's Toyshop → The Foundling Museum
One dayAll agesRainy dayCost £
LondonRainy toddler half day at Canary Wharf
Canary Wharf
Two dry stops a few minutes apart: the free Mudlarks play gallery for under-8s at London Museum Docklands, with lunch in the museum cafe, then a gentle wander under the covered roof garden above the station. Home before nap time.
Museum of London Docklands → Crossrail Place Roof Garden
Half dayToddlersRainy dayFree
North EastRainy day on Tyneside: science centre and craft gallery
Newcastle Central Station / Gateshead
A wet-weather plan built around Newcastle's big hands-on science centre and planetarium by Central Station, followed by a calm hour in a free Gateshead gallery that has a sensory room for families. Almost everything is under cover, with only a short car or taxi hop in between.
Life Science Centre → Shipley Art Gallery
One dayAges 3–7Rainy dayCost ££
North WestA wet day of free museums in Manchester
Manchester city centre
Three free museums and galleries that keep everyone dry and busy, from steam engines and science in Castlefield to dinosaurs and live animals on Oxford Road. Finish with a calm hour among the art and trees at the Whitworth.
Science and Industry Museum → The Manchester Museum → The Whitworth
One dayAll agesRainy dayFree
Northern IrelandTitanic Quarter on a wet day
Belfast
Spend a rainy day under cover in Belfast's shipbuilding quarter. Start with the story of Titanic, grab lunch from the food stalls at a Victorian market hall, then climb aboard a real First World War warship.
Titanic Belfast and SS Nomadic → St George's Market → HMS Caroline
One dayAges 8–12Rainy dayCost ££
Northern IrelandCaves and a country house in Fermanagh
Enniskillen
A Fermanagh day that works in any weather: a guided tour through underground rivers at the Marble Arch Caves, a walk round Florence Court's walled garden and sawmill, then a castle museum back in Enniskillen.
Marble Arch Caves → Florence Court → Fermanagh County Museum
One dayAges 8–12Rainy dayCost ££
ScotlandDinosaurs, rockets and a time machine: a wet day in Edinburgh's Old Town
Edinburgh city centre
Spend the morning in the free National Museum of Scotland, where skeletons, space kit and a whole floor of science and technology galleries keep curious kids busy. After lunch, walk downhill to Dynamic Earth for a journey through the planet's history under one roof, with no need to step outside for long.
National Museum of Scotland → Dynamic Earth
One dayAges 8–12Rainy dayCost ££
ScotlandTrams, tall ships and a dinosaur hall: Glasgow's free museum day
Glasgow West End
Two of Glasgow's best free museums sit within a mile of each other along the Kelvin. The Riverside Museum is packed with trams, cars and a walk-through old street, and Kelvingrove's halls hold everything from a Spitfire to a stuffed elephant.
Riverside Museum → Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum
One dayAll agesRainy dayFree
ScotlandShip, design and science on Dundee's waterfront
Dundee waterfront
Climb aboard RRS Discovery, the polar research ship built in Dundee, then cross the road to the free V&A Dundee for design galleries and lunch. Finish with a booked session at Dundee Science Centre, a few minutes' walk away.
Discovery Point → V&A Dundee → Tatha Bar & Kitchen → Dundee Science Centre
One dayAges 8–12Rainy dayCost ££
South EastCanterbury on a wet day: cathedral, Roman house and a free museum
Canterbury city centre
Three indoor stops a few minutes apart in the walled city. Children go free at the cathedral, the underground Roman museum has a mosaic floor still in place and objects to handle, and the free Beaney finishes the day with natural history cases and family trails.
Canterbury Cathedral → Canterbury Roman Museum → The Beaney
One dayAges 8–12Rainy dayCost ££
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 ££
WalesA wet day in Cardiff: dinosaurs, then a castle
Cardiff city centre
Start under cover at the national museum, where natural history and Welsh art sit side by side and entry costs nothing. After lunch, cross the city centre to Cardiff Castle to explore its wartime tunnels, Victorian rooms and the Norman keep on its mound.
National Museum Cardiff → Cardiff Castle
One dayAll agesRainy dayCost ££
WalesSwansea in the rain: industry, history and a rainforest
Swansea city centre / Maritime Quarter
Two free museums a few minutes apart cover Welsh industry and Swansea's own past, from trams to an Egyptian mummy. The afternoon is spent in the warm under glass at Plantasia among reptiles, monkeys and tropical plants.
National Waterfront Museum → Swansea Museum → Plantasia Tropical Zoo
One dayAges 3–7Rainy dayCost £
West MidlandsCoventry rainy day: cars, a dinosaur and the cathedral ruins
Coventry city centre
Three city-centre stops within a few minutes' walk of each other: a giant transport collection, a museum where Dippy the Diplodocus is visiting, and the moving ruins of the old cathedral.
Coventry Transport Museum → Herbert Art Gallery and Museum → Coventry Cathedral
One dayAll agesRainy dayCost £
YorkshireA rainy York day: Victorian streets, a guildhall lunch and chocolate
York city centre
Three indoor stops a few minutes apart. Walk the cobbles of a recreated Victorian street at York Castle Museum, have lunch at the café inside a 660-year-old timber guildhall where children go free, then join a guided chocolate tour with tastings and a lolly to decorate.
York Castle Museum → Merchant Adventurers' Hall → York's Chocolate Story
One dayAges 3–7Rainy dayCost ££
YorkshireSheffield's free museums: woolly rhinos, steel and a giant glasshouse
Sheffield city centre
Three free stops linked by tram. Meet the woolly rhino and polar bear at Weston Park Museum, ride across town to see a 12,000-horsepower steam engine in action at Kelham Island, and end among 2,500 plants in the Winter Garden.
Weston Park Museum → Kelham Island Museum → The Winter Garden
One dayAges 3–7Rainy dayFree
YorkshireSharks, trams and sailing ships in Hull's Old Town
Hull city centre
Hull's Old Town packs a lot into a short walk. Spend the morning at The Deep with its sharks and penguins, then follow the river into the free Museums Quarter for vintage trams and a 1940s street, and end in the grand old dock offices of the Maritime Museum.
The Deep → Streetlife - Hull Museum of Transport → Hull Maritime Museum
One dayAges 8–12Rainy dayCost ££
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.