Days Out & Holidays

(AD) Nickelodeon Adventure at Intu Lakeside is a new indoor play venue for kids. We went along to the opening day to try it out, with our children aged 3, 8 and 10 to find out what’s inside.

Nickelodeon Adventure is made up of six zones, with different activities to explore and character to meet. All of these are spacious so you don’t feel crowded together, and there is plenty of room for the kids to run around.

As you first enter, you come to the Paw Patrol Adventure Bay zone. This area includes replicas of the Paw Patrol vehicles that kids can climb into and play pretend, and it also includes the control tower with slide. You will see Paw Patrol characters doing meet and greets here too, sometimes as individual characters and sometimes as a group. Depending how busy it is when you visit, there may be queues for this. However, when we visited the queues were not bad and it was well managed.

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Thinking ahead to the new year, I’m already planning to focus more on my exercise and fitness. It’s not always easy finding dedicated time to hit the gym, so I’ve been wondering about some other fun options for exercise that could be enjoyed together as a family, and not feel too much like a chore.

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There’s nothing quite like having a holiday to look forward to, but once you add children into the mix, you need to think more creatively. Whether budget is your driving force or the desire to provide an unusual or memorable experience, we’ve found some interesting ways to enjoy time away with your family.

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Gold coast is a city on the coast of Australian state Queensland located at around 66 kilometers southeast of the Brisbane state capital. It is a leading business, events, and Tourism City in Australia, and it is commonly known for its white-sand beaches that stretch 57 Kilometers of the coastal line. It is also known for its beautiful parks, gold coast hinterlands top restaurants and luxurious hotels.

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The Warner Bros. Studio Tour has provided Harry Potter fans with a chronological snapshot of the studio’s history, including the production of all eight Harry Potter films.

Provided in the new infographic is all the significant dates in the studio’s history, from the site’s origins in 1939 to the release of the Gringotts Wizarding Bank part of the studio this year. And they’ll longer be any confusion whether The Goblet of Fire came out in 2004 or 2005!

As well as detailing the production history of the famous wizarding franchise, the infographic also details the pre-film history of the studio, which is just as interesting. The story begins in 1939, when the threat of Nazi Germany prompted the Ministry of Defence to convert the site into a production base for the manufacture of aircraft and engines. It served this function long after the war was won, and eventually fell into the hands of Rolls-Royce in 1967. Throughout the 1980s, it was used as a private club by aircraft enthusiasts. 

It wasn’t until the 1994 return of the James Bond franchise that film cameras first starting rolling on the premises. GoldenEye proved that the newly rebranded Leavesden Studios was a world-class facility, and hosted the filming of The Phantom Menace and Sleepy Hollow soon afterwards.

The first Harry Potter film, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, commenced shooting at Leavesden on 29 September 2000 – nearly two decades ago! Among the first sets to be built was the enormous Great Hall, which went on to feature in all but one of the films (the exception being Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1).

New Harry Potter films were released regularly throughout the following decade, culminating in the eventual release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallow Part 2 in 2011. In 2012, the public appetite for all things Potter-related remained insatiable, and so the Warner Bros. Studio Tour came to be at the Leavesden Studios site. The experience provides visitors with a chance to sample Butterbeer, go broomstick-riding, and even purchase their very own Ollivander-approved wand.

In 2013, the studio received Royal approval during a visit from HRH the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. Prince Harry attended the inauguration, as did the author of the series, JK Rowling.

Here is the infographic! To find out more about the history of the Studio Tour, you can find it over at https://www.wbstudiotour.co.uk/our-history.

Did You Know?

• For the filming of The Prisoner of Azkaban, the set for Hagrid’s Hut had to be disassembled and rebuilt in the Scottish Highlands.
• For the filming of The Goblet of Fire, an enormous water tank had to be constructed so that Harry could swim through the Great Lake while performing the second Triwizard Task.
• Despite playing a 16-year-old at the time, Rupert Grint turned 21 in 2007. The cast and crew marked the occasion with a children’s birthday party in the studio’s canteen.

There is nothing quite as exciting as packing up the whole family for a well-earned holiday that affords everyone time away from the daily grind to spend quality time together and make some fun memories.

The problem is, many of your neighbours are probably gearing up to head off, too, which means that if you are going to any of the Canary Islands, then the chances are that you’ll be spending time in a place that feels just like home.

You don’t want that. However, an incredibly worthy alternative is also on your doorstep. Scent of Sicily Villas facilitates holiday rentals on the island of – you guessed it – Sicily, just off the coast of Italy.

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When we think of travelling the world, we tend to think of school leavers and uni students making the most of their relative freedom and heading off to places far and wide. We see their pictures plastered across our social media feeds and see them having a great time. When you have kids, travel can seem like a far off plan that doesn’t fit into the grand scheme of school runs, after school clubs, hobbies, and more. Family life is great and you are going to have a lot more responsibilities. But it doesn’t mean you can’t travel too! There are plenty of different ways to incorporate holidays into your family life without things being a big deal and a lot of trouble and hassle. Here are just a few different steps you can take to simplify the process and land yourself a family holiday that you’ll all look on fondly for a lifetime!

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If you are planning a vacation abroad then choose Vietnam this time. Vietnam has a lot to offer if you check out bookaway.com, but you just can’t afford to miss these 6 things to make it a cherishable trip in your lifetime.

1. Hoi An

You just can’t miss a trip to Hoi An while in Vietnam. Hoi An is a sought after tourist place. This ancient tourist spot is full of amazing restaurants which will serve you the authentic and the best Vietnamese cuisine you can ever think of. Clicking a lot of lovely pictures is a must while in this bright city full of mirth and gaiety. Visit the lovely beaches at Hoi An, Try the Egg Coffee which is quite a famous delicacy here, don’t miss out the beautiful lantern market, nightlife of Hoi An is so much happening that once you experience it you’ll crave for more, there’s a lot more to do in Hoi An such as you can take cooking classes, get a relaxing massage here and explore the corners of this beautiful city steeped in rich culture and tradition. 

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Top tips when visiting London Zoo with the kids

A trip to the capital as a family is almost a must-do while the kids are still young. So much to see and do – and plenty for the kids to learn about, too. Along with the usual suspects like Big Ben and the Tower of London, London Zoo sits as one of the most popular attractions the city has to offer.

Of course, a trip to the zoo is bound to provide a day of fun and memories no matter how you do it, but there are a few ways to make the most of your big day out. Here are some top tips for getting the best from your animal adventure.

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