Days Out & Holidays

We had a brilliant day out at Drayton Manor this summer holidays. I can’t believe it has been nearly 5 years since we had last visited! My boys were HUGE Thomas & Friends fans when they were younger,so we had enjoyed some magical visits to Thomasland together but now that they have moved on from the Thomas stage, was there still anything to get them excited at Drayton Manor? Yes! There are lots of rides for older kids, so with children ranging from 1-10 years old we found plenty to suit everyone.

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Between school, work, and running a busy household, it can often feel difficult to spend time with your kids. Travelling can provide an ideal opportunity to spend some quality time with your family, so you can all relax and bond.

If you are planning an upcoming trip with your children, you’ll want to ensure you all have an unforgettable time together. To do so, read how to plan the perfect family holiday.

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Dinosaurs in the Wild is a brilliant immersive experience that makes a great family day out, especially for older kids. It’s located in the Greenwich peninsula near to the O2, and the experience lasts around an hour and a half. We went along to try it out earlier this week, and we were all really impressed with it.

The first thing we were struck by is how realistic the experience is. We’ve done lots of dinosaur themed attractions over the years but Dinosaurs in the Wild has a carefully constructed back story and narrative that makes it appear very believable.

I had heard that some aspects of the experience can be scary, so decided to emphasise to my kids before we went that it was not actually real, as my 6 year old can be a little sensitive at times and I didn’t want him to panic! After visiting, I would say that was the right decision as he was able to enjoy it without worrying.

In this review, I will tell you what happens throughout the tour including the ending. So if you don’t want spoilers, don’t read til the end, but if you do want to know what is included and whether it will be suitable for your child then hopefully this will help!

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There’s a brand new and exciting family festival hitting the scene for 2018. Monstrous (July 29) is a new one-day family festival set to debut this summer with an incredible line-up designed to delight the whole family.

The event, which will take place at the award-winning Printworks venue in South London, will host over seven fantasy worlds jam-packed with live shows and amazing experiences for mini festival goers.

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This weekend we visited Diggerland Kent, for a fun-filled sunny day out with the kids. We’ve visited before, three years ago, so I was interested to see what the boys made of it now that they are a bit older, and to take our toddler N to experience Diggerland for the first time.

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Bing and his friends are going on tour in the first ever Bing stage show!  Kicking off this week in St Albans at the Alban Arena, Bing Live will visit 50 venues over 25 weeks.

Join Bing, Sula, Coco and Pando as they learn how to tell stories by pretending, dressing-up and singing songs. Flop and Amma are there to help, but in this magical world of make-believe things don’t always go according to plan…

The CBeebies favourites are brought to life in a brand new stage production full of fun, laughter, music and magical puppetry.  Bing Live is the perfect first theatre trip for pre-schoolers and their families.  Going to the theatre… it’s a Bing thing!

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Over the weekend, I took N (nearly 18 months) to go and see In The Night Garden Live at the Old Deer Park in Richmond. The show is still touring the UK, heading to Birmingham and Manchester next so if you fancy booking for your little one – it’s not too late!

The show takes place in a special purpose built and family friendly show dome which we were really impressed with. As soon as you go into the Show Dome, everyone is very helpful and welcoming, and there’s a large buggy park to leave your buggy before heading up to the seating area. We were also given a little In The Night Garden souvenir book for free, included with the ticket.

Seating within the dome is quite casual and flexible – which I really liked. With such a young target audience, the relaxed feel of the show dome was really appreciated. Instead of separate seats, the audience sits on rows of steps in front of the stage. If you’ve booked premium seating, then you will be within the first five rows, otherwise you can sit anywhere you like. I decided to go towards the back where it was less busy, so that we could feel the most relaxed. As the seating is in steps, you’ll get a good view from wherever you sit!

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A couple of weeks ago, we were invited over to the Isle of Wight to go and check out Island View Holidays Rookley Park. This was our first trip to the Isle of Wight, and I’d definitely go back. It’s a beautiful and really family friendly destination, and with the ferry ride being only 30 minutes from the south coast, the overall journey time from London came in at under 3 hours making it do-able even as a weekend break.

Rookley Park is located right in the middle of the Isle of Wight, meaning that it’s really handy to get to any of the attractions that you want to visit, without a very long drive whatever side of the island the attraction is on. We found that really handy with the kids, and the Isle of Wight is fairly compact anyway so you can get around easily without needing to spend a lot of time on travel.

The focal point at Rookley Park are the two scenic fishing lakes, one right next to the main entertainment building, and there’s another beside some of the cottages. It’s really picturesque and overall the site has a calm and tranquil feel – while at the same time having the facilities and activities that you need with kids.

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