Things to do on winter weekends with the kids

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Looking for ways to entertain the kids on cold winter weekends? Try these five suggestions to discover endless ways to keep you and your children happy from dawn ‘til dusk, whatever the weather.

1. Explore outdoor events

Brave the cold and explore the outdoor events on your doorstep. Most UK towns and cities have annual festivals such as German markets and ‘winter wonderland’ events with stalls selling seasonal food and drinks, funfair attractions and cold-weather activities like ice skating.

Larger parks and gardens often run spectacular light shows and illuminated trails during the winter such as Christmas at Kew and the RHS Glow which is held across the UK. These begin as soon as the sun goes down so your kids can be in bed at a decent time.

• Start a physical hobby

Use this quiet social season as a chance for your child to kickstart a physical hobby. Plenty of local clubs will be running weekend sessions from athletics to rugby and hockey training, and with sessions divided by age group, this is a great way for them to make new friends.

Look out for ways to supplement this hobby to inspire their passion further. For example, young football enthusiasts will love wearing the shirt of their favourite player or watching a professional match.

• Warm up indoors

Looking for ways to escape the winter weather? Warm up at an indoor attraction designed to keep children of all ages entertained for hours on end.

Warmest are the indoor water parks which are set at a toasty 30°C. You’ll be feeling positively tropical whether in the water encouraging your children in their swimming or watching from the sidelines with a coffee in hand. Seeing the latest release at the cinema is an old but effective indoor activity too.

• Try arts & crafts activities

Saving money and staying at home doesn’t mean your children will be bored! Try arts and crafts activities as a way to occupy them on bleak rainy days. There are endless options to suit all ages and skill levels with little-to-no adult involvement required, except maybe occasional cutting out. All you need to invest in is paper and card, glue, scissors and coloured pens and your children can do everything from making personalised cards to creating a scrapbook.

You can find ready-made arts and crafts kits too, tailored to a range of common children’s interests from faeries and dinosaurs to jewellery and transport.

• Visit historic attractions

Embrace visits to historic attractions as a way to make your weekend adventures educational. Children will love the gruesome stories behind crumbling castles and adventure trails through the grounds of old houses and abbeys.

Look at the local museums in your area and identify exhibitions especially suited to kids such as The Dinosaur Gallery at London’s Natural History Museum and Jorvik, York’s premier Viking attraction which includes a fully-reconstructed village complete with authentic smells.