Meet the busiest man of the month as he takes a break from making toys!
Father Christmas and his elf will be at Lanhydrock to hear the wish lists of children and give a small gift to good boys and girls!
10/11th Dec and 17/18th Dec from 12pm to 3pm
£2 per child
On Sunday 25th July the first of three Wild Breakfast events at Newquay Zoo will take place. It is an atmospheric dawn tour of the Zoo with the keeper as the animals wake for the day!
Prepare animal enrichment treats and tuck into a delicious cooked breakfast at Café Lemur. Tickets are £14.95 for adults and £9.95 for children. Price includes all day admission to the Zoo.
The first two films were brilliant, so will the latest Toy Story live up to your expectations? You decide …
Curator David Woolcock and his team are training three Military Macaws and two Blue and Gold Macaws for a new flying display starting this Summer. “It has been quite a challenge training the five macaws over the last couple of weeks. The Militaries are doing very well and have displayed their flying skills brilliantly, Blue and Gold Oscar is gaining fitness and confidence, but Jake has taken the scenic route on a couple of occasions.”
“All five Macaws live in a large aviary near the JungleBarn where a new stage has been created for our daily 3.30pm ‘Free Flying Bird Show’. There is a large picnic lawn and lots of tables for everyone to get comfortable while the birds are flying overhead and through the crowds. Our vision is for the three Military Macaws to fly together in a circle one way while the two Blue and Gold Macaws circle in the opposite direction. You could say it will be like the macaw version of the ‘Red Arrows’ flying display team.”
Seeing the birds fly free is an inspirational experience giving a glimpse into rainforest life, and presenters talk about parrots, both as pets and in the wild, and the work of the World Parrot Trust charity started at Paradise Park over twenty years ago.
Visitors to Paradise Park have raised over £165,000 since 1999 towards the work of the World Parrot Trust.
For more details, visit the Paradise Park website.
The two weeks from May 29 to June 13 have been designated National Wildlife Fortnight and so there are a whole range of fun kids activities happening at nature reserves up and down the country.
To find out the top ten family wildlife outings in the country this half term, don’t miss this article in the Telegraph
Have a Monster half term with the Mega Mini-Beasts Week at Newquay Zoo. 30th May – 6th June
This half term Newquay Zoo is holding a Mega Mini-Beasts week. Exploring the seemingly alien world of insects and other invertebrates, Newquay Zoo will be running workshops and activities for children and adults; taking a magnified look at these strange looking animals and the important roles they play in our ecosystems.
Find out more about some of the giant invertebrates that are kept at the Zoo at the special mini-beast talks and take part in a bug hunt on one of the Mini-Beast Safari’s running at 1pm and 2:45pm.
Meet Assassin Bugs, Hissing Cockroaches, Emperor Scorpions, African Train Millipedes and more in the Tropical House and build your own Bug House to take home with you.
Newquay Zoo’s Mega Mini-Beast week will be running from the 30th May to the 6th June. Registering for the Mini-Beast Safari’s on the day is advisable and will be charged at £2.50 per child.
‘Museums at Night’ is a national campaign, led by Culture24, and funded by MLA and the National Museum Directors’ Conference (NMDC), to showcase the unique and vibrant museums, galleries, heritage sites, libraries and archives in the UK. Running over the weekend of Friday 14th May to Sunday 16th May, museums and galleries alike will aim to inspire fresh discovery by opening their doors to late night visitors.
Museums will be unrolling an imaginative array of activities across the country. From candle-lit readings, paranormal investigations, sleepovers, night-time tours, musical events and much, much more.
This year’s programme sees the return of firm favourites, like Cabinet War Rooms sleepover and the Old Operating Theatre at St Thomas Church, plus exciting new additions such as the; Helicopter Museum’s ‘Back to the Blitz’ experience, follow a night shift at Cornwall’s Geevor Tin Mine and the chance to see a ‘Light in the Night’ at Cromer’s Lifeboat Museum.
You can find up to date listings at the Culture 24 Website
The Easter holidays are almost over but if you are still looking for something to do, here are some great ideas:
Cornwall
Trerice Easter Holiday Family Activities
3-18 April
Daily family activities – Family quizzes in the house and garden (50p donation), play Cornish Kayling free of charge on the Bowling Ground and try brass rubbing with our replica Arundell family brasses (£1 donation). (3-5 April, A devious top secret Tudor trail around the house and gardens with an Easter treat for those who manage to uncover the secret message.)
Trerice, Newquay ,Cornwall, TR8 4PG
www.nationaltrust.org.uk 01637 875404
Crealy EasterFest
27 March–19 April
Meet the rabbits and babies in the Animal Nursery – from English Giants to tiny Dwarf Lops. Bunny Bonanza, Animal Showtime and Bunny Hop Races with chocolate rabbits to be won.
Crealy Adventure Park, Tredinnick, near Wadebridge, Cornwall, PL27 7RA
www.crealy.co.uk 0870 116 333300
Devon
The Big Sheep Easter Eggstravaganza!
1-16 April
30,000 eggs hidden across the site. (Dedicated fields set aside for toddlers and young children to find eggs.) Easter Bunny, Easter Art, Free Face painting, 9 live sheepy shows every day. See website for details.
The BIG Sheep, Abbotsham, Bideford, Devon, EX39 5AP
www.thebigsheep.co.uk 01237 472366
Hampshire
Spinnaker Tower – Celebrate The Circus!
2-18 April
Come and join in the fun at the Spinnaker Tower this Easter, travel to the top of the Tower and watch our very own circus show then why not have a go at juggling, plate spinning or stilt walking yourself at our circus workshop? The children can also get their faces painted, colour in their favourite pictures, meet Spinny our friendly mascot, hand strike their own souvenir coin or complete one of our activity sheets to receive a prize!
Spinnaker Tower, Gunwharf Quays, Portsmouth, Hampshire, PO1 3TT,
www.spinnakertower.co.uk 023 9285 7520
London
London Wetland Centre Egg Watching
3-18 April
Join an Egg Watch viewing and watch duck eggs develop in the centre’s incubator. Follow the progress of the eggs with an expert warden, have a look inside the shells by special egg candling techniques and learn about the development of ducklings. Visitors can come back to see the chicks hatch and take their first steps. 12noon in the Gallery (above the Gift Shop).
www.wwt.org.uk
Queen Elizabeth’s Walk, London, SW13 9WT 0208 409 4400
Church Farm Rare Breeds Centre Lambing
2 April – 18 April
Easter Fortnight – see lambs being born and watch them being fed
www.churchfarmstowbardolph.co.uk
off A149, Stow Bardolph , Norfolk, PE34 3HT 01366 382162
Suffolk
Baylham House Rare Breeds Farm Lambing
2 – 18 April
Visitors will be able to walk through the lambing shed, hold a lamb and may even be able to see one born. Expectant mothers will not be allowed into the lambing shed but can wait outside and walk round the rest of the farm in perfect safety.
www.baylham-house-farm.co.uk
Baylham , Suffolk, IP6 8LG 01473 830264
Jimmy’s Farm Easter Activities
2 – 19 April
Easter Holiday – The kids are OUT! So…what to do with them? Bring them down to Jimmy’s Farm for their holiday! Easter Egg Hunt, crafts, animal petting, pond dipping and lots more!
www.essexpigcompany.com
Wherestead, Ipswich, 0870 9500210
For those of you who are looking for ideas about where to take the kids during half-term, here is our compilation of great days out (just click the link for more details):
1. Alton Towers, Staffordshire
2. Eden Project, Cornwall
3. Legoland, Berkshire
4. Longleat, Wiltshire
5. Babbacombe Model Village, Devon
6. The Canterbury Tales, Kent
7. Jorvik the Viking City, York
8. London Dungeon, London
9. National Sea Life Centre, West Midlands
10. Ironbridge Gorge Museums, Shropshire
If you have already been to one of these attractions, do share your views and experiences.
Every couple with kids knows how difficult it is to create time for themselves. But now it is possible to have a romantic weekend away with the kids because more and more luxury hotels are becoming family friendly.
If you want to treat yourself to a special break, then you will find that one of the following places will meet your needs. (Just click the link for more details)
1.Tresanton, Cornwall
2. Driftwood, Cornwall
3. Fowey Hall, Cornwall
4. Cotswold House Hotel, Gloucestershire
5. Cowley Manor, Gloucestershire
6. Westover Hall Hotel, Hampshire
7. Baglioni, London
8. Soho Hotel, London
9. Strattons, Norfolk
10. Le Manoir Aux Quatre Saisons, Oxfordshire
11. Babington House, Somerset
12. Ickworth, Suffolk
13. Royal Oak, Sussex
14. Woolley Grange, Wiltshire
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