Children usually love being outdoors, even if they initially resist being dragged away from a screen! Here are a few outdoor family activities to keep your children or grandchildren busy. Many people are on a budget at the moment, so these are largely free. (Take a picnic, but you may have to pay for parking) Hopefully there’s something near you, to save on petrol or transport.
Norfolk
Outdoor Art, Great Yarmouth on Wednesdays
Sainsbury Centre Sculpture Park, UEA Norwich
Summer Circus Workshops, King’s Lynn
Dinosaur Trail, Norwich
Look for dinosaurs in North Norfolk, Download the Deep History Coast app to search for woolly mammoths.
Suffolk
Snape Maltings, free fun family activities
The Big Hoot Art Trail, Ipswich
Rendlesham Forest, adventure play areas
Beowulf & Grendel Trail, West Stow Anglo Saxon Village & Country Park
Cambridgeshire
Sun Prints Workshop, Cambridge Botanic Gardens – Take photos of plants using sunlight
Free outdoor film screening, Cambridge – Clifford the Big Red Dog
Cambridge Sculpture Trails, is three walking trails taking you to outstanding pieces of sculpture in historic and modern Cambridge
Book Bench Trail, Cambridge
Essex
Gruffalo Trail, Thorndon Country Park, Brentwood
Great Notley Country Park and adventure playground, Braintree
The Flitch Way, a safe walking / cycling trail, Great Dunmow
Wind in the Willows Trail, Hanningfield Reservoir
Hertfordshire
Fifty Thrifty Adventures: family activities across the county.
The big list, as voted for by Hertfordshire residents, providing fun activities for children and their parents.
Bedfordshire
Stockwood Discovery Centre, Luton. Beautiful gardens, interactive exhibitions, an outdoor children’s play area and the largest carriage collection in Europe.
Forest of Marston Vale, fun days including Peppa Pig Day 3rd Sept. (Small charge, cheaper to pay in advance).
Regional
England Coast Path, East of England sections.
Cycle trails across East Anglia – free if you have your own bikes.
Crabbing – various harbours. Don’t harm the crabs and put them back!
Pick Your Own
East Anglia is awash with fruit and flower farms! Most kids find it fun to pick their own fruit, and it helps them understand where our food comes from. You just pay for what you pick; some farms have play areas too. Check the farm’s website or call first to see what’s ready to pick in August.
Out in Nature
50 Things To Do Before You’re 11¾ Kids will love these simple free outdoor activities, most of which can be done in the woods or a garden. Print off the chart or make a list; tick the activities as you do them and see if you can do 10 or 20 before school starts again. It encourages respect for nature and wildlife.
Create a Scavenger Hunt for a day out in the woods.
Make a Bug Hotel for the garden from natural materials.
Go Cloudspotting on several days to identify different types of cloud.
Download a Tree Identification app for free; see how many species you can find.
Have fun!
