To be shocked at the cost of family days out?

For the train tickets you need a friends and family Railcard. I can get to London from Scotland for less than that.

I think train travel and a premier inn is good value (obviously it depends on getting a good deal) because you can enjoy the free or low cost things in another area

Be glad the zoo wasn't Chester, that's £30 each.

Also did a family trip out with the ‘buy one get one free’ offer for Merlin attractions on Cadbury selection boxes, except you’re not allowed BOGOF on the online booking prices, only the more expensive price you’d pay if you bought tickets on the day. So it didn’t work out anywhere near 50% off 🙄

yes it has got a lot more expensive. DS is autistic so we usually get 1 free adult ticket which helps a bit but it’s still extortionate and doesn’t cushion the blow if the day out is a disaster and we have to leave! Even some of the ‘free’ attractions like nice trails with a park near me have upped their parking to 7/8 quid.

It's always been this way. I'm one of 5, we were children in the 80s and 90s.
There were no meals out, proper days out were rare treats in the holidays, as was the cinema. We had a lot of picnics, knew where the good parks were, spent time in the woods, kite flying, a big space green space plus pals and a football. Lots of fun stuff that didn't cost very much.

@greenpolarbear yep Switzerland is gobsmacking- we sometimes had to go with work-

We have zoo passes for our local and it’s £50ish a year for an adult renewal and £40ish for a child. We go at least once a month so well worth it. We are also going to a theme park next month collected the sun 2 free tickets and then used a discount with a cadburys packet for the next two tickets so for 4 of us plus parking it’s £47 which is more than half the price it should have been online. Need to be savvy to make it work but it can be done

We aren't tight for money but last week planned to do a farm- £50 for the four of us? So then we said swimming £25??!

In the end we went to the zoo as we have annual passes. Prices to things are ridiculous now

The cost of living and electricity is definitely a factor in the increases. I'm more likely to think twice before buying these days too as wages haven't kept up.
I generally use Tesco club card or similar discount schemes where possible. I always keep an eye out for advertised deals too but even then I've reduced the amount I spend on these things in favour of local free outings, playgrounds and cheap museums. If the kids don't enjoy it or we have a bad time it's not such a waste then. And we save the bigger outings for a birthday or something special or tie in to a holiday.

This kind of thing can make a real difference to the cost of a London trip. We drive to Ealing Broadway, very close to the M4. Free to park on the streets nearby from Friday teatime all weekend. Elizabeth Line gets you to the West End in no time and for very little money.

We have done London very cheaply. Shop around for a Premier Inn. We’ve never paid more than £100 a night for a 2+2 family room. For an extra £9.99 you get an adult breakfast and two free kids breakfasts. Free museums and galleries all over the place, the parks etc. Obviously you can spend a fortune, but you needn’t. Even food is more than do-able on the cheap. Get the Too Good To Go app, buy picnic stuff from supermarkets.

But on the wider point - family days out are ridiculously expensive. Four tickets to a theme park or zoo will be at least £120. We never buy food at these places cos it’s invariably both wildly expensive and deeply shit! But we swear by Premier Inns and the Lidl bakery. I will second anyone else who has been recommending NT and English Heritage membership. Historic Royal Palaces is another good one, and includes up to 6 kids which is useful if you want to take their friends (or have six kids yourself, in which case well done for remaining alive).

Totally agree with you. It's extortionate, especially when they're so small. You have to be smart about it.

We do a lot of free stuff. Parks, picnics, bear hunts in the woods, free events in town centres etc. We also do cheap and cheerful for rainy days - take her to B&M or The Range and let her pick her own activities (and get a few other things for other days / back ups). She made sun catchers the other week and loved that. 3 quid for three of them.

I also joined a LOT of local Facebook pages. I mean loads, for the surrounding areas (I'm talking 30 miles ISH). It means you see a lot of moaning, whinging posts but also the free events. So we go to car shows, music festivals, food festivals, family days, markets, etc.

Then there's National Trust and English Heritage membership. Little ones love things like castles. Last time we went to one we made our DD a paper crown and everyone we saw joined in with pretending she was the queen. She had the best day. They also have a lot of activities on too, falconry displays, family days, Easter egg hunts etc.

A lot of the forestry places have kid friendly trails. There's Gruffalo / Zog / Stickman trails. Most of them are free.

Which means that we can save our "day out" money for things we think she'll really love. We did the zoo last year and got free returns within 12 months. So we went again this year (and we take a picnic to things like that). Things like the sealife centre aren't too badly priced. If you do things like Legoland you can often get cheaper entry by booking that AND something else on the Merlin brand.

i think things have gone up hugely recently. I think lots of places did things during Covid then never stopped. Eg wirh my daughter adults were free at soft play. Then during Covid they had to massively limit numbers so started charging a few pounds for adults. Then never stopped when restrictions stopped. Also, you used to be able to just turn up and stay however long you liked. Now you have to book an hour/2hours in advance and then you’re kicked out. So what used to be a whole morning or Afternoon is now an hour or so.

i think theme parks are very good value compared to 20 years ago. I’m sure I remember my parents refusing to let us go to Alton towers or Thorpe park because it was £25 per ticket in the early 00s. It’s only £35 now. Meanwhile the local farm park has gone from £14 to £20 per person in the last 4 years!!

The other thing that pisses me off is adults paying full price at kids attractions. Kid £20 - ok. Me £20 to accompany my 3 year old’- what?! Kids don’t pay full price to attend adult attractions (national trust, museums etc), why do adults pay full price for kids attractions??

@LadyFeatheringt0n and to be honest even if you don't- 2 supermarket lunch meal deals sat in the park at around£9 - isn't going to break the bank -

We have both EH and NT. we can go whenever we want, it includes my 3 DGC and there are some gorgeous places. Well worth it.

Manchester to London on a family ticket booked week before (it's an Avanti offer, no Railcard needed) is £111 return. Two adults. Two kids. Travel down 3.30pm Friday, come back Sunday 5pm.

Free activities like science museums when you are there. Clipper boat for the price of an Oyster

Picnics with food bought from M & S at the tube.

We stay at Archway Premier Inn. Cheapest has been £35 for a Friday night, £80 for a Saturday - it's usually £150 for both nights. Zone 3. Right above the tube.

For non London weekends we always stay at Premier Inn.

Warwick was £80 for a weekend, Castle 2 4 1 cereal boxes were £50 and we were there all day. Following day was a free wander around Stratford upon Avon.

Cardiff £200 for 3 nights. Science museum was £30.

I take our camping fridge with milk etc and I pack cereal / croissants etc which saves £40 for breakfasts. Lunches I do a nice pack up.

Other activities we do at weekend we're here are walks, cycles etc. Cinema was £35 for all of us. £30 for kids to do climbing wall / ninja warrior / skatepark etc. We'll do theme parks but always 2 4 1 cereal packs.

I don't think it's that expensive if you are cost conscious.

Things are pricey, I went to Paris just for a day because it would of worked out almost same as a day in London, got Eurostar early morning and late back for £60 return and spent £35 on food throughout day, walked evedywhere and saw major sights. It was fab 🤣

Top tip is to get them a Blue Peter badge ASAP. Free entry to the Tower of London, plus a bunch of other places. They are quite easy to get, just get the child to watch an episode and fill in a feedback review, or make something relevant that they want to make, and send a picture (plus you fill out a form).

I was a child in the 70s and we went out regularly to zoos , aquariums , the cinema and into London for museums etc but then as I’ve discovered from other threads on here my parents were exceptional .

I agree - the astronomical prices do make a lot of things unattainable for average families. I’m always so relieved when attractions don’t start charging until 5 years old!
Holidays seemed completely out of our league until we thought about camping. Around £100 = 4 nights. That’s for a pitch that comfortably fits a 4 man tent, so just over £6 pp pn! Lovely campsites with facilities, play areas and walking trails. Kids absolutely love it, even if my back doesn’t lol.

Zoos have always been expensive, it was £16 when my now adult kids were primary age.

Contrary to many people's opinion here, children don't need lots of activities, certainly not ones with entry fees - instead go to the park, go walking in the countryside, get involved in your local wildlife trust perhaps. Big attractions are an annual treat

Yes, I would say that going to London for the weekend and staying in a hotel, going to see shows etc is a holiday really!

Agreed! Recent example we’ve experienced: London Eye costs £29 adult £26 over 2 years old. £110 for a family of 4!!! Yes there are some discount codes, vouchers, blue light etc etc but invariably not compatible with school holidays or you get the discount off the walk up price which is £42 Vs the £29 pre booked. It is extortionate!!

think expectations grew over the decades
Exactly. I had a trip to Whipsnade once a year if we didn't have any time away booked in the holidays,and went to the Palladium Christmas show every year as our 'family' present from my wealthy, London based, Uncle.A hotel stay in the city was never an option.
I think there is a pressure to give DC all the experiences. It is not realistic.

Indeed - but I was commenting on "traditional " holiday activities

Pedant in me thinking traditional should be more than 1 generation

Don't get me stated on wage deflation

@greencartbluecart wages rose, and they have since fallen.

It’s obscene. I suppose at least with a theme park or the zoo you’re getting a full day out. There’s an aquarium by us that you could walk round easily in less than 30 minutes and it’s £28 for over 13s and £19.50 for kids. Blackpool Sandcastle is similar in that it costs a fortune for 3 hours. It’s even £6 each to get into our local petting farm, and there’s a couple of sheep, a pig and some chickens. And then you have to pay 2 quid for a little cup of carrot sticks to feed them.