Places to visit for kids in the Cotswolds & Midlands

[Thisisthewaywego]

We will be visiting this area and I would like some ideas for really good places to take a 6 year old boy please. We will probably be based around Stratford Upon Avon but not sure yet.

We have NT, English Heritage and Merlin passes so we are sorted on where we are going with those. We are also going to Cadbury’s World as we were given vouchers.

DS loves hands-on museums etc, adventure playgrounds that are challenging, swimming, steam trains etc, but not hugely fussed about zoos.

I’ve seen very mixed reviews for Think Tank museum in Birmingham so I’m not sure about that for the price; Black Country Living Museum looks interesting.

I love S-U-A
I have spent a lot of time wandering around the town with DC and along the river. Take ballgames to play on the big fields next to the river, take a boat ride, visit Shakespeare’s house, eat nice food & ice creams! 🥰

Black Country Living Museum Is fantastic BTW! Your DS is the perfect age!
All of the Ironbridge museums are worth a look!

Blists Hill Victorian museum is my favourite.

Black Country museum is fab! Or Blitz Hill as an alternative.

Severn Valley Railway

Completely recommend All Things Wild.

It is a full on day out, you will need to drag your LO's out! Such a lot to see and do, animals, play area inside and out, fossil digging, inside dinosaur display and massive outdoor one as well, Go Karts and lots more...

It's in Honeybourne near Stratford....

Think Tank is very crowded in the school holidays, DD went on a school trip there and wanted to go back - she loved it when she was primary school age. It is a very hands-on museum.

Blists Hill and the Black Country Museum are good, near the Iron Bridge there was a smaller hands-on museum called Enginuity - nowhere near the size of Think Tank but if you are nearby at Blists Hill it might be interesting.

Hatton Adventure World, my 7 year old DS loves it.

Lego Discovery and Sealife Centre in Birmingham are also good and you can buy a joint ticket.

Ironbridge museum, never been but a.friend has a.few times & loves it

Lego discovery in Birmingham was shit. I resented having spent my Tesco Clubcard vouchers on it

The MAD museum in Stratford itself is amazing, it's small and cheap so great for fitting in a morning/afternoon. There is also a butterfly farm in Stratford (near the big wheel by the river).

Kenilworth castle is not too far either, lovely and peaceful but if you need more action then Warwick castle is near as well but can get obscenely busy
I would say Hatton was very expensive and boring, I really resented paying for it.

We had Merlin tickets a few years ago and went to Warwick castle a few times. If you get there early, (get to the entrance area at 9.40 at the latest) its not too busy. We headed first to the towers and had them to ourselves, they get much busier later on.

There's a fantastic adventure playground in a lovely Cotswold village called Broadway. You can also visit Broadway Tower (very pretty with great views), and look around Broadway itself, it has lovely little shops and places to eat. If you are feeling fit walk from the village up to the Tower.

If you do all things wild, you could drive to Broadway after.

I agree with @TotallyKerplunked the MAD museum in Stratford is excellent. We used to visit at least a couple of times per year when the children were smaller.

There is also a good playground in Stratford near the Butterfly Farm (opposite side to the town) at the far end of the car park which has a sand pit and a big paddling pool if the weather is good.

Snowshill Manor is....well interesting. A manor house full of collections of different things amassed by Charles Wade on his travels. It took over the house and he moved into the cottage in the grounds.

Cotswold Farm Park is nearby for the second half of the day.

Definitely Black Country Living Museum. Personally think the Hatton adventure place was a total rip off so wouldn't bother.
West Midlands Safari park is excellent and has the drive round safari bit, zoo, theme park rides and dinosaur walkway.
Warwick castle.

MAD museum is a must- I love it there! And Kenilworth castle too - very different from Warwick, but a great place to visit.

If you don't have canals near you (ie if they're a novelty) then go to Hatton locks and watch the boats go up and down (nice cafe at the top lock, and great canalside pub - The Cape - a couple of miles down if you fancy a long walk. Also on the canal theme, Kingswood Junction at Lapworth- nice walk from there down to Lowsonford (to the Fleur de Lis pub).

Parks in Stratford and Warwick are both good, with boat hire. Boating up close to warwick castle is great.

If you do go on the Severn Valley Railway make sure you get off at Highley to see the Engine House great if your son likes steam engines

It’s a great spot for NT houses. Coughton Court, the other one nearby (mind has gone blank), Snowshill, Croome and (into Herefordshire) Croft Castle and Berrington Hall! Smaller places in Worcester, Kinver Edge rock houses and the Elgar Birthplace Museum.

Not so well served by English Heritage apart from Witley Court.

We’ve been to the Butterfly Farm lots of times and there’s some good walking by the river plus a little marina and boating. We’ve had a tour of Royal Shakespeare and also just had a look round the building ourselves.

Cotswolds are a bit over hyped to me (but then I’m local). I prefer the Malvern, Shropshire Hills or Brecon Beacons for walking.

Posh cinema at Evesham is good, with arm chairs and waiter service.

We didn’t rate ThinkTank (I still miss the old Science Museum, which was free!) We enjoyed Cadbury’s World.

I prefer Ironbridge Museums to the Black Country Living Museum.

SVR is great with a small but excellent museum in Kidderminster and the engine shed at Highley. If you go to the end of the line (Bridgnorth), go on the cliff railway.

www.bridgnorthcliffrailway.co.uk/contact-opening-times/

There is a model village in Bourton-on-the-Water, which we enjoyed and also Birdland. It’s not far from Broadway, you could do both villages in one day.