Free stuff to do in London this summer holidays

[Beeth0ven]

Right. I am feeling bloody broke at the moment (after too much investment in DIY during pandemic!!).

Need to entertain a 9 year old and a nearly 4 year old.

Does anyone have any amazing recommendations for free stuff to do in (or around) London this summer???

Looking for rainy day and sunny day suggestions!!

Apologies for being so London centric (we live here!)

Science museum, can keep them occupied for ages with all the interactive stuff

For a sunny day with a mix of indoor/outdoors, National Maritime Museum in Greenwich. Has the playground in the park as well

We love the Diana Fountain. Dd would spend the whole day splashing in it.

Museums. Parks. Walks - look up some of the walking routes. Bus rides on the top of a bus to other parts of London - you only have to pay your own fare, kids go free.

Woolwich Ferry is free, if you can get there. Small children usually like it.

Some of the smaller venues have lots going on too. Check out some of the city farms, eg. Spitalfields
Some nice activities here if you're in South London or willing to travel:
www.slbi.org.uk/summer-holiday-activities-at-the-slbi/

For museums check if you need to book as almost always you do - I.e. www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/visit

Docklands museum is great if you can get there (only you need to pay on the DLR though and if you can sit at the front the kids can pretend they're the driver). Book the mudlarks gallery there in advance - it has lots of play activities. You can take a picnic and eat it in Cabot Square.

Lots to see on a walk along the southbank - fountains at More London to splash in, HMS Belfast and the weird boat at Hays Galleria and they sometimes leave a petanque set out there), Golden Hinde and you can peer through the gates at the Globe, turbine hall at Tate Modern, wooden rocking sculptures in Gabriel's wharf ....

Canary Wharf has a 'Summer Lights' exhibition of outdoor artworks, as well as crazy golf & table tennis tables that are free to play.

If you do the Science Museum, book tickets for the Pattern Pod (they're free but it gets booked up).

Lots of the museums are free. NHM, British Museum, Science Museum etc.

All the parks. Holland Park is lovely with a great playground and loads of different things to explore. The Diana playground in Kensington Gardens is fab. Hyde Park by the Serpentine. Battersea park. The Olympic park. Quite a few parks have splash parks/paddling pools.

The vast majority of the museums are free - you just need to book a time slot.

Fountains by Kings Cross (Coal Drops Yard) - take a spare pair of clothes.

Golders Hill Zoo and Butterfly House are Free

Homerton Adverture Playground is Free

Street Art Walks are free and usually pretty fun

Camden Markets (Free, but food can be a but pricey)

Canary Wharf and South Bank are both good ideas (both have different things on)

Exhibition Road Festival is free (if it's on when you are here) - usually many street performers there too.

Street performers around Covent Garden as well.

You can visit the Langar and get free food in Willeseden - it's a beautiful space and very nice to introduce children to the religion and charity.

London Mithraeum, Barbican (not the exhibitions), but i think they do soft play which is (not sure if it's up and running again, they also usually do a Summer play festival, and its next to Museum of London.

Changing of the Guard - free

Pretty much all the markets are free to enter and not limited to capacities at the moment.

Lots of places do free musical events at lunch times.

Sightseeing - as a fellow Londoner, we often don't do sightseeing in our own city. Visit the major landmarks - Houses of Parliament, Buck House, the Thames, Covent Garden, Hamleys, Trafalgar Square etc.

Great fire of London tour - many schools learn about this. I took my children to Pudding Lane, Monument (currently shut) and the Museum of London.

Library reading challenge - every year. Thr children need to read 5 library books and get a certificate.

Homemade play doh - have yet to perfect a recipe, but I sometimes make up coloured doh, which lasts a few days.

'Homemade play doh - have yet to perfect a recipe, but I sometimes make up coloured doh, which lasts a few days.'

Try the recipe from The Imagination Tree website. That's the one I use and it's perfect everytime and lasts ages.

Horniman (that is not the correct name) Museum and Gardens (most of it is free - great playground nearby too.

Tumbling Bay and Holland Park Adventure Playground are both good.

There's a lovely walk from Homerton Adventure Playground to Tumbling bay playground that could take up the entire day if you stop at every playground - mostly along canal - some great street art, lots of cafes etc to stop - I think there's five playgrounds in total.

RAF Museum is Free and has a great play ground

These are brilliant!!! We have been to many of the museums - but will check their programming again to see cc’dif new stuff on over summer.

I also booked one of these for my oldest... it’s tutorials for video making at apple (adventures in movie making) - I chose the Covent Garden store but actually they’re all over the country I believe:

www.apple.com/uk/today/event/video-lab-kids-adventures-in-moviemaking/6819311609744578189/?error=session-not-found&sn=R113

No doubt he will moan the whole time 😂😂😂

Our best days in London were always just walking about and seeing the sites when DC were young. The paid attractions were so expensive when you're paying for a family and never felt worth the money, especially when DC just ran from one exhibit to the next and didn't get their money's worth

Mine used to like the walk across Tower Bridge to stand with one foot on either side of the opening

Then there's a walk along the river past the buskers and living statues (or get the Clipper if funds allow) to see the Houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey and up to see Buckingham Palace and a run around and picnic in St James Park.

The monument is a couple of quid to climb, they enjoyed that. And of course the big museums are free.

Lots of free ideas in this post: museummum.com/2021/07/09/summer-holidays-london/

Draw on the floor of Turbine Hall at Tate Modern, see the Heather Phillipson at Tate Britain, do free illustration classes with Old Royal Naval College, outdoor games at National Maritime Museum, Summer Lights at Canary Wharf (free mini golf and table tennis too!), the tail trail at Museum of London Docklands, spies and disguise family day at IWM, weekend festivals at Southbank Centre... All the details and more are in the post.

Sunny days: can recommend the new Elephant Springs at Elephant Park, and the new play fountains at Walthamstow Town Hall. Plus Granary Square at Kings X and More London are on.

Hope this helps, and let me know if you need any more ideas!

It’s not free (hear me out) but if you buy a ticket for the transport museum in Covent Garden, it lasts for a year. Ds bloody loves it when he was little and we used to go a lot. There are the street entertainers and singers there too, always lots of buzz there.

Oh the transport museum is free for kids! I used to use the Little Bird website too for special offers .

Google "Summer Activities" and the name of your borough. Councils put on a lot of free or inexpensive stuff, either ongoing clubs or one day events - try neighbouring boroughs too. We've done roller discos, martial arts, meet the animals and an inflatables event with DS(6), but there are things specifically for older kids.

@MolyHolyGuacamole

Science museum, can keep them occupied for ages with all the interactive stuff

Although that eternal bloody wheat machine can kiss my arse...

Second the Olympic park. Had a fab day there at the weekend. Avoid ice cream vans £4 each!!!!

Although that eternal bloody wheat machine can kiss my arse...

If you mean the grain pit that used to be in the Launchpad, it is sadly long gone. RIP Launchpad, The Garden is a weak substitute.

Was that the thing that threw down lentils? Ds ended up right under it on a school trip and o was picking lentils out of his hair for days (he has very thick hair).