Best museum/day out for 9yos North of Birmingham

[BernadetteRostankowskiWolowitz]

Got a couple of days when dh is away I fancy taking the kids on an overnighter somewhere.

We are north east England with access to a car (or can train but seems so expensive at the moment).

We've done trips to york/edinburgh/London so whilst I don't mind a city break, I'd rather find an attraction that will be a big hit, for a full day, then maybe find a Premier Inn or something nearby.

Anyone got some absolute fail safe great days out with 8-10yos I can look into? Preferably with an indoor option as well as outdoor incase the weather turns.

www.waterworld.co.uk/

monkey-forest.com/

ninjawarrioruk.co.uk/stoke-on-trent/

stokeskicentre.com/

Few ideas for you!

Ironbridge is lovely if the weather's not shit.

Alton Towers? Drayton Manor? I think Alton Towers have got a massive pool as well as the outdoor stuff and I think you can stay there too.

National space centre in Leicester. Plenty of premier inn type places, onescin suburbs have free parking usually. Golden Mile is good for food if you all Indian food - kids made very welcome

Matlock Bath? A bit old fashioned but there is a cable car to the Heights of Abraham, with a tour through some caves and a walk back down to the town. Matlock Bath is like a seaside town without the sea, so cafés, fish and chips & souvenir (tat) shops, amusement arcades with penny-shoves to lose a couple of quid in 2p’s in, and a nice river gardens walk with a small park with a water garden and playground. There is a Gulliver’s Kingdom on the hillside, which is good for smaller kids, and Crich Tramway Museum just a few miles away which is worth a visit.

Lots of Stoke on Trent ideas - maybe I'll have to save that for a week away as I'd want to capture them all!

Oh and sorry, when I say north of Birmingham I just mean anywhere north of it - not that I want to go near Brum. I just don't want to drive as far from my house as (say) Birmingham.