Does this bore children.

[Wondering42]

Sorry if this is a stupid question or offends anyone . But I was just wondering. Do children and teenagers actually enjoy family days out at places like stately Gardens ,markets and museums. It just shouts boring to me . Maybe I'm just a dick.

Oo what’s that? The criminal one? Sounds so fun!

We've never really done stately homes.

DD1 didn't mind museums etc as long as they were indoors. She doesn't mind most places as long as they're indoors though.
Dd2 depended on the mood, the weather and whether she had any money to spend in the gift shop. Less keen as she got older, and would probably only have gone once she was old enough to stay at home on her own if she'd thought she would get an ice cream or lunch out.
Ds loved them. Inside or out. Museums especially he used to ask to go to them, from when he was quite small. He's been the 3yo standing absolutely mesmerised in front of an exhibit and not wanting to move on... he's now the 16yo standing reading every detail and questioning the poor volunteer (and occasionally correcting them).

Your DC Will probably take their lead from you. If you aren't interested, they won't be.

DH and I don't like theme parks so we never went to Alton Towers etc. DC went with school but weren't bothered and still aren't. Some of their friends loved them.

My children have always liked museums and are happy enough looking stately homes/gardens occasionally. Some markets they love, others not so much. They do like Christmas markets.

Oh gosh, it would so depend on the child and on their interests. For example, I loved stately homes if they dated back to Tudor times (so, castles!) but not Victorian or Edwardian; thats because I loved reading period fiction about Tudor times so it was meaningful to me. My brother loved the geological museum in London because he was interested in rock formation, but that was really boring to me.

One place that both my boys absolutely loved every bit of was Brooklands. You can go inside planes, do a Concorde experience, look at the bouncing bomb, do a racing car simulator. Plus the volunteers are totally enthusiastic and the whole day was just awesome.

It changes every month, that one. It’s a really odd little local house. We’ve also had ancient mummies and local legend exhibitions.

But there are so many like this. The Postal Museum is brilliant for this, it has a play area which is a mini post office but with slides. They all dress up as posties and there are “jobs” to be done like sorting the mail. There is so much to play with. The mail rail train is good for the elder ones too.

God I used to hate them as a teen.

Being dragged round posh houses, gardens and bloody country fairs and county shows where the highlight was unusual shaped vegetable and prettiest cow competitions. If we were very lucky there would be sheep dog trials...
I loved the beach but we weren't taken very often and when we were we never stayed long.

Our holidays were always in the Uk in a touring caravan. Fun as a small child, not so much with four adult sized humans in a 20 foot box for three weeks...

1- many many families go there (you just have to look at the number if children there) so there must families you don’t know who do enjoy those places. I’d actually say that nowadays, most gardens/NT type if places are geared towards children rather than adults tbh.

2- children often develop their tastes depending on what they are put in contact with. If all their life they’ve heard that gardens and museums are boring, they’re unlikely be pushing for it (also because they’ll know you won’t want to do it)

If i took them to places I mention in my op the would think I was punishing them.

You see, fir me, that’s weird.
Neither me or the dcs would find that a punishment.

I don’t see the difference between the woods where you can be silly and a NT garden 🤷‍♀️🤷‍♀️. That’s what my dcs have been doing there lol.

But I’m curious to know what your dcs REALLY enjoy doing. Because what you’ve described seem to be meh/mid as my dcs would say activities. Not what they enjoy.

My DD loves stuff like that, spent 2 hours looking at rocks upstairs in the National History Museum.

So much of how a child enjoys something is taken from the other people they are with and if the adult with them models that they are bored then they will find it boring. DD and I went to Hampton Court and she was enjoying looking at the art, art painted by very significant artists etc. A teacher from a school group poked his head in and just said "oh, its just more paintings" and took his group on. There may well have been a child in the group that would have liked to look at the paintings but they never got the chance. If parents take children out with a similar view and that the day/location is boring then that is how the child will experience it. You can make just bout anything interesting but it might just take some skill to engage them initially.

I enjoyed that sort of thing, and art galleries, when I was a child, loved it. My son also loved it. However, different strokes for different folks, we cannot all like the same things I would have thought a child would say if they didn't enjoy somewhere, after a certain age.

Teenagers will moan/sulk whatever they are dragged to unless they are getting lunch out or can bring a friend. Mine enjoyed national trust from age 2-10 - not the houses but the gardens and playgrounds and meeting family or friends there too.
The teens often stay at home now or come if we are meeting family for a walk/picnic. The 5yo obviously has to come but again prefers it there's an activity trail on/Easter egg hunt etc or she gets an ice cream. If she had a sibling/cousin close in age or a friend with her though she'd be happy anywhere!

Mine love museums. We used to go to the world museum in Liverpool a lot when they were little. Then I'd make them all come to the Walker gallery with me, which they would initially resist, but then become transfixed by a painting.

Older dc loves an historical monument. Younger dc would prefer shopping. There's room for both.

Museums have great interactive displays for children an stately homes have quizzes dressing up and usually lots of outdoor space for running round. After about age 13 preferred more outdoor physical things as understood how
British stately homes work and have a decent grasp if history. However might still enjoy museums or stately homes if related to a special interest or specific event or meeting with cousins . Older teens might enjoy a market at Christmas time

Oh and mine love the natural history museum and the science museum, London dungeons other history places, aquariums and nature reserves too.

I just said what they enjoy 🤣

Yep. They absolutely can and do. Trips of choice for my teens have included the v&A and natural history museum this summer.

Eldest adores Roman history so her dream holiday is to Rome.

Mine loved museums and national trust places.
Mostly, because they enjoy days out and sometimes I'd get others to join us. I love days out and try to get out as much as I can.

I have 2 teenagers and 1 tween. We went to a national trust type place just a week ago. Took a picnic and took a ball and a big glider, found a field and had fun.

They've always loved museums and have a curiosity about the world.

It's harder getting the teenagers out now but they do end up enjoying it if I manage to persuade them. Dc3 gets very excited for any days out.

I'm not interested much in stately homes but parents loved them. I only liked certain museums as a child whereas I'm more interested in the ones I didn't like now. Always loved a market, the hustle & bustle, the different food, etc one dc loves it & the other dislikes it.

one of mine loves boot sales with granny!

Mine likes them even at toddler age. I’m not sure what else we would be doing half then time otherwise.

We went to beaulieu car museum recently which Ds loved, I’m sure most people of all ages would. Cars, some from films, history spy museum, monorail ride, nice gardens to walk, giant castle playground, etc. He also loved the history museum dinosaurs, transport museum buses and play area, science museum had large interactive area on one floor.

Our local market is a snack fest of samples and Ds knows he can choose various items to take home (cheese and cake usually). There’s music band, drinks, and it’s a carry social area that most our village goes to every Friday evening in summer.

DDs ae 5 and 1. They've had brilliant days out at the Science Museum, Natural History Museum, National Maritime Museum, Young V&A Museum, London Transport Museum, Museum of London at Docklands, Museum of the Home, British Museum, Horniman Museum, Bank of England Museum, Wallace Collection. All of them have some interactive bits and/or hands-on event and they basically treat it as an indoor playground. Often we just do they play area and just whizz through the information displays.

We don't do NT properties as much as they're hard to get to from central London, or hands-off museums although some of them can be interesting to look at, but they're at the age where they need to climb, touch and examine objects. We tend not to take them to markets much as it's often too crowded for buggies.

I suppose it depends on location. I'm less interested in a walk around NT gardens as I can go to a London park

@SisterAgatha that sounds amazing. we like the postal museum