Family Day Out

[ElizabethAllen]

Looking for ideas for a Christmassy family day out in the London/Essex/Surrey/Herts/Kent area.

The DC aged 10 & 11 no longer believe in Father Christmas, so no need for a Grotto visit, but a Christmas themed day out together would be good. Any suggestions?

Harry Potter studio tour? It is Christmas themed during the winter which is lovely.

We went to the Harry Potter experience a few years back,
Hogwarts in the Snow

Christmas lights bus tour

If you're careful with your choice of dates (It gets madly busy) then Hyde Park Winter Wonderland.

The IMAX (near Waterloo station IIRC) for a huge screen film

South Bank Christmas Market

Do they like the big shops? We used to walk along Oxford St to Regent St . looking at the lights and shops then count the Hamleys bags (trip to Hamleys of course)

Peacock Theatre at Sadlers Wells. They usually have The Snowman and The Little Matchgirl.

Mine are older teens , we're all going to see The Play That Goes Wrong

Kew Gardens have an amazing light trail with laser garden, moonlit woods, fire garden and more. There are some vintage fairground rides and places to buy hot chocolate, mince pies and mulled cider. www.kew.org/kew-gardens/whats-on/christmas-at-kew

Definitely recommend Hogwarts in the Snow! I went a couple of years ago and it's lovely.

Winter wonderland- Hyde park

Also loads of great outdoor ice skating venues all around central London. Natural history museum and Canary Wharf have particularly nice ones