Cambridge, what's best for children?

[Thurlow]

I'm spending a day and a half in Cambridge with my 5yo, staying at the Travelodge. Any suggestions about places to take her (she loves musuems) and good places to eat?

We downloaded a town trail (treasuretrails.co.uk) which gave purpose to our wanderings and made us look up etc.
Crepeaffaire do fab savoury & sweet crepes at a reasonable price.

We downloaded a trail (treasuretrails.co.uk) which gave purpose to our wanderings & made us look up etc.

Crepeaffaire do fab savoury & sweet crepes at a reasonable price.

The botanic gardens, the fitzwilliam museum, a visit to one of the colleges (Kings or Trinity would be my suggestion).

Over at the travel lodge for a great dinner I suggest Charlie's pizza. It's on Burleigh street and has amazing pizza and a great play area for young ones.

For ice cream you must go to Jack's gelato on Benet street near the famous eagle pub.

Be prepared for it to be chaos though, Cambridge has become a hotspot for Chinese visitors over the past few years and it is absolute madness most days now.

Which Travelodge? Fitzwilliam Museum or punting!

It's the Travelodge by the Grafton Centre?

Will definitely do the treasure trail!

The Folk Museum is great for exploring (it might be called the Cambridge Museum these days). It is at the bottom of Castle Hill, and you can climb up the castle mound for a nice view of the city (and pretending to be Norman's). The Sedgwick museum has dinosaurs and fossils. It is also very close to the Archaeology and Anthropology museum and I think both are still free. Check times though because they used to be a bit random...

Covent Garden is a little road off Mill Rd (close to the Grafton) which has blue plaques on almost every house talking about the ordinary people who used to live there. My friend's small one loved our walk along there speculating about the people!

There's a great sweet shop called Hardy's on St John's Street near Toni & Guy if your wee one likes those things

Good pizza in the Haymakers, Chesterton High Street too, which isn't far away. A pleasant walk across Midsummer Common.

Second Folk & Sedgwick museums, plus Botanic Garden (nice cafe too). Michaelhouse is a good place to eat too, and an unusual setting. Walk past the Corpus Christi clock too en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corpus_Clock

If you have a nice day you could climb Great St Mary's tower and see the colleges that way. Not sure I'd take a 5 yo punting (certainly didn't take mine at that age).

polar museum
www.spri.cam.ac.uk/museum/

Thanks for all the suggestions! It was the Sedgwick I had in mind so pleased someone mentioned it before I went to the Fitzwilliam and there were no dinosaurs! It's supposed to be raining on the first day so I think we'll try a few museums - and the sweet shop of course

Sadly pizza is off the menu. There's a Bella Italia right by the hotel, is that any good? Would save us traipsing around too much after checking in.

You have a leisure park with other options just up the road from the Travelodge; Nando's and Pizza Hut if I remembered correctly. Bella Italia is the same as any chain restaurant - fine but not amazing.

Ps. I see you said no Pizza, so I wasn't suggesting Pizza Hut I was just trying to remember what restaurants were nearby! I think there is a nice Thai on Newmarket Road but obviously that depends on whether you and your DD like that kind of thing.

Lots of activities at different museums over the summer, there's a brochure with more details here: www.museums.cam.ac.uk/whats-on/summer-at-the-museums

The Bella Italian in the grafton centre is dreadful. Do you like Thai food? There's a pub called the wrestlers in Newmarket rd that is really good for Thai food. The Burleigh in the other part of Newmarket rd is also good for more pub food. The old spring on Chesterton rd is nicer faster out food. Otherwise walk to king st, there's yippee noodles which is popular, plus Turkish and Indian.

Meant to add, I've heard good things about the Scott polar museum, keep meaning to go. Not too far to walk, head up east rd, them along the side of parkers piece.

If you bring a bike or scooter, it's really nice to cross Newmarket rd from your hotel, head down to the river and follow it up all th way to magdelene bridge. Just watch out for the other cyclists, and the cows!

There's a Frankie & Benny's and a Nando's near your hotel.
The Thai place is a bit further and it's actually a pub so probably not as child-friendly as the others.

I think the Sedgwick, Arch & Anth and Folk Museums would probably be more interesting than the Fitzwilliam for a younger child. I do like the Fitz but it's more adult I think.

I love Kettle's Yard but think that's still closed for refurbishment.

Which college library is it that has original books including Winnie the Pooh - is it Trinity?

I think that might be the one with a F&B?

Yes it's the Wren Library at Trinity
www.trin.cam.ac.uk/library/wren-library/
Don't know if children are allowed in though.

X posts! I think we'll stick to food right next to the hotel as we're on our own and I imagine DD will be tired by then. Plus I think it's kids eat for £1

Thanks again for all the info, this is helping a huge amount as I like to plan!

The Museum of Cambridge is running a Victorian sweetshop trail
www.museumofcambridge.org.uk/#summer

We are SO doing that!