The Best Activities For Kids This Half-Term
19 February 2018
Even if you have it all planned out, chances are you’ll quickly run out of things to do with the kids during half-term.
After going to the cinema a dozen times and visiting enough museums and parks that you and they can handle, there’s just not that many things to do that tick all the family-friendly boxes. But don’t get disheartened and give in to Netflix and games consoles just yet; there are tonnes of brilliant activities and events going on at this time of year — you’ve just got to find them.
We’ve rounded up some of the best family-friendly things to do in our nation’s capital this February half-term. For you, London may be a road trip or train journey away, but it's all part of the fun (at least for them).
Harry Potter: A History of Magic at The British Library
The first book in JK Rowling’s Harry Potter series, ‘Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone’, was first published more than 20 years ago. That means there are two decades of magical Hogwart’s history to digest, and The British Library has done a stellar job of dishing it up.
Each room in the Harry Potter: A History of Magic exhibition is modeled around a Hogwarts subject, bringing the enchanting mysteries of Harry to life through displaying the history of the books, the art of potion making, and the gravestone of a supposed discoverer of the philosopher’s stone, Nicolas Flamel.
Imagine Children’s Festival at the Southbank Centre
For 12 days in February The Southbank Centre, one of London’s most prominent cultural and art hubs, adult themes are thrown out the window and the whole place is taken over by books, art, theatre and music for kids and kids only.
Each day at The Imagine Children Festival there’s a range of activities, free and ticketed, aimed at everyone from 0 to 12-years- old. This year, there’ll be guest appearances from children’s book authors, a presentation of Roald Dahl's Revolting Rhymes, a fun family disco, and the usual crowd favourite, Bedtime Stories.
Kidzania at Westfield London
Half-term is a time for children to chill out and forget about school for a little while, but that doesn’t
mean they shouldn’t be thinking about their future careers.
The subject may be a bore to the average 12-year- old, but Kidzania at Westfield London turns thinking about the working world into a fun and engaging activity. With costumed experiences for children from 4 to 14, kids can try everything from shopkeeping and dentistry to airline piloting and firefighting. For half-term only, they can even become cricket stars and WWE wrestlers.
Cirque Berserk at the Peacock Theatre
If you're looking for something a bit more lively that will keep you and the tweens entertained, head to the Peacock Theatre for Cirque Berserk — one of the most outrageous circus shows you’ll find in the whole of Europe.
With aerial acrobatics, wild stuntmen, daring dancing, and rhythmic drumming, Cirque Berserk is packed full of adrenaline-filled action. And that’s even before you get to the 30 jugglers and “the world’s most hair-raising circus act”, the ’Globe of Death’.
Sea Life London on the South Bank
It’s always a good time to visit Sea Life London on the South Bank. But with eight new Gentoo penguins, characterised by their white stripe going from eye to eye across the top of the head, there's now even more reason to visit the captivating underwater and sealife experience.
A few other of their main attractions include the Shark Walk, where you can walk over sharks as if you were walking on water; the Atlantic Coasts section, in which you learn about everything from eels to octopi to snails; and the Ray Lagoon, which is pretty self-explanatory but needs to be seen
to be truly appreciated!
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