Places to visit in Buckinghamshire

 1) Roald Dahl Museum, Great Missenden - Lucky was at one point obsessed with Roald Dahl and so this was a great little museum to visit. The museum had a lot of activities going on and so do check their website for holiday activities (https://www.roalddahl.com/museum). Lucky loved sitting in his massive chair and read one of his books. It's a little museum so it can be done in about 2 hours.

2) Hellfire Caves, High Wycombe - These chalk caves hold great holiday-time activities. We went there for Halloween which was excellent. We were able to cover the whole cave system and loved the character interactions. The mood was very creepy too. If Halloween isn't your holiday, they do activities for Christmas but please check their website (https://www.hellfirecaves.co.uk/) . The visit took no more than 90minsutes. They had a nice cafe onsite. There's also a nice park nearby so you can make a nice day out!

3) Chiltern Open Air Museum, Chalfont St Giles - One of our favourite open air museums. Another place which holds many events. We went there for a Unicorn and Dragon day. Despite the rain, we had a great time with some great workshops which took us around the whole museum. We met unicorns, we saw a whole dragon sleeping in a house. They was storytelling in a yurt and other multiple activities. It took us a whole afternoon to enjoy ourselves!

4) Gulliver's Resort, Milton Keynes - A great theme park for a family with young children. It had a dinosaur park and a water centre too. We spent a whole day there and had time to do repeat rides too. 

5) Black Park Country Park, Slough - This was such a  big park. We went there for Go Ape but there are many other activities going on. It is well shaded with cafes dotted around. 

6) Windsor Park, Windsor -  This is a Royal Park and to be fair I had lots of expectations when I was reading about Saville Garden and Virginia Water but it was disappointment. But we got our steps in!

7) Bletchley Park - The home of the code-breakers, it is a great museum with plenty of activities to learn everything that this place and its people did and how they helped in WW2. It has many buildings designated  to different parts of code-breaking including a great display about Alan Turing. There's plenty of activities for kids. It also has a nice lake where you can picnic around. Once you buy the tickets, you can revisit within a year

8) Legoland, Windsor - this is a theme park which we always go back to. Having a Lego fan in my home, is a great plus because I feel like the best mummy ever taking hi there. It has a huge splash park and plenty of rides for little and big ones! A great day out guaranteed

Peppa Pig's World and Paulton's Park

 Yes it's mainly known as Peppa's Pig World but it's also a theme park so it's a place for young and old alike. We did an overnight stay with another family at nearby New Forest with trips to the beach to make the most out of our weekend.

We hit the park first think in the morning as we had 4 kids under 7 who were Peppa Pig crazy and so wanted to make the most of it. There were no problems getting the kids up early on this occasion. Despite all the preparations, it seemed that all the parents had the same plan and so it was very busy as the gates opened! The weather was a bit chilly but that didn't stop the fun. There were so many rides and lots of character interactions at multiple times! Despite the queue, we did all the rides. In between, there was a zoo so we had time to look around it and had a nice picnic surrounded by animals and ducks!

There was a little splash park which the kids loved. The cold weather didn't bother them at all.

Once the kids were happy to leave the park, the adults had some fun in the theme park. Most of the water rides were kid-friendly and so it was fun for the whole family. There were a few rollercoasters and the queue were non-existent.

We had plenty of time to do repeat rides in the whole park.

Overall, we had a great day at Peppa Pig World with all of us being so tired which means a successful day!

Soft plays and trampoline parks in and around London

 With the unpredictability of the British weather, as a parent, you need to have a plan B to entertain the kids. My plan B is usually arts and crafts to do at home but during the holidays, I need them out of the house so we usually end up in soft plays and trampoline parks. So here's our tried and tested list (when I say we, I also include myself) so far, which I'll keep updating as w go to more. I'm not including soft play areas in other venues such as museums. This post only refers to stand alone pay centres and trampoline parks.

Gambado, many site across London - we loved this one so much as this was were our took my eldest to her first ever soft play for her 2nd birthday (I wasn't aware these things existed for toddlers). It has both a toddler area and a big kids are. The slides are good and there's plenty of space to chase each other. Some have carousels and some have mini-kart race tracks. They also do great events!

Rumble Tumble, Harrow - this is quite limited as to what the kids can go. It is small and can get stuffy.

Jungle Monkeys, Eastcote - The structure is tall but narrow so not much to explore.

HarroWall, Harrow - this isn't really soft play but a great little place for kids to get lost in a castle.

Flip Out, Brent Cross - great place to test your trampolining skills but also your strength as it has 2 obstacle courses. 

Oxygen Freejumping, Park Royal - I personally didn't go to this but kids attended for parties and told me it was good!

Kidspace, Romford - This place offered so much to do from the usual soft play with lots of slides, mini go-karting, 2 climbing walls and a Go-Ape type  course! I really really enjoyed it!

Our day out in Nottingham

 Knowing the English weather during winter times, we wanted to explore a new city, outside London, where most of the attractions are indoors. After much googling and budgeting, I zeroed on Nottingham! Everything was in the city centre so all was walking distance. It had a bit of everything of what we liked. And what more it is the land of Robin Hood and since there is lot of injustice going around right now in this country, I thought it will go well with our mood. So here what we did:

1) City of Caves - did you Nottingham has about 500 caves??? Who knew!  So we visited this attraction which depicted the life in Nottingham. From the role of these caves in the tannery business to their role in WW2, we learnt so much! It took us about 30mins but with the audio guide could take you longer. It isn't suitable for prams or wheelchairs!

2) The National Justice Museum - 2mins from the City of Caves, was the National Justice Museum. If you buy combo tickets with City of Caves, you get a slightly reduced price. This was such a great museum with so much information about the different departments needed to carry out justice. It has some great exhibitions about young people and protest which Lucky had to visit not once but twice! It also had a real courtroom where we took part in a pretend trial (I got to be a witness). The museum also had actual prison cells which was quite spooky but again so educational! One of the best museums we ever visited!

3) Nottingham Castle - this castle had a bit of everything. It is a beautiful place with great views of Nottingham.  An excellent playground (it said suitable for 5-12 but age is just a number), an art gallery, exhibitions and lots of history. It also had a Robin Hood Adventure place where you get to be Robin Hood and try out all his skills! The castle also had caves but it was closed on this occasion.

Nottingham is a great place for everyone and not too far from London either! Do visit it!

Places to visit in Yorkshire

 We love exploring the country and on our quest, here's where we visited in Yorkshire!

York - This was a day trip from London and we packed in so much. Lucky was learning all about Romans and Anglo-Saxons at the time so this was perfect to go to. We visited the Viking Centre, the Chocolate Story, went on a Ghost boat ride on the river, York Castle Museum, DIG: The archeological adventure. We also walked around the town centre and visited the famous streets and shops! One of the most kid-friendly town!

Whitby - We did a weekend there! It is such a charming town right by the sea. Obviously, we went there because of Dracula and it didn't disappoint with its history! We visited all the must from Whitby Abbey, Dracula:the experience, steam train ride, the Captain Cook replica boat, 199 steps and visiting Humpty Dumpty grave, Captain Cook Memorial Museum, the Jet museum. We also did the beach but it was raining. We went on a ghost tour too and ate at a lot of fish and chips restaurants!

UK Waterfalls

 I've always been a water baby. I love any water bodies, features, etc... and waterfalls are no different to me. I love the adrenaline to the scenery to get there but also the calm and soothing feeling when you feel that water spray. I'm always in awe of them no matter how being or small!

Here are some of what we visited!

Lumsdale Falls, Peak District -  about a 45mins walk from Matlock Bath, this was a waterfall tucked away on the edge of the Peak District. The highlight is the ruins surrounding it! 

Virginia Falls, Windsor Park - a man-made waterfall. We made a trip from London to visit it but it was so underwhelming and we couldn't even go close to it!

Mallyan Spout Waterfall, North Yorks Moor - situated in Goathland, where the station was featured in one of the Harry Potter movies, the walk to it is a bit strenuous but beautiful! You have to climb big rocks in order to get close to it! There's also other waterfalls nearby but we didn't have time!

Becky Falls, Dartmoor National Park - this was so fun to do! Not really one of those majestic waterfalls but more water coming down rocks and it felt like a game of stepping stones to get close! It was another beautiful setting!

St Nectan's Glen, Tintagel - a beautiful waterfall set in something that I will call a tropical jungle. Kids can splash around. A small entrance fee to pay.

Wales - https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/4124083420943040106/2673917214633585558

Castles and Palaces in UK

 UK is in no shortage of castles and places thanks to tall the Royal Families! There are such majestic places to visit full of history. Who doesn't want to pretend there are kings or queens for the day!  Here is a list of some that we have been to!

Buckingham Palace - The Mother of all Castles and Palaces! It comes with a hefty entrance fee so is it worthy? The actual place is a bit underwhelming because everyone hypes it so much! But the atmosphere, the fact that you are walking in the footsteps of the Queen, that's unbeatable. Towards the end of the tour, there's a room for kids to dress up and play like a royal!

Kensington Palace - The home of Princess Diana! My favourite part is the sunken garden. It is a small palace but it's beautiful. There's lot of events and exhibitions happening there and if you combine it with a visit to Hyde Park, that's a whole day out!

Tower of London - It is a very dark place including it's very own torture chamber and bloods spots of murdered young princes! It is also where the stolen Crown Jewels which we refused to see! During school holidays, there's always special events going on! 

Hever Castle - Anne Boleyn's childhood home, this picturesque castle and grounds has so much to offer! From multiple gardens, to a water play area and play areas with a replica castle in it, this is a guaranteed fun day out, especially during the summer!

Warwick Castle - We love the castle and the town! We went there during Halloween and it was so apt with the dungeon, scary maze and all the other events going on! Another great kid-friendly castle! More of our day out can be found here: https://mummylife0912.blogspot.com/2020/01/warwick-castle.html

Hertsmonceux Castle - We went there during the Medieval Festival which is such a great experience. With live battle reenactment and jousting battles to people in costumes living like their used to during medieval times. Please go and experience it! Here's our experience https://mummylife0912.blogspot.com/2017/09/englands-medieval-festival.html

Dartmouth Castle - This is one the most beautifully located castles I have ever been to right on the Dart Estuary. Even the walk from the town centre to the castle was stunning! It is a small castle but with amazing views!

Dover Castle - This was such a huge castle including WW2 tunnels. You can see the whole of Dover from where the castle stands. 

Canterbury Castle - It's not a castle anymore just about 10mins from the town centre. You can't visit the ruins anymore because it's dangerous. But even looking from the outside, you can feel how gorgeous it was.

Oxford Castle - Comes with its own prison, this castle was the first castle we visited so it always holds a special place in our heart!

Hastings Castle -  It is absolutely stunning with beautiful sceneries and kids will learn about the Battle of Hastings at school so a great place to see what they learned in the actual place

Norwich Castle - Right in the middle of the centre, this castle is compact but holds lots of activities during school holidays!

Tintagel Castle - You can easily spend a whole day in this stunning village in Cornwall. And the highlight is the Castle overlooking the beach. It comes with its own cave too! We spent the whole morning there discovering all the corners of the castle. When I say castle, its the walls that remains but still with beautiful views surrounding it, you have plenty to look around!

What about you? Do share the best castles you visited.