School is out and, let’s be honest, it can be a struggle to keep kids amused. When the sun shines it’s an easier task, but grey and rainy days require a little more thought.
Linked Magazine has put a bit of thought into it so that you don’t have to. Although we like to keep things reasonably local, we have cast the net a little wider to include a good choice.
TRAMPOLINING – Falkirk
Use up some of their energy with a fantastic trampoline session. This is great fun and suitable for kids 9-12, and 13-18, with Open Bounce sessions to hit the greatest heights and gain confidence. For the more adventurous and bold, Pro Parkour, Dodgeball and Flip Airbag should provide all the cool required for a cracking day out.
Booking online is advised. There is a mezzanine viewing gallery and cafe for concerned parents.
POTTERY & SOFT PLAY, Stirling
A ceramic painting studio with soft play and cafe. Open 10am-5pm every day except Tuesday. Ample free parking. Disabled access. Baby/child-friendly premises. Unpainted ceramics (Peppa Pig, Thomas the Tank, Hello Kitty, Mickey Mouse and other Disney characters, and Star Wars shapes) that kids can decorate.
ZOOLAB JUNGLE ROOM, Larbert
We are an intimate animal handling, indoor rainforest experience, like no other – in the heart of central Scotland.
With its magnificent rock-work, jungle vines and, of course, selection of amazing rainforest animals, the dramatic setting of the jungle makes for the perfect day trip! The ZooLab Jungle Room is somewhere you can get up close and personal with animals that include chameleons, caiman lizards, sugar gliders and pancake tortoises – and see an 8ft Burmese python! It’s a real jungle sights and sounds experience!
SNOW & ICE, Snow Factor, Glasgow
Not exactly an activity associated with high Summer, but just as much fun in August as it is in January. Real snow. Real fun. Indoors. Plus, there may be adult shopping opportunities.
There are numerous options available here, including snow boarding, tubing, skiing & ice climbing (with learn-to packages available). Also check online for Groupon deals.
RIDING LESSONS, Drymen
Lomondside Equestrian Centre in Drymen (within Buchanan Castle Estate) is a long established Riding school, with a good reputation among local riders. Liz Rennie is an effective and fun teacher, encouraging kids who want to learn to ride properly. The ponies are well-schooled and well looked after, and there is an indoor arena so that lessons can happen in all weathers.
Hear me out. Assuming it’s not to chilly, why not encourage the kids to embrace the wet and get, well, wetter? With a wetsuit on, kids will have a blast in the water, and you’ll find the water venues quieter than on sunny days. There is an activity to suit all but the pre-school, so get a crowd of kids together and go have a blast.
Loch Ard has the floating iceberg to climb on and slide off, and at Balloch & Ardlui there are water sports companies that have inflatables and will allow your kids paddle board, wakeboard and kayak in Loch Lomond.
SCULPTURE BABIES, Glasgow
Fabulous, messy play. Sculpture Babies is a free messy play workshop and sensory sculpture session that little people will just love.
For children aged 6 months to 3 years old. Delivered by practicing artists and experienced workshop facilitators, Sculpture Babies is a sculpture experience for babies, their parents, carers and guardians to handle different materials, get messy, meet other babies and play.
Every Thursday 10am-12pm
FREE , no booking required
Families welcome
While there is a structure to the workshop sessions we also allow for full flexibility as we understand that babies and toddlers tend to tire quickly. Participants are free to dip in and out of the session to meet their child’s needs as required. We have baby changing facilities on the ground floor and a relaxed cafe area.
If you would like more information, please get in touch by emailing lauren@glasgowsculpturestudios.org or call us on 0141 353 3708.
The Museum of Childhood’s large collection is full of colour and variety. Visitors to the Museum can see optical and construction toys, cars from Dinky miniatures to child-size pedal cars, toy soldiers, puppets and dolls’ houses. The Museum explores all aspects of growing up, so toys and games sit alongside items such as books, medicines and clothing.
Intriguing for the kids, and a trip down memory lane for parents and grandparents. Hands-on activities, including a puppet theatre and dressing up area.
Suitable for kids from 8 yrs, this is a good one to do with a group, so well worth calling a few mums and organising. Great fun for the kids to whizz around a track, if a little stressful for worried parents!
OPEN COMBAT, (Falkirk, as above)
Our open combat events are FUN! Allowing individuals or smaller groups to play together and experience 6 missions in our specially designed all weather combat arena, using our state of the art weapons that fire infra red beams, it doesn’t hurt and you don’t need to worry about paying for ammo!
Perfect for kids aged 8 and over (big kids can play too, so mum or dad can join in too!)
Riverside is home to some of the world’s finest cars, bicycles, ship models, trams and locomotives. Interactive displays and the hugely popular historic Glasgow street scene bring the objects and stories to life.
There is not one but three streets at Riverside Museum and, for the first time, there is access into the ‘shops’. There is also access platforms up to all the locomotives as well as a wide range of interpretation including over 90 large touch screens full of images, memories and films about the collections on display as well as over 20 interactive hands on exhibits.
CLIMB, FALL & GAIN CONFIDENCE, Renfrew
Suitable for those aged 7 yrs and over, learning to climb (and fall) develops strength and confidence, and may spark interest in future outdoor rock climbing. Definitely a worthwhile way to spend a rainy day. There is a fantastic climbing wall, and a ‘drop zone’ where kids have to trust and step into the 15m void…
Climbzone has one of the largest freestanding climbing walls in the UK. It has 23 panels with Trublue autobelays, and over 70 climbing routes of varying difficulty. It provides an adventure playground for all ages (7+) and thrill seekers who like a vertical challenge.
SCOTTISH SEA LIFE CENTRE, Oban
A great day out for the kids. Make the most of the day, and stop at Tyndrum Real Food Cafe en route for fab fish ‘n’chips or homemade cake, and enjoy a wee day out in the car.
Everything from watching (and helping) feed the seals their delicious fish, and learning about them, to boat trips (if the weather picks up). There are specific feeding times and events taking place, so best check the website for all the details.
HIGHLAND FOLK MUSEUM, Newtonmore
This is a mixture of indoor and outdoor, so is a good ‘grey day’ option.
This is a biggish day out in the car, but well worth the effort. Kids can let off a bit of steam in the grounds, and the crofts and old school are really interesting.
Here at the Highland Folk Museum we give our visitors a flavour of how Highland people lived and worked from the 1700s up until the 1960s! We do this by displaying over 30 historical buildings and furnishing them appropriate to their time period. Some have been built from scratch on site and some have been moved here from other locations.
Our site is a mile long with our 1700s Township (featuring 6 houses) at one end through to our 1930s working croft at the other.We have an on site cafe, gift shop and a fantastic children’s playground.
Cobbled wynds and closes, graveyards, buildings and more ‘spook & gristle’ than the kids could ever hope for. There are castles to explore, ghost tours, jails, tolbooths and ancient monuments to climb.
Join us on a journey through the grim and gruesome history of Crime and Punishment in the Royal Burgh.
Visitors can hear the histories of our places of punishment – and the bloody, bizarre and sometimes baffling tales of the Burgh’s heroes and villains. Learn about the Tolbooth’s notorious ‘Happy Hangman’, Jock Rankin, the ‘Union Martyrs’ Baird and Hardie – hanged and beheaded in 1820 for asking for the right to vote – the murderer Allan Mair, crusading prison reformer Frederick Hill….and many more! (Stirling Old Town Jail)
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