• Hampton Court Palace with a tween and teen
    days out - Local Review - London - London Borough of Richmond upon Thames

    Hampton Court Palace with a tween and teen

    January 29, 2024 - By 

    Hampton Court Palace is a large group of buildings built over 300 years. It’s just outside London, on the banks of the river Thames, and has been on our family bucket list for a while. My tween has recently announced she hates history (which I think has more to do with her Year 7 teacher than anything else) but I don’t want that to stop her enjoying trips to historical places. Hampton Court Palace with a tween and teen We saw an offer of half price tickets in January, so we booked our Hampton Court tickets which came to £43.60,…

  • Twist Museum with a tween and teen
    City of Westminster - days out - Local Review - London - STEM activity

    Twist Museum with a tween and teen

    January 24, 2024 - By 

    Days out with a tween and teen can be a little tricky. They love a day in London but get bored quickly, unless being fed at the latest Insta famous bakery or bubble tea cafe. My daughter asked to visit the Twist Museum for her birthday and we were excited to have a fun London day out with a tween and teen. Twist Museum with a tween and teen I booked our tickets online and it wasn’t hard to find the entrance to Twist Museum on Oxford Street. There were lockers to leave coats and bags and we were soon…

  • The Gingerbread City 2023
    days out - Local Review - London

    The Gingerbread City 2023

    December 12, 2023 - By 

    Last weekend we visited The Gingerbread City 2023 at Westfield White City.  The Gingerbread City is an annual pop up exhibition where everything has been created from freshly baked gingerbread, with the odd biscuit and sweet thrown in. The exhibition has been called ‘STEM meets sweets’. The Gingerbread City 2023 The theme this year is Water in Cities and The Gingerbread City has been split into five distinct zones showcasing design ideas that respond to various water contexts: the Desert Landscape, Urban Floodplain, Canal City, Frozen Landscape, and Underwater and Floating City. It had been a while since I had…

  • Exploring Frameless London with kids
    City of Westminster - days out - Local Review - London

    Exploring Frameless London with kids

    December 8, 2023 - By 

    Over the weekend we were invited to Frameless London, this can be found on Oxford Street near Marble Arch in central London. Both my children love art so I knew they would enjoy seeing art in a different way from the usual museum and gallery experience. Exploring Frameless London with kids We arrived at Frameless and travelled down to the basement level. Frameless is spread over 4 multi-sensory galleries showcasing 90 minutes of hypnotic visuals set to a dazzling score. There is also a temporary gallery space, as well as a spacious cafe, bathrooms and gift shop. We easily spent…

  • Lowe's christmas penguin lights in London
    days out - Local Review - London

    The best places to see Christmas Lights in London

    November 29, 2023 - By 

    Disclosure – this is a sponsored post For the last few years we’ve spent a day in London looking at all the beautiful Christmas lights. We love a day in London, it can be an inexpensive day out, if you know where to look! We knew we wanted to visit the main streets of central London so planned our day out carefully, taking the Underground from where we live into Kings Cross and walking. We did try taking the bus a few times, we even saw a special Christmas Lights tour bus, but it was super busy, so we ended…

  • Exploring the Thames Barrier
    days out - Greenwich - Local Review - London

    Exploring the Thames Barrier with kids

    October 25, 2023 - By 

    As it’s half term I wanted to share a fun day out we had recently in London. We went right across London to see the Thames Barrier on one of its monthly testing days. Exploring the Thames Barrier The Thames Barrier has been on our London bucket list for years. Earlier this year we saw that it was going to be raised for annual testing, so decided to go along. We went on public transport, getting the tube to North Greenwich and then a bus to Woolwich, from where it was a short walk to the Thames. As we approached…

  • King's Cross Monster Trail
    Camden - Local Review - London - Sculpture trails

    King’s Cross Monster Trail

    October 24, 2023 - By 

    Yesterday we headed into London to King’s Cross so we could take part in the King’s Cross Monster Trail around Coal Drops Yard. I love this part of London and it was a great excuse to get some fresh air. The trail is free but only on until the 31st October – so hurry if you want to go and take part! King’s Cross Monster Trail We walked to Coal Drops Yard from King’s Cross Underground station and headed for the Visitor Centre to pick up a trail map for free. Whilst we were there we checked out the 3D…

  • The Grim's Dyke Hotel afternoon tea
    days out - Harrow - Local Review - London

    The Grim’s Dyke Hotel afternoon tea

    October 21, 2023 - By 

    A few weeks ago we booked a table at The Grim’s Dyke Hotel for afternoon tea. We were celebrating our 15th wedding anniversary so wanted to do something special. We last visited The Grim’s Dyke Hotel on an Open House weekend when the house was open to the public. It’s a gorgeous Arts and Crafts house designed by R. Norman Shaw for Frederick Goodall, and later the home of W.S. Gilbert. The Grim’s Dyke Hotel afternoon tea The house is now a hotel with extensive grounds. On the day of our visit there was a wedding party enjoying drinks on…

  • Best pumpkin patch near London
    days out - Local Review - London

    Best pumpkin patch near London

    October 18, 2023 - By 

    A couple of weekends ago we made our annual trip to our local pumpkin patch at The Pop Up Farm. The name is funny because it’s not a pop up farm, the pumpkins are planted and grown at the farm! We love going every year and picking a wheel barrow full of pumpkin and squash to decorate our home. As you enter the farm you can collect a wheelbarrow and head out to the pumpkin patch. The pumpkin fields are quite big and we found it was worth walking to the further end to get the best pumpkins. When the…