Family Friendly London - Free Museums

London is well-known for being an expensive city to live, work and visit, but what surprises many new visitors to Britain is the British tradition of free entry to most of it’s major museums. Some of the best museums in London are free to enter, and most are surprisingly family friendly.

Warning: There will always be extra charges for some activities within the museum, and often for special (temporary) exhibitions. Check websites for details and plan to spend a little money once inside the museum or, if you want a genuine free day out, plan your day to avoid the ‘extras’. It’s easily done.

The Science Museum

Great for kids of all ages, with interactive, hands-on exhibits specifically designed for different age groups. There are separate ‘galleries’ aimed at under fives, five to seven year olds, eight to eleven year olds and 12 to 16 year olds. Kids can do everything from staging a puppet show, to volunteering in daily science shows.

The National History Museum

With exhibits on dinosaurs, animals, marine life and the natural world, helpful staff and hands-on kids activities, this is very family friendly, and once again, free.

The National Maritime Museum

Covering not just maritime history, but other momentous moments in transportation, such as the dawn of the space age, this museum is great for families and has plenty of events going on, especially through the summer, such as the Family Treasures event that allows children to create the story of their own family’s history.


Victoria and Albert Museum

The main V&A Museum in South Kensington is probably the world’s greatest museum of art and design, and has exhibitions of everything from ceramics, to fashion, jewleellery and accessories, to photography, prints and books.

The V&A Museum of Childhood in Bethnal Green has historical collections of toys, dolls, games stuffed animals, and even a childcare section, featuring childcare equipment and devices that have been employed through the ages. Visit their website for competitions, giveaways, a free newsletter and kids, pages. Both Museums are free.

The British Museum

With over 1,500, 000 objects in their collection, and covering every era from Roman Britain, to Medieval times and through to more modern developments such as the invention of the steam engine and satellite communication, there’s something to stimulate little historians of all ages. And yes it’s free.

Accommodatiom in London may be expensive, but if you're a family of culture vultures it can still be a good value destination.

Family Friendly Ontario - Guha's Lions & Tigers

I hate to use the overused travel writing cliche 'best kept secret', but when you come across a place like this, that has a cult local following, a limited visibility to tourists, and no official website, it feels as though it's a fair description.

Guha's Lions and Tigers is in Muskoka, Ontario, about 15 minutes drive outside of Bracebridge, in the village of Utterson, and it's a little hard to find. (There's just a small sign off a back country road). If you can find it though, it's definitely worth the search. The guy who runs it is known as The Tiger Man, although the name (of both him, and the place itself) may be misleading (he sometimes has tigers there and sometimes not).

He does, however, have lions, a black panther and a whole lot of stories to tell. Ask him about his life training big cats for movie roles, his work with the Born Free Foundation, his commitment to transporting and re-releasing wild animals back into the natural habitats in Africa, or how he once flew out to a movie set on a private plane with a full grown lion sitting beside him in the cabin. (If some of his roles seem a little contradictory, I'll leave you to draw your own conclusions after talking to him.)

Call (705-385-0847) to check opening times and get directions.

This post is part of the Photo Friday initiative over at Deliciousbaby.com - sharing travel photos from around the blogosphere every Friday.

Family Friendly Ontario - Marineland

Niagara Falls, once known primarily as a honeyroom destination, and still considered by many as an easy, must-do day trip from Toronto, is becoming an increasingly popular family travel destination. Marineland, Ontario, is a great, kid-friendly theme park in the Niagara Falls region, less than a mile from the Horseshoe Falls.



Photo courtesy of Marineland

Kids get the opportunity to meet a variety of marine and land animals, from orcas, dolphins and beluga whales to black bears and deer, and there are plenty of family friendly rides and attractions, plus a few real white knuckle rides for older kids and adults.

Don’t miss:

The view over Niagara Falls from the top of the Sky Screamer, the world’s highest triple tower ride at over 137 meters. (The name is very apt – you know you’re in for a thrilling ride when you’re standing in line and you hear people screaming on the way UP).

One of the world’s largest and longest non-stop roller coasters, Dragon Mountain.

Arctic Cove, for the opportunity to touch and feed beluga whales.

Killer Whale ‘Splash and Jump’ sessions at Friendship Cove.

The underwater observation area, for observing the belugas and killer whales.

Regular shows throughout the day at King Waldorf’s Stadium, showcasing bottle nosed dolphins, sea lions and the park’s resident walrus.

Family Friendly England - The Jurassic Coast

Charmouth Beach in Dorset, at the heart of England's Jurassic Coast is the perfect fossil hunting spot, for amateur paleontologists of all ages. Most visitors to England hope (usually in vain) to avoid the rain, but a stormy day on the Jurassic Coast actually adds to the atmosphere.

With storm clouds threatening overhead, sheltering in the shadow of 85-million year old cliffs, it’s somehow easier to imagine what it was like when dinosaurs roamed this stunning coastline, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Charmouth is a great place to start your fossil hunt from - you'll get all the help you need from the enthusiastic dinosaur hunters at the Charmouth Heritage Coast Center, and you can even join in a Fossil Fantastic Day, a whole day of fossil hunting and educational activities for kids and families.

Kids love the experience of scrambling among the rocks looking for the remains of a prehistoric world. While you're most likely to come across fossils of ammonites and belemnites it is possible to find the remains of prehistoric sharks, fossilized footprints or dinosaur bones.

Don’t forget to check out the fossil collector’s code (yes, there is one!) at the Heritage Center before you start.

If you're staying in (or visiting) the US and have dinosaur loving kids, you might like this article, Places to Experience Dinosaurs and Fossils With Kids, over at Trekaroo.com.

Family Friendly Ontario - The Haliburton Forest and Wildlife Reserve

A great four season destination, the Haliburton Forest offers everything from hiking to canoeing to dog-sledding. For enthusiastic tree climbers aged 10 and up, check out the Canopy Tour, which includes trekking through the tree tops high above the forest floor, with a short ground-level hike and canoe trip thrown in.

The Wolf Centre (note Canadian spelling if you ever need to google it) is suitable for animal lovers of all ages with a small exhibit about wolf habits and habitats, a gift shop and short film about wolves. The wolves roam freely in a 15 acre enclosure. They are completely unsocialized and unused to humans and must be viewed from behind one-way glass to keep them that way. Surprisingly you're still able to get photos like this one through the one way glass. Just switch your camera to manual and turn off your flash.

For more information on the Centre, or to find out about outdoor education programs and other activities in the forest click here.

Family Friendly Toronto – the CN Tower

Toronto’s CN Tower may have been trumped by Dubai’s Burj Khalifa, as the highest free standing structure in the world, but it’s still the record holder for the Western Hemisphere, and is still claiming to be the world’s tallest tower (according to the Guinness Book of World Records definition of ‘tower’). It’s also home to the world’s highest wine cellar!

Kids still love jumping around on the glass floor high above the city, and now there are more features to love like the futuristic motion theatre ride. Although it may not be the first Toronto attraction that comes to mind for a family friendly day trip, the tower was recently voted Best Tourist attraction by readers of City Parent.

The total Tower Experience is currently going for $32.99, or you can buy individual tickets to different features and levels within the tower. If you're in Toronto for a few days check out the Toronto City Pass for excellent value.

Other family friendly attractions in or around Toronto include Ontario Place, the Royal Ontario Museum and Canada’s Wonderland.