Summer Holiday Activities for Kids

I know, I know - it's still 7 weeks until the kids break up for summer (count 'em, 7!) but I am already preparing for them. My boys are almost 12 and 6 and, as I have bemoaned many times before, will happily play play on screens for 12 or 14 hours if given the opportunity, stopping only to use the toilet, snack, and argue with each other. I can't blame them. I would have done the same if I had the option of more than a mere four telly channels and Pong.

 

I do this sort of list every year. The aim is not to get  through all the activities, but to take the hassle of out finding something fun to do under pressure. Some of these can be done anywhere, while others are child friendly activities and family days out in South East Wales, where I live. I will be adding to this list so please let me know if you have any suggestions and, if you've got a similar list for your area, add a link to your blog post at the bottom.

Everything on this list is either something I have done, or which I genuinely would do. I've not simply generated a list of random places.

Free Places to Go in SE Wales
Blaenavon Big Pit

National Museum Cardiff - I Spy Nature, Art Collection, WWI

St Fagan's
Caerleon Roman Museum, baths, and amphitheatre 

Cardiff Bay - parks, walk, cycle, scoot

National Trust: Tredegar House grounds, Duffryn Gardens

Walk up the Sugarloaf

Walk up the Skirrid

BMX track in Blaenavon

Ride along Newport - Brecon canal path
Welsh Proms free daytime concerts in July
Explore castle ruins at Abergavenny, Skenfrith, Crickhowell
Bedwellty House and Park in Tredegar
Porthcawl Beaches

Skenfrith Castle

Cheap Things to Do in SE Wales

Super Tubing at Festival Park in Ebbw Vale. £5 for 5 rides. Accepts Tesco vouchers and sometimes has Groupon deals.
Boat trip in Cardiff Bay
Cwmcarn Forest Drive £5 per car. It's closing in November so get in while you can.
Car boot sales are great for browsing and picking up cheap toys/games/books

Other Things to Do
Geocaching

Rearranging bedrooms - surprisingly satisfying and fun
Techniquest

Techniquest in Cardiff Bay

Ways to Spend Less and Still Have Fun
Orange Wednesday, cheap Tuesdays at Vue, or choose daytime sessions
Voucher Cloud - have downloaded this but still not used it
Exchange Tesco vouchers
Vouchers on cinema receipts (currently ours has 20% off at Harvester on them)
Kids AM sessions at the cinema - £1.75 at Vue, or £3 for a 3D film. Cineworld's prices are cheaper, at £1.50, or £1.25 if you book in advance with MyCineworld.

School Holiday Planning

Some parents moan about the hassle of school days and look forward to the school holidays, when they can have a break. I am the opposite. School days = no problems. Everyone knows what they need to do, where, and by when. I'm not saying it always gets done without a bit of yelling, but everyone knows and knowledge, as they say, is power.

Come the summer holidays and 2 kids quickly find themselves bored without some sort of routine. The eldest at (nearly) 9 is not so much of a problem. He can disappear to a friend's house, or have them around here, and they can amuse themselves for days on end. The youngest, at barely 4, is another matter. He likes a bit of routine. Not so much to have every minute of every day filled with activity, but because he likes structure and to know what's going on. If we're having a do nothing day that's fine, as long as he knows in advance that's what's going on. Both my husband and I work from home so it's important for us to keep a bit of structure to our days as well, otherwise we end up entertaining them all day and working late into the night to get everything done. It doesn't make for a very fun 6 weeks for us and as we're decidedly ratty by mid August, for the kids either.

We've arranged some child care for the youngest but I've created a holiday planner so I know who is doing what, when and where. To be honest, it was partially to satisfy my lust for a good list. If there's anything that makes me feel more capable than a list, it's a list with multiple columns and colours. I've also written a separate list with ideas of things we can do and ordered them by price. I normally use an Organised Mum wall calendar, but I've created a separate spreadsheet just for this.

It's like my own special project. I think I need a hobby. A (large) part of my brain is telling me I'm overthinking this whole holiday thing. Behind it, ready to jump out in 3 weeks, is a smaller by very smug part ready to jump forward to receive accolades that I'm not left in charge of 2 recharged, bored, batteries looking for a bit of structure.