Calendar of Kids Events
Free Family Friendly Fun!
Every Sunday 2.00 to 4.00pm (NB NOT Easter Sunday)
In the Pitt Rivers Museum and Oxford University Museum of Natural History. Backpacks, sorting boxes, quizzes, activity trolleys. Drop-in sessions.
Museum Natural History & Pitt Rivers
ZumbAtomic (Zumba for 3-7 year olds)
Every Saturday 10.00 - 11.00 am
ZumbAtomic is a fun action packed class that not only teaches the children to dance it teaches them about their bodies and that it is good to move and be active. I focus on having fun and intermix dance with a variety of games. I adapt what I teach to the class so that all children are encouraged and develop a growing confidence in themselves and their abilities. The last 15 mins of each session is a time when parents can see what there child has learnt in their performance. For more info about this or other adult classes contact Rebekah on 07891174797. £3 per class
Cuttselowe Park Pavillion
Explorer Backpacks at the Harcourt Arboretum
April - November 2010
Are you a new visitor to the Harcourt Arboretum, who would like a few suggestions for exploring our beautiful site with your family? Or perhaps you visit regularly and would like a new experience?
Come and borrow one of our family-friendly Explorer Backpacks from the ticket office, and a world of exploration and investigation will open up to you. Use the activities inside to help focus your walk around our 130 acre site.
This year we have two new backpacks available: “Use Your Senses”, for visitors aged 3 – 5 years, and “Native Plants and Trees”, suitable for children aged 6 – 11 years. Our backpacks are full of ideas to help you get the most from your visit to the Arboretum.
So come and borrow a backpack, and let the exploration begin!
Available to borrow from the ticket office on a first-come first-served basis
FREE with Arboretum entry (adults £3.50, children free, concessions and season tickets available)
Arboretum opening hours 10 am – 5 pm (last admission 4.15 pm)
For more information, please visit our website.
The University of Oxford Harcourt Arboretum
Gallery Pack: Adventures with Alice
Ongoing
Find the Alice objects in the A-Z of Literary Oxford gallery and solve the puzzles Lewis Carroll set for his friends! Packs cost £1 per person.
Museum of Oxford
Gallery Pack: Brass Rubbing
Ongoing
Try your hand at brass rubbing using the five brasses in the galleries. Packs cost £1 per person.
Museum of Oxford
Las OCAS
Term-time Saturdays from 10.30 am - 12.30 pm starting Saturday 8th May
Spanish-Speaking Playgroup for pre-school and school age children accompanied by their parents or carers. The session involves games, singing and storytelling in Spanish. Everyone is welcome, we only ask that you speak spanish to the children during the session. For further information please contact us on lasocasoxford@googlemai.com. £2 per family. Free parking.
St. Clements Family Centre, Cross Street, Oxford OX4 1DA
Oxford Bus Museum & Morris Motors Experience
Ongoing
The Morris Motors Experience is dedicated to William Morris (Lord Nuffield), the Morris Motors Car Company at Cowley and its employees. The only building to survive from the once famous Morris Motors factory at Cowley has been given a new lease of life, re-erected at the Oxford Bus Museum site to house this exhibition. Real-life photographs and information from the people who worked there and the exhibits that compliment them give visitors a taste of what life was like in this exciting era. On show are vehicles such as the Bullnose Morris, the Morris Ital and 1100 and the Morris Oxford.
William Morris started the first bus service in the City using Daimler buses, one of which the Oxford Bus Museum has on show within its collection of approximately 40 vehicles. Parents and children can go aboard some of these buses and can take free bus rides on the first Sunday of each month (April to October), all Bank Holidays, and on special event days.
A children’s play area and café are also available. Open 10.30 am - 4.30 pm Wednesdays & Sundays (all year); Saturdays (April - October) and Bank Holidays (except Christmas Day & Boxing Day). See website for special events. Adults £4, Children £2, Family (2 adults +2 children) £9, Over 60's & Disabled £3.
Station Yard, Long Hanborough, OX29 8LA
Modern Art Trolley
Every Weekend
Our programme includes a range of free events for young people, children and families. Every weekend, from 2 - 4 pm, the Modern Art Trolley offers free art activities linked to the exhibitions led by art students and artists for families to enjoy together. Children must be accompanied by an adult. Free, just drop in! Saturdays & Sundays.
Modern Art Oxford
Natural Science Sundays
Sunday 4th July - Sunday 29th August
Celebrate International Year of Biodiversity this summer! Our “Natural Science Sundays” workshops will provide the opportunity to learn about biodiversity, and the work we do to help conserve it. The sessions are every Sunday throughout July and August, and are suitable for everyone. Each week there will be a different topic. We will work our way from investigating what happens inside plants, all the way through to habitats, and the larger picture of conservation. There will be a range of hands-on activities to try, specimens to handle, and ideas for learning more at home. Free with entry to the Arboretum (adults £3.50, children free). For more information visit our website.
The University of Oxford Harcourt Arboretum
Family Friendly Trail: Sensory Seaside Trail
Friday 23rd July - Wednesday 31st August
Sounds, sights and smells of the seaside come alive in this sensory trail. Drop-in during opening hours.
Oxford University Museum of Natural History
Quest Geocaching at the Harcourt Arboretum
Friday 23rd July – Wednesday 1st September
Our popular Quest Geocaching trails are back for 2010! Geocaching is an outdoor treasure-hunt style activity for family groups, in which participants use a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver to locate boxes or “caches” which are hidden around the Arboretum. The Quest trails will take you on a unique tour of the Arboretum as you locate each cache in turn. The caches contain a range of tree and physics-related activities for you to do along the way.
Express Quest is a trail for beginners, suitable for groups with children aged 5 – 10 years, and the activities include decoding a secret message using coloured filters and making a paper helicopter. Puzzle Quest is an intermediate trail, suitable for groups with members aged 11 years upwards, and activities include predicting the weather and finding out how a tree knows which way to grow.
Quest will provide both new and regular Arboretum visitors a unique way to explore this beautiful 130 acre site, with its range of trees, woods and meadow. So, come along, collect your trail leaflet and GPS, and off you go!
FREE with Arboretum entry (adults £3.50, children free), however a £40 refundable deposit is required to borrow the GPS units (available from the ticket office on a first-come first-served basis). Arboretum opening hours 10 am – 5 pm (last admission 4.15 pm). Please note that dogs are not allowed in the Arboretum (except guide dogs).
Please visit our website for more information.
The University of Oxford Harcourt Arboretum, Nuneham Courtenay
Summerscreen Film Festival 2010
Saturday 24th July - Sunday 1st August
Film, fun and fantasy for young people throughout Oxfordshire during the first week of the summer holidays with workshop tasters including ‘film in a day’, animation, drama and special effect as well as Harry Potter tours, screening premieres and film in a park. New this year the Studio TX magazine programme will be streamed live on the web each day. The festival culminates in the Best of the Fest screening on Sunday August 1st – celebrating all of the new work created during the week. Visit our website for more information.
Various locations
Art in Rose Hill: Family Day @ Rose Hill
Sunday 1st August
Join Modern Art Oxford at Rose Hill Primary School to help celebrate summer by printing colourful bunting using images of summer plants. Led by printmaker Emma Molony who uses screenprint, monotype, etching and lino cut in her work. Part of the Alexandra Reinhardt Memorial Award, sponsored by the Max Reinhardt Charitable Trust in conjunction with The Art Room. FREE, just drop in. 11 am - 3.30 pm.
Rose Hill Primary School
Summerscreen: Best of the Fest
Saturday 24th July - Sunday 1st August
Catch all of the films made over the 9 days at the fantastic Phoenix Finale in Walton Street Oxford. Awards for top animations, dramas, docus and festival news reports. Bring family and friends to celebrate the end of a great week of film and fun. The event is free but get there early to guarantee a place. Everyone Welcome. 4 - 5.30 pm.
Phoenix Picturehouse
Children’s Theatre in the Garden - The Secret Garden
Thursday 5th August
Join us for another family classic as Heartbreak Productions return with The Secret Garden, a magical story about a young orphan girl who finds a whole new world hidden in the grounds of her new home. No seating is provided so please bring your own picnic chairs or blankets. Gates open one hour before the performance for picnics. Tickets are NON-refundable and the performance will go ahead except in severe weather conditions. Tickets: Adults £12, concessions, students and children aged 16 and under £7.50.
Waterperry Gardens, Waterperry, Near Wheatley, Oxford, OX33 1JZ
Family Friendly Activities: Sweet Dreams
Saturday 7th August
Explore the American Great Plains in the Pitt Rivers and make your own dreamcatcher. 1 - 4 pm. A fun way to explore the museum and discover more about our exciting collections. FREE drop-in activity for children aged 5+.
Please note: Children must be accompanied by an adult at all activities.
Pitt Rivers Museum
George's Marvellous Medicine
Tuesday 10th - Saturday 14th August
By Roald Dahl. Adapted by David Wood
George creates a marvellous new medicine to cure his grandmother of her terrifying temper. But, when she drinks his special new potion, the most incredible things start to happen. And George's adventure has just begun!
The Birmingham Stage Company is back on tour with a brand new adaptation of one of Roald Dahl's funniest and most exciting stories following their acclaimed production of Danny The Champion Of The World, which enjoyed packed houses when it visited the Playhouse in 2008. George's Marvellous Medicine is fizztickling fun for all the family. This Roald Dahl classic is adapted for the stage by David Wood whose many Dahl adaptations include The BFG, which visited Oxford Playhouse last year. Age guideline 4+. Tickets £16 / £14 / £11.
"Wonderfully witty. Enters into Dahl's quirky world with aplomb and enormous glee." - The Times
Oxford Playhouse
Postman Pat
Sunday 15th August
Postman Pat returns to UK theatres as the newly promoted Head of the Special Delivery Service (or SDS) with his brand new show “A Very Royal Mission”.
In Pencaster, everyone has received a letter from the Palace, delivered by Pat and his faithful cat Jess, of course. Someone special is coming to open the brand new SDS Sorting Office and they only have a short time to get themselves, and Pencaster, prepared for a very royal visit.
Mrs Goggins, Ted Glen and Ben Taylor are helping with the preparations, while PC Selby finally has something important to do! What could possibly go wrong…….?
But look out! Just as everything is prepared a storm hits Pencaster throwing the royal visit into doubt. Only one man can be counted on – the Head of the SDS, Postman Pat of course... with a little help from his trusty sidekick Jess the Cat and his brand new SDS Helicopter!
Get ready for takeoff and join Pat and his friends in 90 minutes of fun and participation, and remember no job is too big – the special delivery always gets through! Mission Accomplished!
Tickets and information
New Theatre
T-Shirt Decorating
Monday 16th August
3 - 4.30 pm. £8.99. Visit http://www.frostsgroup.com.
Frosts at Millets Farm, Abingdon
Summer Holiday Activities: Beside the Seaside
Wednesday 24th - Friday 26th August
Discover the people and animals who live by the sea. Lots of seaside surprises in store! Joint with the Oxford University Museum of Natural History. 1 - 4 pm. A fun way to explore the museum and discover more about our exciting collections. FREE drop-in activities for children aged 5+. Please note: Children must be accompanied by an adult at all activities.
Pitt Rivers Museum
Family Friendly Event: Beside the Seaside
Tuesday 24th - Thursday 26th August
Discover the people and animals who live by the sea. Make your own boat, catch a magnetic fish and lots of other seaside surprises in store. 1 - 4 pm, drop-in.
Oxford University Museum of Natural History
Family Day @ MAO
Saturday 28th August
Join artist Dionne Barber for an afternoon using your senses and memories to construct a colourful snapshot of life. The results of the day will be on display in the Education Room until Sunday 5 September. FREE, just drop in. 12 - 4 pm.
Museum of Modern Art
The Magnificent Flying Machine
Saturday 28th August
Have you ever dreamed of having wings? Follow the wacky adventures of Professor Bix Horn as he flies by the seat of his pants and tries to build a flying machine out of the most unlikely things. Family favourite Garlic Theatre returns to the BT Studio with their beautifully crafted puppets, a bowler hat and a balloon to take you on a hare-brained journey of a lifetime...Ages 4+. Start times 11 am, 2 pm, & 4 pm. Tickets £7 (£5).
Burton Taylor Studio
Summer Holiday Activities: A Celebration of Summer
Saturday 4th September
Find out about traditional English folklore and make your own corn dolly to celebrate the end of summer. 1 - 4 pm. A fun way to explore the museum and discover more about our exciting collections. FREE drop-in activities for children aged 5+. Please note: Children must be accompanied by an adult at all activities.
Pitt Rivers Museum
Claytime
Saturday 4th September
Claytime, a play with clay, where the audience are invited to participate. Earth’s natural material meets with children’s imaginations: a world of fabulous forms, amazing animals and morphing monsters. Each Claytime is totally unique - creating its own world, its own characters and its own stories drawn directly from its young audience. Truly interactive theatre at its most engaging. Suitable for ages 3 to 6. 11 am & 2 pm. Tickets £7 (£5).
Burton Taylor Studio
Family Friendly Event: Insect Spectacle
Saturday 11th September
Come along today and enjoy our fantastic insect collection with handling tables and experts from the Amateur Entomological Society. 1 - 4 pm, drop-in.
Oxford University Museum of Natural History
Art in Rose Hill: Magic Greenhouse
Sunday 12th September
Come and help brook & black, artists in residence on Modern Art Oxford’s Plot 16 Allotment, build a Magic Greenhouse from bamboo canes. Afterwards there will be a picnic inside and around the structures as part of Lenthall Road Allotment Association summer party. Suitable for all ages – the more the merrier! Please bring picnic treats and any spare bamboo canes. FREE, just drop in. 2 pm.
Plot 16, Lenthall Road Allotment, Rose Hill
The Children’s Bookshow 2010: Stories From Around the World
Wednesday 22nd September
Join us for a celebration of the tales that shape us, wherever we may live.
Now in its 8th year, The Children's Bookshow gives children a chance to experience the enthusiasm, energy and passion of some of today's top writers for children and illustrators.
We are delighted to welcome the award-winning author and illustrator Carll Cneut to the Playhouse. Illustrator of Antonio on the Other Side of the World and Getting Smaller, amoStories From Around the Worldng others, Carll Cneut's distinctive artwork has earned him international renown. But Carll didn't always want to be a book illustrator. When he was younger he wanted to be a circus artist! Find out more about the books and experiences that inspired him as Carll shares some of his stories and illustrations.
Suitable for children at lower KS2. 11 am. Adult £6, Child £4.50. For more information please visit our website.
The Oxford Playhouse
Family Friendly Event: Museum Stories and Secrets
Saturday 25th September
Come along and celebrate our 150th birthday. Discover lost tales and museum secrets, with real museum specimens to handle. 1 - 4 pm, drop-in.
Oxford University Museum of Natural History
The Red Shoes
Tuesday 12th - Saturday 16th October
Based on the classic story by Hans Christian Andersen
Adapted by Emma Rice
Red shoes. Don't you just love them? They make you dance with delight and spin with possibilities. Your tapping toes teeter on the top of the world.
But what happens when you can't stop dancing? What happens when you lose your footing? Would you dare to turn to the butcher to rid you of your heart-stoppingly beautiful red shoes? That's just what our desperate heroine is compelled to do...
The acclaimed Kneehigh bring you a cracked cabaret where anything is possible and nothing is probable. Surreal and sensuous, bloody and bare - the menacing and profound world of the fairy story is revealed.
Adapted from Hans Christian Andersen, this freshly revived production of The Red Shoes is passionate, irreverent, funny and rude. Like a gust of salty sea air, this award-winning piece fuses live and recorded sound, visually and physically powerful images and a story to make your heart pound.
Age guideline 8+
Tickets and information
The Oxford Playhouse
Child-friendly places and activities in Oxford
Science Oxford Live
London Place, St. Clements, Oxford, 01865 810000. Open Saturdays, 10am to 5pm, during Term Time and Monday to Saturday, 10am to 5pm, during local school holidays. £3 per person, £10 for a family/group ticket (up to 5 people). Under 4 go free.
Discover science through play. Our discovery zone is an investigation area to experience science first-hand with equipment that allows you to fire a vortex or air, send secret whisper messages across the room, colour your shadow and much more.
Oxford University Museum of Natural History and Pitt Rivers Museum
Website for Museum of Natural History | Website for Pitt Rivers Museum
Parks Road, 01865 272950. Admission Free
Museum of Oxford
Town Hall, St. Aldate's Road, 01865 252761
Open: Tues - Fri 10am - 4pm, Sat 10am - 5pm, Sun 12pm - 4pm. Admission £2/1.50.
The Museum of Oxford is the only museum that is dedicated to the history of Oxford and its University. The museum tells the story of the city and Oxford University including history, archaeology, architecture, and environment. The museum hosts a range of workshops and other activites for children during the summer.
Modern Art Oxford
30 Pembroke Street, 01865 722733 official website
Open: Tues - Sat 10am - 5pm, Sun 12pm - 5pm. Free admission. Closed: Mondays
Founded in 1965, the Modern Art Oxford is the South East's leading centre for modern and contemporary art. Cafe and Museum Shop.
Museum of the History of Science
Broad Street (next to Sheldonian), 01865 277280
Open: Tues - Fri 12pm - 5pm, Sat 10am - 5pm, Sun 2pm - 5pm. Free Admission.
The Museum of the History of Science houses an unrivalled collection of historic scientific instruments in the world's oldest surviving purpose-built museum building (built in 1683), originally the old Ashmolean.
Botanic Garden
High Street, by Magdalen Bridge, 01865 286690
Open: 9am - 4:30pm. £3.00 / children free
A beautiful riverside setting houses outdoor and glasshouse collections of more than 7,000 plants from the familiar to the exotic.
Oxford Ice Rink
Oxpens Road, 01865 467000. Open most days from 10am-12pm, 2-4pm, 5:45-7:15pm, 8-10:30pm. Admission £5.50/£4.20 for skaters, £1.00 for a non-skating guardian.
It's a good idea to call in advance to check the public session times, as they can vary. Saturday 2 - 4pm session can be quite busy.
Ferry Sports Center Swimming Pool
Diamond Place, Summertown, 01865 467060. £3.20/£1.70
Recently refurbished, immaculate indoor heated swimming pool open year round. Large pool for laps or just splashing around, and separate toddler pool. Also a bouncy castle for the under 5's from 9:30-11:30am daily during summer, Monday, Wednesday, and Friday rest of the year. Call for public session times, as they can vary.
Ashmolean Museum Activity Trolley
Beaumont Street, 01865 278000
Free, self-conducted activity sheets and trails from the trolley, available every weekend and school holiday. Particularly suitable for 5-11 year olds.
Cutteslowe Park
At the end of Harbord Road, off Banbury Road. 0800 0521455 for information and opening times.
Cutteslowe Park is a large, gorgeous, free park with many activities to keep you occupied on a day out. Duck pond, aviary, huge children's playground, mini-golf (summer only), tennis, mini steam train (see schedule below), playing fields, basketball court, flower gardens. Kiosk open in the summer. To get there, take the #2 bus from the city center towards Kidlington. Get off at Harbord Road/Wolvercote Cemetery, and walk to the end of Harbord Road.
Cutteslowe Park Miniature Railway Timetable:
- Weekends 2008: The first train departs at 1.30pm and thereafter at frequent intervals until 5:00pm (4:30pm in March), according to demand. March 23, 24; April 6, 20; May 4, 5, 18, 25, 26; June 1, 15, 29; July 6, 20; August 3, 17, 24, 25, 31; September 7, 21; October 5, 19.
- Wednesdays 2008: The first train departs at 1:00pm and thereafter at frequent intervals until 4:30pm, according to demand. July 23, 30; August 6, 13, 20, 27
- Fare: 60 pence. Family tickets (10 journeys) £5.50.
Cushion Concerts
Jacqueline Du Pre Music Building, St. Hilda's College, Cowley Place. Call 01865 305 305 for booking and information.
On occasional Sunday's, the Jacqueline Du Pre Music Building hosts cushion concerts, which are workshops that teach various musical instruments to young children. There are two early morning sessions for the under 5's, and one late morning session for children over 5 years old. Check our music calendar for dates, or visit the website.
Unique Creations
Banbury Road, Summertown, 01865 514600
Choose from a large selection of ceramic items - from an egg cup to a full dinner service - and paint it yourself! Great for kids and adults of all ages.
Outside the City Centre:
Funky Monkeys
Wyevale Garden Centre, Oxford Road, Bicester, OX25 2NY. 01869 252478. Open 10am to 6.30pm every day except Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Years Day. Sundays 10.30am to 4.30pm. Mon-Fri Term Time: Babies £1 (free with an older sibling over 1 year), Children 1-8 £3.75 unlimited play, Adults free.
Exciting large jungle-themed play structure for 4 to 8 year olds. Separate toddler soft play area for 0-3 year olds. Free interactive computer, wheelie bugs, arts and crafts area with structured activities on week days. Excellent for parties.
Millets Farm Centre
Kingston Road, Frilford - On the A415 between Abingdon and Witney. Open May - October, 7 days a week from 9-5pm. Butchers and Fishmongers closed on Mondays, but have self-service alternatives.
Fantastic farm centre with a farm shop, pick your own, restaurants, garden centre, maze (summer only), and farm zoo and play area. Approximately 15 minutes from Oxford.
Didcot Wave Leisure Pool
Newlands Avenue, Didcot. 01235 819888. Open Monday - Friday 6am - 10pm, Saturday 7am - 7pm, Sunday 7am - 6pm.
Take the kids to the indoor pool! There's a flume-type slide, and the waves get turned on for 5 minutes every half hour. There's also a great cafe where parents can sit and watch the kids swim and play while sipping a coffee. Approximately 20 minutes from Oxford.
Blenheim Palace Pleasure Gardens
Blenheim Palace, Woodstock. The Pleasure Gardens open daily from 10.30am to 3pm. The Pleasure Garden Cafe opens daily from 10.30am to 3.30pm (except Christmas Day). Admission to park and gardens only (not the Palace) £10/£5. Open Saturday 14 February to Sunday 13 December 2009
A 15 minute drive outside of Oxford, Blenheim Palace, in the town of Woodstock, was the birthplace of Winston Churchill. Though the little ones probably couldn't stand quietly through the Palace tours, there's plenty for them to do in an area of the gardens called the Pleasure Gardens. There's a diesel locomotive train to ride, the world's second largest symbolic hedge maze that even hides a giant chess and draughts set (draughts is another word for checkers), and a butterfly house. When you're through playing in the gardens, head over to the cafe for a pizza or ice cream. Approximately 15 minutes drive from Oxford.
Ozone Leisure Center
Grenoble Road, 01865 714100
There's ten-pin bowling (Before 6pm: Mon-Fri £3.95/£3.50 Sat, Sun, Bank Holidays £4.75/£4; After 6pm: Sun-Thurs £4.75/£4, Fri, Sat, Bank Holidays £4.95), a video arcade, billiards, and a state-of-the-art multiplex cinema. A great place (albeit an expensive one) to spend the day when it's raining. Take the 5, 5A, 5B, 5C, or 106 bus (or taxi) to get here.
Didcot Railway Centre
Didcot Parkway Railway Station, 01235 817200
Open weekends 10am - 5pm, daily during school and national holidays. Prices from £3.
Home of the Great Western Society and its unique collection of Great Western Railway steam engines, coaches, wagons, buildings and small relics. Approximately 20 minutes drive from Oxford.
Cotswold Wildlife Park & Gardens
Burford, 01993 823006
Open daily (except Christmas) from 10am - 4:30pm. Admission £8.50/£6
Spend a day in the 'Gateway to the Cotswolds' watching the animals, enjoying the gardens, riding the Narrow-Gauge Railway, playing on the Adventure Playground, and creating Brass Rubbings. Approximately 30 minutes drive from Oxford.
Jumparound
Station Lane, Witney, 01993 866500
Open Monday 10am - 6:30pm, Tuesday - Friday 9:15am - 6:30pm, Saturday and Sunday 10am - 6:30pm. Admission £4 for children over four, £3 for under 4's (slightly more on weekends and holidays).
Fantastic indoor fun for children of all ages and abilities (special needs children welcome). Healthy, homemade locally-sourced food served (additive and nut-free, no fried food or fizzy drinks). Approximately 30 minutes drive from Oxford.
Jambinos (formerly Jamboray)
Ozone Leisure Park, Grenoble Road, Oxford, OX4 4XP, 01491 411114
Centre opening: 9.30am - 6pm, 7 days a week. At busy times we may need to limit visit times to ensure that everyone has a chance to play safely. We will be open every day of the year, except Christmas Day. Admission £1.95 for those not yet walking, £3.95 for under 2's, £4.95 for over 2's, and £5.95 for over 5's.
Jambinos is a brand new concept in indoor activities for children aged between 0 and 10, whilst ensuring that the grown ups are not forgotten! A huge variety of activities are available under one roof for the children, whilst adults can enjoy high quality catering, free daily newspapers and magazines, WIFI access, brand new washrooms, stylish seating areas, air conditioning and first class service.
For our younger guests, Jambinos offers 6 exciting zones: Discovery Zone, Play and Bounce Zone, Let's Pretend Zone, Arts and Crafts Zone, Studio Zone and Toddler Zone. 4 miles south east of Oxford City centre - next to Kassam Stadium.
Birdland Park & Gardens
Rissington Road, Bourton-on-the-Water, Gloucestershire, 01451 820480
Open April - Octover 10am - 6pm, November - March 10am - 4pm (closed Christmas). Admission £4.95/£3 (children under 4 free)
Gaze at the Flamingos, pelicans, penguines, cranes, storks, cassowary and waterfowl in their water habitats, or the parrots, falcons, pheasants, toucans, and more in the aviaries. Don't miss the penguin feeing time at 2:30! Approximately 45 minutes drive from Oxford.
Cogges Manor Farm Museum
Church Lane, Witney, 01993 772602. Open from 4th April - 29th October 2006, Tuesday thru Sunday.
Regular activites and events include demonstrations of handmilking, feeding the pigs, buttermaking (on most Sunday afternoons), work of the Victorian maids in the Manor House. Approximately 30 minutes drive from Oxford.
Farmer Gow's
Longcot Road, Fernham, nr Faringdon, SN7 7PR, 01793 780555.
Open daily 10am - 5pm, 1 January - 23 December. Adults £5.75, Children (3-16 yrs) £4.75, Family (2A+2C) £20, Children 2 and under FREE
Great place to take the kids for an afternoon of farm fun! Features include Meet the Animals - 11am and 2pm, bale climbs, farm animals, pedal tractor yard, farm shop and cafe, egg collecting, adventure bike track (8's and over), chicken runs, adventure play area, trailer rides (Apr-Oct), mega sandpit, giant chess & draughts, table tennis, separate under 5's area. Indoor and outdoor picnic areas and activities. Come rain or shine! Dogs welcome as long as they are kept on a lead.
To get there, turn off the A420 for Fernham (near Faringdon heading towards Swindon), following the brown tourist attraction signs for the White Horse Hill. At the T-junction in Fernham turn RIGHT for Longcot. Farmer Gow's is approximately 3/4 mile from Fernham on the RIGHT.
Snakes & Ladders Indoor Adventure Playground
Audlett Drive, Abingdon, 01235 522227.
Open daily 10am - 6pm. Last admissions at 5:15. Entry before 4:30 - under 2's £3.50, under 5's £4.50, over 5's £5.50. Entry after 4:30 - under 2's £2.50, under 5's £3.50, over 5's £4.50. Closed Christmas Day and Boxing Day.
Formerly Wiggy's World. The huge three tiered climbing frame is filled to the brim with slides, ball ponds, tunnels and rope climbs and cannot be beaten when it comes to youngsters letting off steam. When the weather is fine, kids can now also enjoy the challenge of the 'assault course' outdoor playground. An air hockey table offers entertainment for children and adults alike and the electric motor bikes with their special racetrack is a must for all the kids and a perfect end to a visit to Snakes and Ladders. See website for directions.