From kids ballet in Angel to a petting zoo in Kensal Rise, here are our favourite things to do with kids over the Easter Holidays in London.
CATCH A SHOW
1. Fall in love with ballet at My First Cinderella, an enchanting production for kids ages 3+ at Sadler’s Wells Peacock Theatre, Portugal St, WC2 (Holborn tube). Preview 7pm (Wed Mar 27); daily 11am & 2pm and extra 7pm on Sats. £10-£25/family £49-£55 (Mar 27-Apr 7)
2. Be afraid! The Horrible Histories have taken over Hackney Empire, 291 Mare St, E1 (Hackney Central overground). For ages 5+. Catch the Terrible Tudors 2.30pm (Fri), 2.30pm & 7pm (Sat) & 5pm (Sun) or Vile Victorians at 7pm (Fri) & 1.30pm (Sun); £10-£20 (Mar 29-31)
3. There’s an amazing line-up at the Greenwich Children’s Theatre Festival at Greenwich Theatre, Crooms Hill, SE10 (Greenwich/Cutty Sark DLR) with Snow Play, Splat by Numbers, My Brother the Robot and more great shows for kids ages 3+. Dates and times vary, tickets from adult £7.50-£12.50/child £5-£7.50/family £20-£32 (Mar 29-Apr 14)
4. There’s a movie marathon at Prince Charles Cinema, 7 Leicester Place, WC2 (Leicester Square tube). Catch the Toy Story trilogy from 12.30pm, £18/£15.50 concs. (Mar 30)
5. Egg at Polka Theatre, 240 Broadway, Wimbledon is a musical, magical adventure following madcap birds and an egg. 11am, 2pm & 3.30pm (dates and times vary); £12/£8 concs. For ages 4-7. Watch with Baby performances at 11am on Apr 5 & 10. (Apr 3-13)
6. Settle down for the wonderful and enchanting Just So Stories at the LOST Theatre, 208 Wandsworth Rd, SW8 (Stockwell tube), adapted from Rudyard Kipling’s tales. 3pm, adult £10/child £8 (Apr 2-14)
EXPERIENCE & EXPLORE
7. The Passion of Jesus reenactment brings Biblical drama and thousands of onlookers + big screens to Trafalgar Square, WC2 (Charing Cross tube) on Good Friday. 12pm & 3.15pm; FREE (Mar 29)
8. Experience A Day in the Life of a Greenwich Pensioner in this unique Easter trail with dress-up and prizes, £2 per trail at Old Royal Naval College Greenwich, SE10 (Cutty Sark DLR) (Mar 29-Apr 14)
9. Explore the brand new This is London exhibition, bringing Miroslav Sasek’s classic book to life against a stunning backdrop at Tower Bridge. 10am-6pm daily, adult £8/child age 5+ £3.40/under 5s FREE (Mar 29 through Mar 2014)
10. See BBC Proms hit Wallace & Gromit’s Musical Marvels with live orchestra at Hammersmith Apollo, 45 Queen Caroline St, W6 (Hammersmith tube). 7pm (Sun), 11am & 2.30pm (Mon); £15-£45/child half-price/family £59 (Mar 31-Apr 1)
11. Celebrate LSO St Luke’s 10th Birthday Festival at Jerwood Hall, LSO St Luke’s, 161 Old St, EC1 (Old St tube) with their LSO Discovery Family Day of interactive concerts, building tours and musical VIP corner for babies! Aimed at families with kids under 8. 10am-2pm, adult £5/child £3/babies under 12 months FREE (Apr 1)
FUN & GAMES
12. Zippo’s Circus brings its high-flying, daredevil attitude to Blackheath, Shooters Hill Rd, Lewisham SE3. Adult £7-£21/child £5-£17; most shows 3pm & 7pm (Mon-Sat), 11am & 3pm (Sun) (Mar 28-Apr 9) and then to Herne Hill, Brockwell Park, SE24 (Apr 11-16)
13. Roll up for EasterSkate 2013 in Hyde Park, W1 (Hyde Park Corner tube) with skating for all ages and abilities, Easter Bunny Stroll and skate (2pm, Sun), Chocolate Egg and Spoon race (4.30pm, Sun) and slalom showdown (2pm, Mon). Activities from Fri 7pm through Mon 2pm, FREE (Mar 29-Apr 1)
14. Whizz around on dodgems and carousels at the Crystal Palace Easter Funfair (1pm-10pm daily) or the Clapham Common Easter Funfair (12pm-9pm daily) (Mar 29-Apr 14)
15. Make the most of a White Easter at The Snow Centre Easter special offers with indoor skiing and snowboarding for all ages in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire HP3 9NH (30 mins from Euston rail). Prices start at £8.50 for sledging and snow scooting (no experience necessary), £49 for 2 x 1hr ski lessons for ages 4-6, see more details on the web site www.thesnowcentre.com (Mar 29-ongoing)
16. Spot the boy in stripes at the Where’s Wally Weekend at Discover Children’s Centre, 383-387 Stratford High St, E15 (Stratford overground/tube). Camouflage yourself for fun and games. 11am-5pm, £4.50/family £16 (Apr 6-7)
NATURE & OUTDOORS
17. Enjoy Easter at London Wetland Centre, Queen Elizabeth’s Walk, Barnes, SW13 (Hammersmith bus station) with egg decorating and painting, nature trails, pond dipping and egg-citing games including egg rolling and egg & spoon racing. Daily 11am-4pm, entry fees adult £11.65/child £6.50/under 4s FREE (Mar 29-Apr 14)
18. The Haribo Easter tombola is just part of the Easter Fun at Battersea Park Zoo that includes Count the Golden Rabbits quest (Apr 2-14), Rabbit Days (Apr 2 & 4) and Guinea Pig Days (Apr 9 & 11). All FREE with zoo entry adult £8.75/child £6.50/under 2s FREE (Mar 29-Apr 14)
19. Oxford vs Cambridge? The Goat Race is hot to trot at Spitalfields City Farm, Buxton St, E1 (Shoreditch High St overground). 1pm doors, 4.30pm race; adult £5/child £1. And don’t miss The Boat Race, also live on the River Thames, 4.30pm. (both on Mar 31)
20. Stroke fluffy bunnies, chicks and baby ducklings at the Easter Day Petting Zoo at Paradise, 19 Kilburn Lane, W10 (Kensal Green tube). 12-3pm, FREE (Mar 31)
21. Go on an Easter Boat Trip from the London Canal Museum through Islington Tunnel along the Regent Canal. Advance booking only! 11-12.30pm & 1.30-4pm, adult £4/child £4 (Apr 2 & Apr 9)
FAIRS & MARKETS
22. Pick up Easter goodies, yummy street food and sweet treats at the Real Food Easter Market, extended to Monday for the holiday at Southbank Centre, Belvedere Rd, SE1 (Waterloo/Embankment tube). 12-8pm (Fri), 11am-8pm (Sat), 12-6pm (Sun); FREE entry (Mar 29-Apr 1)
23. Head to the Horniman Museum Easter Fair, 100 London Rd, SE23 (Forest Hill overground) for Egg Hunts (10.30-4.30pm), Bandstand Bunny Hop jive sessions (11am-4pm), stalls and more. Daily, FREE (Mar 30-31)
24. Judy’s Vintage Rock & Roller puts the swing into spring with the ever popular Affordable Vintage Fair offering retro clothes, accessories and collectibles plus live music from Natalie Ross, Voodoo Cats and Red Jackson. At Old Spitalfields Market, 65 Brushfield St, E1 (Old St tube), 11am-4pm, FREE entry (Apr 1)
LOCAL PICK (ISLINGTON)
25. There’s a cracking line-up for Easter at Freightliners Farm, with the Easter Fun Day on Easter Monday (Apr 1, 11am-4pm), plus holiday activities almost every day from sowing your own veg patch and herb garden to potato planting, biscuit making and cake decorating. Activities 11am-12.30pm and 2-4pm, FREE (Mar 29-Apr 12)
Don’t miss our 10 Best Easter Egg Hunts in London and look out for more events in our Easter Bank Holiday Weekend Scoop and our April Calendar coming soon!
Images via the Paradise, Tower Bridge, Discover and Spitalfields City Farm
So many fabulous events on over Easter. I would love to see Horrible Histories myself (will leave the kids at home though they are too high maintenance!) x
Hehe, I know what you mean about high maintenance although the boys are quite well trained for theatre now (although Jed still spends half every show on my lap)! Weekend Scoop is also packed with events for Easter — check it out!
Wow, so much to do over Easter. We had the most perfect day at the Yorkshire Sculpture Park. Kids, chocolate, fresh air and art! Brilliant. If we were in London I love the sound of the food markets and of course having a place in Barnes, the Wetland Centre and watching the boat race would have been a must x
Gutted I missed the goat race! That would have been a giggle to watch!
Will be heading to the zoo, City Farm and a couple other yet to be determined venues over the end of term break so your list is a great help!
Hi Tinuke, glad the list is helpful, there’s so much to do out there. We didn’t do Goat Race this year either but make sure you go one day if you can, it’s a really fun event — I did a review of The Goat Race a couple of years back https://babesabouttown.com/2011/04/why-spitalfields-gets-our-goat/