Eye on London - 25 Family Mini-Adventures to have in London

London from the inside Monday 18th - Sunday 24th December 2017

When embarking on a family mini-adventure in the capital make sure you pack water, a pen and paper, wet wipes and plenty of jam sandwiches. These adventures are sure to delight children and adults alike. Now go forth and adventure!

1. Pick three restaurants and have a starter in one, main course in another and dessert in the last. Or if you’re feeling super brave do it in reverse! May we suggest a sundae at Ed’s Easy Diner, noodles in Chinatown and a starter in one of their favourite chains on Leicester Square.

2. Splash about in the fountains on the South Bank or in the Somerset House courtyard. Just don’t forget your towel!

3. Take your foraging bag to Regent’s Canal where you can find blackberries, elderflower, wild garlic and herbs.

4. Meet the dinosaurs at Crystal Palace Park.

5. Get off the train, pick a tall building in the distance and try and find your way to it without a map.

6. Fly a kite on Parliament Hill.

7. Take a pocket full of change to the Novelty Automation mechanical museum near Holborn.

8. Take a tour by black cab - befriend a cabbie and ask if he might show you around.

9. Take a trip on a driverless DLR train and get the seat right at the very front.

10. Walk along the South Bank. Depending on how energetic you’re feeling you could walk a few metres or 180 miles if you keep going to the source!

11. Explore the Horiman Museum and Gardens in Forest Hill.

12. Learn the butterfly in Tooting Bec Lido.

13. Have a table tennis tournament in Dulwich Park.

14. Taste test and rate London’s fish and chip shops and decide on your family favourite.

15. Get on the next bus that comes along for 12 stops and see where it takes you.

16. Climb to the top of Monument.

17. Sit on Bankside near The Globe and unleash your inner Shakespeare by writing a story, poem or play.

18. With a rod licence in hand (from the Post Office) head to South Quay station where you can fish in the South Dock at Brunswick Brothers A.S. angling club.

19. Take a fiver each to Battersea car boot sale and see who can bag the biggest bargain.

20. Fly down the zip-wire at Coram’s Fields playground. There’s also sandpits, paddling pools, sports pitches and farm animals to meet.

21. Go bird watching and see how many different varieties you can spot in the city and it’s parks. A keen eye can spot peregrines, parakeets, jays, kestrels, herons and even the odd pigeon!

22. Find the remains of old Victorian gardens from houses long demolished and a disused railway tunnel (now home to bats) in Dulwich and Sydenham Woods.

23. Take your pad and pencils to the National Gallery or the Portrait Gallery and draw your favourite painting.

24. Go to a restaurant with an international cuisine that you’ve never tried before and order something off the menu that you’re unfamiliar with.

25. Stand and stare. Sometimes just stopping and taking it all in can be as much of an adventure as getting out there.

 

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