The Easter Holidays in Birmingham and the Black Country are here and it’s time to plan what we are going to do with the children for Week 1 (5th – 11th April 2021).
Here are 10 SmallHouseBigTrips ideas.
4 to do at home and 6 to do outside. Let us know any other great ideas that you might have.
At Home:
Jabala and The Jinn, a play by writer Asif Khan, streamed at The Belgrade Theatre, tells the story of Jabala who befriends a refugee boy from Yemen to help her understand the voice that she hears in her bedroom, speaking Arabic. At only £10 a ticket and perfect for children aged 5 to 10, this is a great rainy day choice to watch at home. Available until the 24th April 2021.
More details including our review and a link to book tickets here: https://www.smallhousebigtrips.co.uk/jabalaandthejinn
Alice in Wonderland, a show from Starbright Entertainments is performed at Motherwell Theatre and you can watch the stream for 48 hours once you have purchased your ticket for £10 (available until 18th April 2021). A perfect family show as you join Alice on her journey down the rabbit hole and into the heart of Wonderland, meeting all kinds of curious creatures along the way. However, she’ll need to be careful to avoid the Queen of Hearts if she wants to keep a-head! Will she ever manage to get home? Will the White Rabbit ever be on time? Will the Hatter ever actually sell a hat? Featuring an incredible cast, hilarious jokes, toe tapping tunes and a sprinkling of magic and mess – this really is the perfect treat for all the family.
Get your tickets here: https://alice-in-wonderland.co.uk/
Barebones DIY Pizza Sets – How about making your own pizzas one lunch time? Barebones have done all the hard work of making the dough, you just have to roll it out, make it into the shape you would like and add your toppings and cook. Sets are available from just £14.99 each (10% off for new customers when you sign up on their website). They also have vegan sets, gluten free sets, veggie sets and meat sets. If you have a bit more money to spend, they’ve teamed up with Urban Cheesecake for a rather fancy Easter Pizza and Cheesecake set.
Check them out here: https://www.barebonespizza.com/
Family Online Planetarium Sky with Birmingham Museums – Birmingham Museum’s Planetarium Officer gives a special family-friendly guided tour of the night sky. See the sky fill with stars and watch as they change into pictures of the constellations. Listen to the story of the Great Bear and learn how to spot it in the real night sky before finishing off the adventure with an exploration of our planets. Sessions take place at 11am and 2pm on Wednesday 7th and 14th April 2021. It’s a family friendly show so bring along your favourite teddy for the magical journey. This is a live streaming session lasting approximately 30 minutes via Zoom, details will be sent out on the day of the event. Tickets cost £4 and should be purchased prior to the day of the event (or at least before 9am on the day of the event).
Further details including other Birmingham Museum Events and where to purchase tickets, can be found at https://www.birminghammuseums.org.uk/whats-on
Outdoors:
Edgbaston Reservoir (B16 9EE) – a 90 acre site (77 of which are open waters) is a 3km walk all the way around. Free on road residential parking and a wheelchair/pushchair friendly path around the reservoir. Picnic areas, outdoor gym and if you wanted you could hire a stand up paddleboard for £15 at Midlands Sailing Club and get a bit wet.
New Hall Hotel and Spa (B76 1QX) – a beautiful moated medieval manor hotel on 26 acre grounds have opened their gardens for people to walk around and explore. It is free to park and explore although if you can support them with ordering from their takeaway food and drink service, it would be very much appreciated. You are welcome to bring a picnic blanket and spend the day relaxing in the grounds – make sure you check out the beautiful bluebells and the woodland walk.
Check out New Hall Hotels Facebook page for menus and more details: http://facebook.com/NewHallHotelAndSpa/
Digbeth Grafitti Walks (B9 4AG) – If you’re driving in, a Sunday is perfect as on-road parking is free on Sundays. Park up and explore the streets, check out the side streets, car parks and outdoor hospitality venues. Keep your eyes open for Pat Butcher by famous artist FokaWolf and other amazing works from artists such as Pete McKee, Gent 48 and Jim Vision.
Treasure Hunt Brum (B3 3BU) – For £8.99 a person (using code SHBT-BLOG-10 for a discount), under 15’s free, you can complete a carefully planned treasure hunt around Birmingham City Centre spotting things that you might not always notice on your day to day walks. This game has you looking up, looking down and looking to your side. Perfect for families with children aged 5 upwards, or even just a group of adults together, minus the kids. Check out more details here: http://www.smallhousebigtrips.co.uk/treasurehuntbirmingham
Walsall Arboretum (WS1 2QB) – Free Parking in the main car park, a large children’s play area, tennis courts and ping pong tables to hire, a bowling green, little streams, lakes, and plenty of space for a picnic. Walsall Arboretum currently has the dinosaur augmented reality event, where you download the Love Exploring HQ app onto your phone (there’s signs around the park to help) and you can then do a trail to find the dinosaurs. Great fun for any dinosaur fans.
Leasowes Park (B62 8DH) – Free Parking and with a historic landscape, is listed as Grade I on the English Heritage list of parks and Gardens of historic interest in England. Designed by the poet William Shenstone between 1743 and 1763 the site is one of the most important and influential landscapes of the 18th Century and is considered to be one of the first natural landscape gardens in England.
It is the diverse landscape of wooded valleys, open grasslands, lakes and streams created by Shenstone that makes the site so important for wildlife. The site has been managed with nature in mind since the mid 18th Century and as such provides a wealth of different habitats for birds, mammals, invertebrates and locally uncommon plant species. You’ll find a play area for children, waterfalls, streams, bridges and plenty of natural play.
Let us know which ones you choose to do. Hope you have a lovely first week of the Easter Holidays.
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