School Holidays: Best family events & things to do in London

Summer school holidays will come round this year from July 21 to August 31. From the latest kids shows to exhibitions and animals, here are the best family things to do in London with the kids during the summer break.

 

1 London Zoo Lodges, The Regent’s Park

London Zoo is inviting people to sleep overnight in one of its on-site lodges which are within roaring distance of the lions, slap in the middle of Regent’s Park. These overnight stays include three exclusive after-hour tours that take guests past some of the world’s most incredible animals, as well as a hefty breakfast and a two-course dinner and two days entry to both London and Whipsnade zoos.  

Price: From £197.50 per adult & £65 for additional children

Address: The Regent’s Park, NW1 4RY

Website: londonzoo.org

2 UNIQLO Tate Play at Tate Modern, Bankside

The Tate Modern invites families to play and interact with two participatory artworks on display this summer. Karachi born, London-based conceptual artist Rasheed Araeen’s interactive sculpture Zero to Infinity, is a collection of 400 lattice-construction cubes in primary colours on display at the gallery’s Turbine Hall. Originally laid out neatly by the Araeen, the audience is welcome to dismantle the structure to create new configurations initiating a process of play and transformation.

A second installation, Shamiyaana, also created by Araeen, pops up outside the gallery, comprising of four colourful gazebos with tables and chairs inside. Designed to look like as café or restaurant, it is an artwork based on the idea that art can be a part of everyday life, and visitors are encouraged to take a seat inside the tents, share free food and engage in conversation with other people who are also there.

Dates: Zero to Infinity on now to August 28; Shamiyanna August 12-28

Tickets: Free, Zero to Infinity is unticketed, Shamiyanna requires pre-booked timed tickets

Address: Bankside, SE1 9TG

Website: tate.org.uk

1 Daytime flicks at Rooftop Film Club, Stratford and Peckham

Both the east and south London Rooftop Film Club venues are putting on family favourite flicks during the day for July and August, which kids are welcome to dress up for. On the bill, Disney and Pixar hits such as Ratatouille, Shrek, Up, Beauty and the Beast and Kung Fu Panda as well as films of the likes of The Super Mario Bros. Movie and Sonic the Hedgehog 2.

Addresses: Bussey Building, 133 Rye Lane, Peckham SE15 4ST; 7 & 8 Stratford Multi Storey Car Park, Great Eastern Road, Stratford E15 1XE

Website: rooftopfilmclub.com

2 London Transport Museum’s Green Journey installation, Covent Garden

This interactive installation puts climate change education and sustainable solutions at the core of a vibrant, fun and engaging learning experience for kids. Children (and parents) will learn how climate change affects London and discover the transport innovations, green jobs and micro actions people can do at home to make a difference. There’s also sensory storytelling sessions, creative workshops and a trail around the museum galleries.

Date: July 22 – September 3

Tickets: Annual pass from £22, children go free

Address: Covent Garden Piazza, WC2E 7BB

Website: ltmuseum.co.uk

3 Power Up at the Science Museum, South Kensington

This hands-on gaming trip boasts 160 consoles and a stack of games spanning the last 50 years. Pong, Pacman, Minecraft and Mario Kart all represent, along with other childhood favourites and next-generation virtual reality experiences. Come for a look a vintage and retro games or to try and beat your family and friends at a game or two.

Date: Opens July 27

Tickets: Free entry to museum, £10 day pass, or an annual pass for £15.

Address: Exhibition Road, South Kensington, SW7 2DD

Website: sciencemuseum.org.uk

4 KidZania Karnival, Shepard’s Bush

A programme of fun designed to develop children’s confidence and autonomy, KidZania’s Karnival provides opportunities for the young ones to try out different jobs. Kids can experiment with a slew of different occupations, including fashion designer, surgeon, firefighter, dancer or courier. Puzzles, a parade, theatre and mysteries will all be part of the Karnival, and kids can even report on the festivities as an on-site reporter.

Dates: July & August

Price: From £11.50

Address:  KidZania London, Westfield London, Ariel Way, W12 7GA

Website: kidzania.co.uk

5 Pippi Longstocking: The Strongest Girl In the World, Victoria

A schoolgirl character that has delighted readers young and old since 1945, Pippi Longstocking will bring her adventures to London this July. This interactive performance, produced in collaboration with Oxford University Press celebrates the free-spirited nine-year-old-girl who uses a delightful mix of rebellion and kindness to help those around her. The show is suitable for children aged four and older. Runs for 40 minutes.

Dates: July 13-16

Tickets: From £12.50

Address: The Other Palace, 12 Palace Street, Victoria SW1E

Website: theotherpalace.co.uk

6 Take the kids out for a free roast at Pivot, Covent Garden

A school holiday treat for the kids and your wallet, the Scottish-inspired Covent Garden restaurant is offering free Sunday lunches to kids these summer holidays. As well as starters such as chicken and hazelnut terrine or the creamy white bean soup, there’s road beef and chicken, as well as cod or a ratatouille for the non-meat-eaters. There’s a few T&Cs, like free meals are limited to two children under 10 per table, and only when two or more adults order a main meal.

Dates: Sundays through summer school holidays

Price: £32 for two courses, £38 for three

Address: 3 Henrietta Street, Covent Garden WC2E 8LU

Website: pivotbarandbistro.com

7 Gamepad at The O2, Greenwich

A perfect rainy day activity – and one that can keep the adults entertained too, Gamepad aims to make gaming accessible to all. Gamers can choose between favourite classics as well as new releases, which are all played on top-quality technology including 16 of the latest consoles and exclusive areas for live streaming and multiplayer gaming with friends. The space is completely step-free and wheelchair friendly and open seven days a week.

Address: Peninsula Square, Greenwich SE10 0DX

Website: theo2.co.uk

8 London Zoo, The Regent’s Park

For the school holidays, London Zoo is hosting the Really Wild Challenge so you can play your way through the animal kingdom, testing your hand at being a zoo conservationist and passing by big cats, Galapagos tortoises and the largest penguin pool in the UK as you do.

Dates: Saturday, July 22 – Sunday, September 3

Tickets: From £31/£21.70

Address: Regent’s Park, NW1 4RY

Website: londonzoo.org

9 Horrible Histories – Terrible Tudors, West End

Birmingham Stage Company’s Horrible Histories – Terrible Tudors arrives at Garrick Theatre for a week of romping back in time to meet evil Elizabeth, horrible Henries and survive the Spanish Armada while you’re at it. It’s history, but with all the juicy nasty bits left in.

Dates: July 27 – September 2

Tickets: From £16.50

Address: Garrick Theatre, 2 Charing Cross Road, WC2H 0HH

Website: terribletudors.com

10 The Islander Carnival & Treasure Island Walking Theatre, London City Island

These two fun family days out come as part of the July-long Islander Festival taking place at Goodluck Hope Housing Development on the Thames in east London. The carnival is filled with games, workshops, a craft market music and food and drink in a day that celebrates the Leamouth Peninsula community. The second an interactive walking theatre show of Treasure Island, filled with pirates, adventure and treasure and which takes audience members through walk that takes audience around Goodluck Hope.

Date: Carnival, Saturday July 22; Walking theatre, Sunday, July 23

Times: Carnival, 12pm-9pm; 3pm-5pm

Tickets: Carnival tickets are free, but register here; £20 available here

Address: Orchard Dry Dock Orchard Place, Goodluck Hope, E14 0JZ

Website: goodluckhope.com

11 Young V&A, Bethnal Green

The anticipated opening of Young V&A, a new national museum dedicated to children and young people, has finally opened. Striving to be ‘the world’s most joyful museum’, the three interactive galleries offer tactile hands-on creative experiences for children aged from newborn to 14-years-olds. It will open with the Sound It Out display which features original poems inspired by the V&A’s collections by leading authors like Children’s Laureate Joseph Coelho, Valerie Bloom, Liz Brownlee, Bob Raczka and Michael Rosen. Also look out for a life-size Joey the War Horse puppet, a Microlino car suspended from the ceiling, Star Wars’ Jabba the Hutt and conservation-approved slime. 

Tickets: Free admission

Address: Cambridge Heath Road, Bethnal Green, E2 9PA

Website: vam.ac.uk

12 Engineers exhibition at Science Museum

Pick anything you use on a regular basis which enhance life in some small or big way – say a colour digital camera, your sat nav or even your raincoat – and chances are you can thank an engineer for playing a role in the creation of that thing. Designed to inspire curious young minds (and in particular to encourage girls), this exhibition looks at the bold, often creative, work done by engineers across industries, from robotics and web to farming and fashion. It showcases the lives, stories and innovations of 60 engineers, who have all been recipients of the Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering, the world’s leading engineering award.

Date: Running now until TBC

Tickets: Free but ticketed

Address: Exhibition Road, South Kensington, SW7 2DD

Website: sciencemuseum.org.uk

13 Battersea Games, Battersea Power Station

This all-ages month of games and sports comes with a pop up padel court, a climbing wall, a basketball court and a running track. You can also take a yoga, boxing or a HIIT training class. Dog agility and training sessions, virtual reality gaming, ping pong, giant board games and the world’s largest PAC-MAN will also keep you busy too. These activities will be held both inside and outside the power station. Look out for the Wimbledon big screen too, and from July 13-16 the gin bus will pull up also.

Dates: July 1 – September 3

Price: Free

Address: Battersea Power Station

Website: batterseapowerstation.co.uk

14 DIVA, V&A

This is celebration of the female performing powerhouses, from the Opera goddesses of the Victorian era to today’s global megastars. The V&A’s major summer exhibition explores the idea of being a diva and how this has been subverted or embraced over time across opera, stage, popular music, and film through fashion, photography, costume music and performance. Let’s hope Diana gets a mention.

Dates: June 24 – April 7, 2024

Tickets: From £20

Address: V&A South Kensington, Cromwell Road SW7 2RL

Website: vam.ac.uk

This guide will be updated, there is more to come.