My friend spent a considerable amount of time scouring the internet last week trying to find something to do with a Halloween theme during half term with her two girls, one primary school aged and one who has just started secondary school.
Turns out it's harder than you'd expect to find something that's fun for all ages and good value for money!
You generally can't go wrong with a trip to ZSL London Zoo - even the most sullen teenager will melt at the sight of meerkats and I'm sure I am not the only adult who reverts to childhood excitement with a close-up encounter with a Ring Tailed Lemur or a pygmy hippo.
Check out this smile when my 11 year off daughter spotted a butterfly had landed on their little brother's hat. My 12 year old son who fancies himself as a bit of a social media maven whipped his phone out clicking a cute pic for his Instagram account!
Young children of course will get excited at the pigeons in the pathways and disdainfully ignore a rare creature only preserved on this planet by the work of the Society's conservation experts, but luckily there are so many birds, bees and bugs plus a good selection of exciting play areas that even the most demanding toddler should be satisfied.
I was blown away by the Land of the Lions area which replicates an Indian town complete with mock shops and a Temple with monkeys frolicking. Opened last year the experience features lots of detailed touches - and of course some magnificent lions.
I just found out too that you can stay at the Gir Lion Lodge with cosy colourful cabins right in the heart of the zoo - you get exclusive VIP tours and meals while experiencing the zoo after and before the hoards of visitors arrive. Oh I'd love to do that!
At the moment there are extra treats in store for regular visitors with a spooky Halloween hub offering an extinction trail complete open graves, eery music and creepy crafts.
There's also a pumpkin carving station with a bargain one pumpkin for £3 or two pumpkins for a fiver offer! After making a mess and using my best knives to create our pumpkin at home I wish I'd known I could use their specialist kid-friendly tools, take home your glorious creation and leave all the discarded pumpkin mush behind!
My tweens particularly enjoyed the extinction trail which saw them hunting for the names of extinct creatures along a spooky walkway. My nine year old agreed to take part once he realised those with completed sheets could pick up a small prize ( a bag of jelly sweets) in the zoo shop on the way out.
You can tell they are a blogger's children can't you. I said "look scared" and they obliged, albeit with varying levels of commitment!
Also at the zoo at the moment there's a lovely area to listen to not-too scary stories and even a mini disco! You can make masks and ghosts and pipe cleaner spiders - all these Halloween extras (apart form the pumpkin carving) are included in the cost of admission to ZSL London.
Now a word about that. As a mum of 7 I know that a day out at a world-class attraction like this can work out to be expensive.
Did you know that the AttractionTix website offers discounts on some of the world's most popular attractions including Disneyland Paris, Six Flags Theme park in America and PortAventura in Spain?
In the UK and Ireland you can buy cut-price tickets for loads of attractions including the Emirates Spinnaker Tower, Hampton Court Palace and all the best theme parks. You can also book tours, including the fantastic Big Bus Tours.
If you fancy visiting ZSL London Zoo you can get an extra 10% of the AttractionTix ticket prices - just use the code BLOGGER10
The code expires on October 31 but is valid for half term dates and beyond - the site currently has tickets on sale right up to February so why not bag a fantastic Christmas present or book tickets to go in that dull period between Christmas Day and New Year's Eve?
Disclaimer: I visited ZSL London as a guest of AttractionTix to review the Boo At The Zoo activities. Views and opinions remain honest and my own.
Turns out it's harder than you'd expect to find something that's fun for all ages and good value for money!
You generally can't go wrong with a trip to ZSL London Zoo - even the most sullen teenager will melt at the sight of meerkats and I'm sure I am not the only adult who reverts to childhood excitement with a close-up encounter with a Ring Tailed Lemur or a pygmy hippo.
Check out this smile when my 11 year off daughter spotted a butterfly had landed on their little brother's hat. My 12 year old son who fancies himself as a bit of a social media maven whipped his phone out clicking a cute pic for his Instagram account!
Young children of course will get excited at the pigeons in the pathways and disdainfully ignore a rare creature only preserved on this planet by the work of the Society's conservation experts, but luckily there are so many birds, bees and bugs plus a good selection of exciting play areas that even the most demanding toddler should be satisfied.
I was blown away by the Land of the Lions area which replicates an Indian town complete with mock shops and a Temple with monkeys frolicking. Opened last year the experience features lots of detailed touches - and of course some magnificent lions.
I just found out too that you can stay at the Gir Lion Lodge with cosy colourful cabins right in the heart of the zoo - you get exclusive VIP tours and meals while experiencing the zoo after and before the hoards of visitors arrive. Oh I'd love to do that!
At the moment there are extra treats in store for regular visitors with a spooky Halloween hub offering an extinction trail complete open graves, eery music and creepy crafts.
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| Are these the bones of a Woolly Mammoth? |
My tweens particularly enjoyed the extinction trail which saw them hunting for the names of extinct creatures along a spooky walkway. My nine year old agreed to take part once he realised those with completed sheets could pick up a small prize ( a bag of jelly sweets) in the zoo shop on the way out.
You can tell they are a blogger's children can't you. I said "look scared" and they obliged, albeit with varying levels of commitment!
Also at the zoo at the moment there's a lovely area to listen to not-too scary stories and even a mini disco! You can make masks and ghosts and pipe cleaner spiders - all these Halloween extras (apart form the pumpkin carving) are included in the cost of admission to ZSL London.
Now a word about that. As a mum of 7 I know that a day out at a world-class attraction like this can work out to be expensive.
Did you know that the AttractionTix website offers discounts on some of the world's most popular attractions including Disneyland Paris, Six Flags Theme park in America and PortAventura in Spain?
In the UK and Ireland you can buy cut-price tickets for loads of attractions including the Emirates Spinnaker Tower, Hampton Court Palace and all the best theme parks. You can also book tours, including the fantastic Big Bus Tours.
If you fancy visiting ZSL London Zoo you can get an extra 10% of the AttractionTix ticket prices - just use the code BLOGGER10
The code expires on October 31 but is valid for half term dates and beyond - the site currently has tickets on sale right up to February so why not bag a fantastic Christmas present or book tickets to go in that dull period between Christmas Day and New Year's Eve?
Disclaimer: I visited ZSL London as a guest of AttractionTix to review the Boo At The Zoo activities. Views and opinions remain honest and my own.