Grant Museum of Zoology
A 19th-century cabinet of curiosities packed floor to ceiling with over 68,000 animal specimens: a jar of preserved moles, dodo bones, a quagga skeleton and a brain collection. Weird, slightly spooky and compact enough to see in 45 minutes.
- Grab the free family activity sheets at the front desk
- Look out for handling sessions where kids can touch real bones and fossils
Times change seasonally — always check before you set off.
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Word on the Water - Floating Bookshop
A 100-year-old Dutch barge on Regent's Canal turned into a moored floating bookshop, with children's books, cosy nooks and rooftop live music on sunny afternoons.
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Arsenal Emirates Stadium Tour
A behind-the-scenes look at the Premier League winners’ home stadium, with touch-screen audio handsets helping explain all. Fans can walk through the home dressing room, take photos in the press conference room, walk down the tunnel, and sit in the manager's pitchside dugout. The ticket price includes entry to the Arsenal Museum, where you can view historic match kits, trophies, and memorabilia from the club's history. Note that stadium tours do not run on home match days.
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Rosewood London Art Afternoon Tea
A stunning, sophisticated option for older kids. The pastries are edible masterpieces inspired by famous artists like Hockney or Dali - currently, it's Monet. Kids get their own painter's palette with squeezy tubes of jam and curd, and the cakes are serious works of art - as you'd expect for the price! There's no minimum age, but the set-up is smart and sophisticated and I got the feeling that screaming toddlers wouldn't be overly welcome.
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Pitzhanger Manor & Gallery (And Mini Makers for tots)
Inside the Pitzhanger, the historic countryside retreat of architect Sir John Soane which is set within Walpole Park in Ealing, the main musem has contemporary art exhibitions, free digital family trails, hands-on building block stations, and access to Walpole Park's playground. On Fridays, under 5s will love the Mini Makers dedicated early years sessions, led by experienced artist practitioners, there's messy play, circus play and music and rhyme sessions. Pack a spare change of clothes - the messy play sessions mean business, and make a day of it with Walpole Park and its expansive green lawns, walled garden, and playground area.
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Wellcome Collection
A quirky museum exploring medicine, health and human life through bizarre historical objects, art and a wonderfully comfy Reading Room.
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The British Library (Family Trails)
Book-loving kids will enjoy an hour here among the world's most famous manuscripts, from the Magna Carta to Leonardo da Vinci's notebooks and Beatles lyrics, mostly in one ground-floor exhibition hall. There are free weekend family workshops too.
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