5 things to do with your family during the summer holidays
If you are looking for things to do with the children throughout the summer holidays that won't break the bank, here are some ideas.
Top 5 fun and affordable activities for kids
Summer holiday activities for families
Go to the cinema
If you want to see some of the latest films to hit the big screen - including How To Train Your Dragon, Smurfs and The Fantastic Four: First Steps - Family Pass offers up to 30% off at cinemas including:
Cineworld
Odeon
Empire Cinemas
The 30% discount also applies to snacks.
This Smurf has his ticket! Have you got yours? 👀
See #Smurfs at Cineworld this Friday! 💙 Adults pay kids' prices with our Cineworld Family ticket! 🎟 https://t.co/g3mWcKQsTi pic.twitter.com/BlhOgUl27b — Cineworld (@cineworld) July 16, 2025
Visit movie and TV filming locations
If watching a movie or TV show isn't enough, Experience Days offers day trips to various sites across the UK used in films and TV shows, including:
Harry Potter
Mary Poppins Returns
Paddington Bear
Doctor Who
Gavin & Stacey
Emmerdale
The Experience Days website reads: "These movie tours and TV themed tours are a perfect day out for film fans - we offer a range of fascinating tours that will give you a behind-the-scenes look at some of your favourite movies and TV shows.
"With movie tours available throughout the UK, and a fantastic selection of bus and walking tours from some of the most popular films and tv shows in Britain, you are sure to find the perfect tour for the film buff in your life."
Enjoy a meal out
Fancy a break from cooking these summer holidays? Family Pass has you covered, offering 25% off at various restaurants when you dine out.
Fancy eating out these summer holidays? Family Pass has you covered with 25% off at various restaurants. (Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto) The discount includes restaurants like:
Sizzling Pub and Grill
Hard Rock Cafe
Bar Buritto
Outdoor adventures
The warm summer weather means it's the perfect time to head outdoors.
So why not take a trip to Go Ape these holidays, where you and the kids can take part in a range of activities, including:
Treetop adventures
Segways
Zip Line
Archery
Mini Land Rovers
Net adventures
Axe throwing
Go Ape has more than 35 sites spread across the UK, meaning there is likely a location near you.
To help you save money, there is a range of offers available through Go Ape. These offers include:
15% off Treetop challenge using discount code FAMILY15 at checkout.
at checkout. Free adult on Net Adventure with every child under the age of six.
10% student discount via Student Beans.
You can find out more about these offers and others via the Go Ape website.
RECOMMENDED READING:
Tree house stays
Looking to escape and spend some time away with the family? Why not try a stay at one of the "state of the art", "luxury" tree houses on offer through Experience Days.
Its website reads: "Combining a natural, rustic feel with top of the range comfort, these beautifully crafted tree houses have been built to impress.
"You will experience unparalleled peace and solitude as you retreat to your treetop lodge, making this experience ideal for those looking for a relaxing UK holiday, or even the most incredible unique experience gift you can think of!"
There are tree house stays available in Snowdonia, Bristol and Welshpool.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
23 minutes ago
- The Sun
The Fantastic Four: First Steps review – A-list cast struggle to make the script flow and drama feels undercooked
The Fantastic Four: First Steps (12A), 114mins ★★★☆☆ 3 THE first challenge for this Marvel superhero reboot of a reboot of a reboot was to clear a very low bar. It had to be better than the forgettable 2007 effort starring Chris Evans and the earnest 2015 remake with Miles Teller. I never got to see the 1994 original because it was so bad that it wasn't released in the UK. So is this fourth time lucky? Almost. The ever reliable Pedro Pascal plays genius scientist Reed Richards, leading a team of remarkable humans who had their DNA altered in strange ways when they went into space. Reed has an elastic body, his wife Sue Storm can make herself invisible, Ben Grimm clobbers as The Thing and Johnny Storm is the Human Torch. Futuristic gadgets So let's start with the positives. I am truly grateful to director Matt Shakman for dispensing with the whole 'origins' bit. How the quartet got their powers is dealt with in a very swift news reel. That means the running time is kept below two hours, which makes a welcome change from the current trend for bloated blockbusters. The Fantastic Four also looks great, with its mixture of retro 1960s styling and futuristic gadgets. The set designers have set a very high bar. Vanessa Kirby as the inspirational Sue, Joseph Quinn as the handsome Johnny and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as gentle giant The Thing are all very talented. And they keep this light and amusing. Sadly, the charisma of The Bear's Ebon is wasted behind the CGI costume. And the cast struggle to make the script flow. A lot of the drama feels forced or undercooked, particularly Johnny's rivalry with his brother-in-law Reed. More problematically, the baddie Galactus is about as scary as a stationery sales rep — no offence to The Office's Ralph Ineson, who is tasked with voicing this maudlin giant with an unexplained desire to destroy planets. With Earth's very existence at stake, the storyline should have put me on the edge of my seat. But instead, I just sank back in the chair and enjoyed the film's super- impressive visuals. With any luck this version of The Fantastic Four is just finding its feet, and the next time it will really live up to its name. THE BAD GUYS 2 (PG), 104mins 3 ★★☆☆☆ ONE of the rules of cinema is that sending normally Earthbound characters into space has an even lower success rate than one of Elon Musk's rockets. Moonraker and F9 are two examples of how going beyond the Karman line leaves a vacuum where the plot should be. It was way too early for this likeable animated kids movie about a gang of thieves to resort to such overblown ideas. In The Bad Guys 2, the master criminals led by Mr Wolf (Sam Rockwell) are trying to go straight after serving their prison sentence. But no one wants to hire a bunch of ex-cons. No matter how hard Mr Snake, Mr Shark, Ms Tarantula and Mr Piranha attempt to do the right thing, they end up deeper in trouble. The comic timing is off with gags failing to land among the frenetic pace. The slapstick moments pass before they've even been set up. Kids, though, are sure to enjoy the constant stream of ever bigger and more extreme chases. I'm sure they'll laugh their heads off at the fart joke which is the one funny moment. But you'd have to be a very good guy to sit through this with them. BRING HER BACK (18), 104mins ★★★★☆ 3 THE term 'chewing the scenery' normally refers to an actor seriously hamming things up. In the case of this spine-chilling movie, a character does literally chomp on a kitchen worktop. It's one of many deeply disturbing moments in Bring Her Back that felt so real that my shoulders shuddered uncontrollably. The above phrase certainly should not apply to actress Sally Hawkins, whose malevolent Australian foster parent Lara raises this movie way above the standard horror fare. She undermines the bond between orphaned siblings Piper (Sora Wong) and Andy (Billy Barratt). Lara plays it all lovey dovey with Piper, while secretly doing her best to break Andy's spirit. The brother and sister have no idea what their foster mum is up to, but the audience should have a pretty good one due to the film's title. Bring Her Back would have garnered top marks if it wasn't for the well-worn horror movie plot turns that give so much of the game away. It is reprieved by the ending, which takes an unusual course. Expect a sequel.
Scottish Sun
4 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
Fans confused over Vanessa Kirby stroking co-star Pedro Pascal's face on press tour asking ‘why are they so touchy?'
The pair are starring as husband and wife in Marvel's Fantastic Four: First Steps IN IT TOGETHER Fans confused over Vanessa Kirby stroking co-star Pedro Pascal's face on press tour asking 'why are they so touchy?' FANTASTIC Four's Pedro Pascal and Vanessa Kirby have left fans confused over their close friendship – though the reason behind it is actually quite sweet. Videos of the pair's tactile relationship, often cuddling up to each other, holding hands and Vanessa even stroking Pedro's neck, has started circulating online causing debate on X. Advertisement 6 Pedro and Vanessa's affectionate friendship has confused fans Credit: PA 6 Vanessa was seen playing with Pedro's neck in one picture Credit: 6 Pedro and Vanessa play husband and wife in the new movie Credit: Getty Vanessa and Pedro play married couple Reed Richards and Sue Storm – AKA Mr Fantastic and the Invisible Woman – in the new addition to the Marvel universe. And their friendship clearly extends outside the show, with the duo seen showing each other support on tour. However, some fans have taken exception to their affectionate friendship, complaining it is "weird". Vanessa has noticeably become a particular source of support for Pedro, starting back at San Diego Comic-Con last year when they took to the stage alongside co-stars Joseph Quinn and Ebon Moss-Bachrach. Advertisement A nervous-looking Pedro grabbed Vanessa's arm as he appeared on stage behind her, and in response she grabbed his hand and held it. Speaking with Vanity Fair in June this year, Vanessa praised her co-star explaining they were both as nervous as each other and their affection is a sign of unity. She said: "What happened is we were both incredibly nervous going out in front of thousands of people who love this comic. 'He wanted me to know that we were in this together, and I found it a lovely gesture and was very glad to squeeze his hand back.' Advertisement This is something the pair have been doing in the months since, especially as they've been sent around the world to promote the movie. Often paired up on the press tour due to their characters' relationship, Vanessa has been seen soothing Pedro with hugs and physical affection. Marvel release a clip from their latest super hero flick The Fantastic Four: First Steps He has also been seen resting a hand on Vanessa's pregnant belly on red carpets, following news she is expecting her first child with her partner, American lacrosse player Paul Rabil. Pedro has previously stated that touch helps soothe him when he suffers from anxiety – even notably doing it to himself while on the red carpet alone, creating a unique pose by standing with his hand on his chest. Advertisement During a screening event of his Sky/HBO series The Last of Us in 2023, Pedro told co-star Bella Ramsey during an interview with Deadline: "You know why? It's because my anxiety is right here." In response, Bella posed on the carpet with him in the same manner. 6 Vanessa is expecting her first baby with partner Paul Rabil Credit: AP 6 Vanessa and Pedro have become close during filming the Marvel movie Credit: Alamy Advertisement
Time Out
4 hours ago
- Time Out
‘The Fantastic Four: First Steps' filming locations: how Marvel's retro-futuristic 1960s was created
The 37th entry in the MCU, The Fantastic Four: First Steps is set in a world of its own – in every sense. The movie's Earth-828 is a planet set in another corner of the multiverse from the rest of the Marvelverse. Here, comic-book legends Jack Kirby and Stan Lee's 1961 creation the Fantastic Four comes back to action-packed life courtesy of WandaVision director Matt Shakman and his ridiculously charismatic everything you need to know about how – and where – the film's Mad Men -meets- The-Incredibles version of 1960s New York came together. What happens in The Fantastic Four: First Steps? A tale of space travel, scientific discovery, intergalactic peril and motherhood, First Steps (re)introduces audiences to Kirby and Lee's cosmically superpowered First Family: team leader Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic (Pedro Pascal); world leader Sue Storm/Invisible Woman (Vanessa Kirby); stompy rock man Ben Grimm/The Thing (Ebon Moss-Bachrach); and boyish singleton Johnny Storm/Human Torch (Joseph Quinn). The quartet, zapped by cosmic rays on an earlier space voyage, are all that stands between humanity and Ralph Ineson's perpetually peckish planet devourer Galactus literally eating the Earth. Presaging this fate is the Surfer Surfer (Julia Garner), Galactus's herald in a scene in Times Square. Where was The Fantastic Four: First Steps filmed? Legendary industrial designer Syd Mead once called science fiction 'reality ahead of schedule'. The 2001: A Space Odyssey and Blade Runner contributor was a key influence on Shakman and production designer Kasra Farahani's gleaming retro-futurist vision – and his definition of sci-fi sums up The Fantastic Four: First Steps perfectly. This 'Kirby meets Kubrick' aesthetic of an alternative 1964 New York is full of flying cars, light-speed space ships and zippy monorails, a reality we're still awaiting. Thanks to technology we do have – cutting-edge VFX and set design – this alternative metropolis came together 5000 miles away from the real Big Apple. Here's how they did it. The movie's alternative New York was created at Pinewood Studios, UK After filming most of Captain America: Brave New World and Thunderbolts* in the US, the MCU was back in its adopted homeland of England for First Steps. A big chunk of the 85-day shoot was filmed at Pinewood Studios outside of London, kicking off in late July 2024. The vast majority of the movie's '60s New York locations – Yancy Street in the Lower East Side, Times Square, Reed Richards' lab in the Baxter Building – were created via 30 sets across eight sound stages on Pinewood's two backlots. The alternative 1960s Times Square backdrops several key scenes in the movie, including the Silver Surfer's doom-laden first oratory. Julia Garner gave the speech on a Pinewood tower in a Pinewood backlot. 'The combination between the set design, the scale of the set, and also just shooting in Pinewood was really magical,' she tells Thought Catalog. Real 1960s premises, including Horn & Hardart, Whelan's, Leighton's, RKO Palace, Embassy Theatre and Forum Cinema, were recreated on a set that was 22 percent smaller than the real-life locale. Another key New York location recreated at Pinewood is the fictional Yancy Street (above), a riff on the real Lower East Side thoroughfare of Delancey Street where Kirby grew up. 'We wanted Yancy Street to feel like part of the normal world, not the futuristic one,' says set decorator Jille Azis. 'When Ben Grimm visits, it feels like home – a place to escape the stress and reconnect with the past.' The set had been used in Deadpool & Wolverine and was repurposed and redressed for First Steps. Reed Richards' lab was filmed on Pinewood's S Stage Reed Richard's Baxter Building lab was a set built on Pinewood's S Stage, recently used in Black Mirror, Warfare and Andor, while the Reeds' penthouse was built across the studio on W Stage. Look out for colour-coding to demark the different areas of Mr Fantastic's workspace: red for his hands-on tasks like robotics; yellow for brainstorming; and blue for mission control. Modernist architects like Eero Saarinen and Oscar Niemeyer helped inform the tower's stylish futurist aesthetic. 'It was in a penthouse of a high-rise in Manhattan,' says production designer Farahani, 'so we drew a lot of inspiration from single-family-home mid-century architecture, especially from the West Coast.' Mole Man's Subterranea base was created inside Middleton Mine, Derbyshire In First Steps, cult Marvel antagonist Mole Man lives below ground with his acolytes, the Moloids. Played by Richard Jewell and Black Bird 's Paul Walter Hauser, he's an enjoyably ambivalent presence: borderline besotted with Sue Storm but generally done with everyone else's shit. His realm, Subterranea, was constructed in the spectacular lead and limestone mine in England's Peak District.A 725-foot section of the 32 miles of mines was dressed to reflect this strange community of below-grounders, with pipes and other weathered industrial fittings added and a bus shipped in as Mole Man's HQ. Middleton Mine is firmly on the Hollywood map these days: it was also used for Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning 's climactic scenes. Baxter Building interiors were filmed at Palacio de Congresos de Oviedo, Spain The Asturias city of Oviedo is the latest Spanish location to feature in the Marvelverse, following Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Eternals and Spider-Man: Far From Home. Over four days in The Palacio de Congresos, a futuristic 2011 building designed by Spanish-Swiss architect Santiago Calatrava, was used for scenes set in the lobby of the Baxter Building and the assembly hall of the Future Foundation, Sue Storm's UN-like institute. The real New York was used for the CG backdrops Of course, you can't recreate the entirety of the Big Apple on a Buckinghamshire backlot, and photography of the real New York was shot for VFX plates. And one location that doesn't feature… Lulworth Cove, Dorset The natural limestone arch on England's south coast – one of the UK's most recognisable beauty spots and a filming location for Nanny McPhee, Wilde and the Carey Mulligan Far From The Madding Crowd – was closed, along with surrounding beaches, for filming for two days in June 2023. Thwarted tourists will be frustrated to discover that the scene – which involved Joseph Quinn's Johnny Storm – doesn't feature in the finished movie.
