September 3rd, 2010
Even a weekend in London does not have to cost the earth if you’re willing to put in the leg work in before you go. Here’s our top tips for a budget weekend in London and how we managed to enjoy it without spending a fortune:
Plenty of interactive exhibits at the Science Museum
Check out cheap fares on travel plus railcard discounts; we bought tickets through London Midland trains that are currently running a half price sale on off peak tickets. We discounted this further by using our family & friends railcard for a further third off adult tickets and 60% off child tickets. A return trip from Derby to London for three cost us less than £30!
Keep your eyes out for hotel sales and discounted rooms; we took advantage of the Travelodge sale that ran way back in April and booked a family room for just £12 for a Bank holiday Sunday. The London City Road Travelodge was a relatively upmarket travelodge, (and we’ve seen a few!) just off the Northern Line and it certainly did us proud!
Consider your breakfast options; we could have made use of the Tesco Express two doors down but opted for the all you can eat buffet breakfast at the Travelodge. Kids eat free on this deal and as we had booked in advance, this secured a further discount. Breakfast for three came to £13 and we didn’t need much for lunch!
There’s always free visitor attractions, it’s just finding them; cities are full of free attractions if you are willing to search them out before you go. Here’s a few of the free attractions we managed to fit in:
- The Science Museum, (full of interactive exhibits for children of all ages),
- The Diana Memorial Playground within Kensington Gardens. Based on Peter Pan’s Neverland, this was an idyllic spot for adults and children alike.
- Covent Garden -there is always plenty to entertain at this tourist spot with a constant supply of entertainers on hand.
- Hyde Park – always interesting to see what’s going on at Speaker’s Corner before a picnic in the park.
Diana Memorial playground
Check out the current deals & vouchers for eating out; there is an array of vouchers for eating out nowadays, just find ones that work for you. We chose to eat at Pizza Express Saturday night and managed to combine two seperate vouchers. Voucher 1 offered 2 courses for £10 whilst Voucher 2 offered a free kids meal with any adult meal. Thus a two course meal for three plus bottle of wine & a coke came to £37.
That’s a Topdog weekend!
Liz
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August 31st, 2010
Blackpool Tower at Legoland Discovery Centre
English Heritage are supporting the nationwide heritage open days that are offering free entry to over 4000 settings from 9-12 September 2010.
Some of the highlights include free entry to;
- National Trust’s Winkworth Arboretum in Surrey
- Blackpool Tower
- Guides tours of the Royal Pump Rooms at Leamington Spa
- National Trust’s Biddulph Grange in Staffordshire
- Emma Bridgewater’s factory tour, Stoke on Trent
Some of these events do need to be booked in advance. For further details, check out Hertiage Open Days; free entry weekend.
Free entry, that’s what we like!
Liz
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August 31st, 2010
Miniland at Legoland, Windsor
Flash a Blue Peter badge and you can gain free entry to many top attractions including:
- Alton Towers
- Woburn Safari Park
- Legoland
- Ripley’s believe it or not
- Magna’s science centre…and plenty more!
Free entrance is strictly for Blue Peter winners aged between 6 & 15 that can show the Blue Peter badge and accompanying blue peter badge card. This is a great way to gain free entry to nearly 200 top attractions but you must be accompanied by a full paying adult.
For more information, go to Blue Peter.
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August 28th, 2010
Planning a trip to Trentham Gardens in Staffordshire, then here’s a 2 for 1 voucher you maybe interested in.
Pop to the tourist information centre based at the Victoria Hall, Hanley and pick up a ‘Discover Trentham’ flyer that contains a 2 for 1 voucher for Trentham Gardens. Whilst you cannot use this on special event days or Bank Holiday weekends, there’s plenty of other days to save yourself some dosh at Trentham Gardens.
Whatever you do, you must check out the The Barfuss Walk; an invigorating barefoot walk experience with therapeutic benefits that the whole family will enjoy!
Liz
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August 26th, 2010
Here’s topdogdays’s top 5 most bizarre deals this season;
Run a mile; children who enter the mile fun run at Conkers, Derbyshire on 19 September gain free entry when accompanied by a full paying adult. More details at Conkers; kids go free.
Become a Brownie; all Brownie, Rainbows and Guide can access Trentham Gardens, Staffordshire free of charge with a full paying adult. More details at Trentham Garden deals.
Grow your hair; children with waist length hair can gain free entry to Warwick Castle until 6 September. More information available at Warwick Castle; free entry offer.
Adopt a monkey; adopt an animal at Drayton Manor for £35 and you receive 2 free complimentary tickets to the theme park…cheaper than 2 standard piced tickets and a monkey to boot!
On your bike; the National Trust are offering discounted entry to 50 of it’s settings around the country for those who arrive without the car. For further details of settings taking part in this offer, go to National Trust; discounted entry offers.
For most deals and tips to beat the queues at top visitor attractions go to topdogdays.
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August 25th, 2010
The National Trust have come up with a great resource for National Trust members that fancy an alternative to the normal Service Station stop off to break up the journey.
Ingenuously, the National Trust have plotted out their own visitor attractions that are within close proximity of major motorways around England and Wales. So if the kids need a burn off some energy, looking for a scenic picnic spot or just fancy a quick bite to eat, it could be worth checking out some of these settings. Here’s a few ideas to get you going:
- Picnic at Stonehenge; only 0.3 miles off the A303
- Osterley Park & House; only 3.5 miles from M4/Junction 2
- Castle Drogo; only 3 miles off the A30..and many more!
For more details, check out The National Trust; an alternative to a service station. I just need a deal on membership!
Liz
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August 24th, 2010
WH Smiths are once more running 2 for 1 vouchers for top visitor attractions including:
- Thorpe Park
- Alton Towers
- Legoland, Windsor
- Chessington World of Adventures
- Madame Tussauds
- Warwick Castle
- Legoland Discovery Centre ..and more
These vouchers come with every purchase at WH Smith and valid through to the end of the season, (some restrictions on dates).
Worth holding onto!
Liz
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August 23rd, 2010
Warwick Castle are currently running a number of discount vouchers that may interest you if you are planning a trip with the kids;
- Warwickcastle on twitter are currently running a 2 for 1 voucher.
- Here’s a kids go free voucher for Warwick Castle valid until 5 September from Visit the Heart.
- Persil washing products are running a 2 for 1 voucher for Warwick Castle with each purchase, just look out for promotional Persil products.
- Here’s the most bizarre deal; free entry to Warwick Castle for those with waist length hair until 6 September. More information available at Warwick Castle; free entry offer.
Would love to hear from you if you gained free entry to Warwick Castle with long hair!
Liz
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August 21st, 2010
Want to top up on your tea making skills, well surely Wedgwood Museum & Visitor Centre, Staffordshire is the place for you!
Well here is a day dedicated to our beloved national drink, the English cup of tea. Included in the day is a ‘Wedgwood & Tea’ lecture, tea tasting and even afternoon tea in the Ivy Tea Room. Running on 12 September, priced at £29.95 per perosn, more details are available at Wedgewood Museum & Visitor Centre; upcoming events.
For information on deals & discounts, please go to deals for Wedgewood Museum & Visitor Centre.
Let me know if your heading for this one?
Liz
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August 13th, 2010
London Midland trains are offering 50% discounts on off peak travel through August. Not only this but you can use your railcards to secure your normal rail discount on top of this, making this a viable option for a cheap day out.
You can also combine discounted train travel with a 2 for 1 voucher on over 100 top visitor attractions in London including:
- London Zoo; 2 for 1 voucher
- Hampton Court Palace; 2 for 1 voucher
- Ripley’s Believe or Not; 2 for 1 voucher
- Madame Tussauds; 2 for 1 voucher
- Florence Nightingale Museum; 2 for 1 voucher
- many more London based visitor attractions.
To apply, simply register for your voucher and take it to your selected visitor attraction with a valid train ticket. For more details, go to discounted travel and 2 for 1 vouchers.
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