Do you know how much it costs to keep kids busy during school holidays? Parents will not be surprised to learn that it’s a lot!
Research from Monese shows that 65% of parents worry about the cost of entertaining their kids during the holidays, and that parents spend £15 more per day than normal per child to entertain their kids during school holidays. That’s a whopping £975 per child per year. No wonder it often feels like a squeeze for families!
But is it possible to find low cost ways of entertaining the kids? I’ve picked my top 10 virtually free days out.
Top 10 virtually free ways to keep the kids busy in the school holidays
- Go to the beach. There’s nothing like a good old fashioned bucket and spade day out. If you want be extra frugal you can pack a picnic and a flask of coffee. Parking costs vary a lot between resorts and you may want to avoid weekends or bank holidays when they will be really busy. Some beaches are also fantastic for activities like crabbing or hunting for fossils.
- Camp in the garden. If you’ve got small children and a garden then camping in the garden can be a really fun way of entertaining the kids without spending a penny. If you’re in a flat or small space then you can have fun making a duvet den for the afternoon.
- Bake some cakes. Kids usually love baking and it’s great if they can learn how to cook some basic recipes during the school holidays. You may even have them cooking for you before too long!
- Do some junk modelling. If you have little kids then you will know they often prefer cardboard boxes to toys. Big boxes make great castles or playhouses and smaller boxes or packing can become space rockets, boats or treasure boxes.
- Go for a hike or bike ride. Wherever you live, there are usually interesting places to explore. If you leave the phones behind and take a map then you can get the kids to help you navigate and make it into an adventure. The best thing is that they’ll be nicely tired out when you get back!
- Go to the playground. Depending on the age of your kids it’s great fun to spend an afternoon at a playground or play park. If your kids are older you could visit a country park where there’s space to roam around and explore. Pack a picnic for a virtually free day out.
- Go to a free museum or art gallery. Loads of museums are free and many have events on for kids during the school holidays.
- Look out for free events. Many councils put on free festivals and events during the summer. Many libraries also have free activities.
- Spend your Tesco Clubcard vouchers. If you shop in Tesco then it’s worth saving up the vouchers for some great days out. You can triple the value of your points on days out so it’s really worth doing.
- Have a movie night. Kids love spending time snuggled up on the sofa watching a favourite movie, and you can make it extra fun with some pizza and popcorn.
Budget for the school holidays
Having kids is expensive and it’s tricky to find cheap ways to keep kids busy during the school holidays. That’s why it’s a good idea to put aside some money each month in savings so that you enough to have some fun during the holidays.
With some cheap days out planned and some savings set aside, you can have a great summer and keep the kids busy during the school holidays without breaking the bank.
