Kendal Castle
A free 12th-century ruin on a grassy hill above Kendal, open all the time, with walls to circle, arches to charge through and the whole town and fells spread out below. Ten minutes of steep pull to get up, then let them loose.
Parks & outdoors Kendal
Parks & outdoors in Kendal
Playgrounds, country parks, woodland trails and nature reserves. Most of these cost nothing.
3 in Kendal1 free3 suit under-5s
Five miles south of Kendal sit the oldest topiary gardens in the world, which in child terms means acres of enormous green shapes to run between. Levens Hall wants £11.36 an adult and £4.14 a child for the gardens, and they open at 10am while the house waits until 11am.
Kendal Castle is the free alternative and never closes: a 12th-century ruin on a grassy hill with walls to circle and the whole town spread out below, after ten minutes of steep pull to get up there. Sizergh is the National Trust one, free to members and £37.50 for a family otherwise, with a wild play trail in the woods just off the car park.
Parks & outdoors in Kendal
Levens Hall & Gardens
The oldest topiary gardens in the world, laid out in the 1690s five miles south of Kendal and still clipped into the same absurd shapes. In child terms, acres of giant green chess pieces to run between.
Sizergh Castle & Garden
A medieval tower house with proper gardens and a wild play trail in the woods just off the car park - climbing wall, rope swing, stepping stones. For National Trust members it is the easiest Lakes stop off the M6; for everyone else the garden ticket is the sensible buy.
Parks & outdoors elsewhere in the North West
Walton Hall & Gardens
The reliable default: gardens, a children's zoo, a big playground and plenty of room to run. Pay for parking, nothing else.
Risley Moss
A peat bog nature reserve with woodland trails, a visitor centre and an observation tower the kids can climb. Free, close and short enough for little legs.
Sherdley Park
St Helens' biggest park. Play areas, open space and a walled garden, and it costs nothing.
Dream, Sutton Manor
A 20-metre white head rising out of a reclaimed colliery, with woodland trails around it. Genuinely strange and memorable for kids, and a short walk rather than a hike.
Sankey Valley Park
A green corridor of canal towpath and parkland running from St Helens down towards Warrington. Flat, traffic-free and ideal if the bikes or scooters are coming.
Speke Hall
A Tudor hall with woodland walks, a maze and a natural play area in the grounds. Free if you have National Trust membership, and the indoor house is a good rain fallback.
What’s on near you, every Friday
One email a week: what is on this weekend within a sensible drive, and the places worth booking before they go.