Burrs Country Park
Riverside country park on the Irwell with a playground, old mill remains and its own East Lancashire Railway station, so a heritage steam train can be part of the day rather than the whole of it.
East Lancashire Railway
Bury, Greater Manchester
Proper steam between Bury, Ramsbottom and Rawtenstall, with a summer calendar of family specials - Peppa Pig days, fairytale rides, an Alice in Wonderland train. The day rover turns one journey into a hop-on-hop-off adventure.
Ramsbottom makes the natural halfway stop: market town, ice cream, back on the next departure. The transport museum by Bury station rounds off the day for the wheels-obsessed.
Know before you go
- Buy the day rover and hop off at Ramsbottom - it breaks the journey and the kids get two more train rides.
Looking for more days out in Bury?
What visitors say
★★★★★ 4.8 across 3,326 Google reviews.
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Bury Transport Museum
A restored 1848 railway goods warehouse filled with buses, trams and hands-on exhibits, two minutes from the East Lancashire Railway's Bolton Street station. Weekend opening, and the natural rainy-day half of a steam train day.
Imagination Bay Adventure Play
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Little Luxe Soft Play
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Jungle Mayhem
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Funtastic Play Centre
The long-standing Radcliffe centre, and the one that refuses to charge more at weekends or in the school holidays. Multi-tier frame, proper toddler section, home-cooked cafe.
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.