East Lancashire Railway
Real steam trains between Bury, Ramsbottom and Rawtenstall, with themed family days all summer - Peppa Pig, fairytale specials, the lot. The day rover means you can hop off for lunch and catch the next one back.
Imagination Bay Adventure Play
Bury, Greater Manchester
On the first floor of Woodstreet Mill just outside Bury town centre, and it has taken a different route from most new centres. Instead of building the biggest frame it could fit, it has gone for indoor sand, a role play area, a craft corner and a dance floor, which suits imaginative three to six-year-olds far better than another climbing structure.
Sessions are two hours, booked in advance, and bookings are non-refundable. Term-time slots run 9 to 11, 11.15 to 1.15 and 1.30 to 3.30, with an extra evening slot at weekends and in the holidays. It is shut on Tuesdays in term time.
Socks are compulsory, shoes are not allowed, and parking on site is limited during the week. Disabled access needs arranging beforehand because of the first-floor location, which is worth a phone call rather than a surprise at the door.
Know before you go
- Closed on Tuesdays in term time, and everything runs as a fixed two-hour slot. Turning up hopefully does not work here.
- Indoor sand means sand in shoes, socks and hair. Pack accordingly.
Looking for more soft play & indoor play near Bury?
Also in Bury
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.
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.
Little Luxe Soft Play
A small independent built around inclusive play, with a multi-sensory calming room off the main floor. The one to try if a big noisy centre has gone badly before.
Jungle Mayhem
Radcliffe's jungle-themed centre: a four-lane slide, a ball pool with suction tubes, a sports zone and a disco room. Adults get in for nothing, which is rarer than it should be.
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.