
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.
Warrington, Cheshire

This is the biggest purpose built indoor karting track in the country, tucked into a trading estate off Slutchers Lane behind Bank Quay station. A kilometre of circuit, 22 corners, a Monaco style tunnel that every child mentions afterwards. Junior karts are electric and limited to 25mph, which sounds slow until you are sitting two inches off the floor.
The rules are firm and worth reading before you book. Eight and over, inside leg of 25 inches or more, and under five foot four for the junior karts. Race suit, gloves and helmet come with the session. The balaclava does not, and they will sell you one for £3.99 at the desk. Arrive 40 minutes early, because the safety briefing is not optional and they will not hold the grid for you.
Pricing is the frustrating bit. TeamSport publish nothing and simply say the cost depends on the day, the time and the size of your group, so you have to click through the booking journey to find out what an hour will cost. They do advertise a ten per cent online discount code. Parking is free, the cafe does burgers and pizza, and the spectator area means one adult can sit down while the other pretends not to be timing the laps.
What it costs: Prices are not published. TeamSport states that pricing varies by day, time, location, experience and group size, and that you only see a figure once you go through the booking journey. The site advertises a 10 per cent discount code, GET10, for booking online in advance. Balaclavas, which are compulsory, cost £3.99 if you do not bring your own.
Worth knowing: Junior karting is 8 and over, with an inside leg of at least 25 inches and a height under 5 foot 4.
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The reliable default: gardens, a children's zoo, a big playground and plenty of room to run. Pay for parking, nothing else.

High ropes and treetop courses in the grounds at Walton Hall. Reviewers rate the value, but frame it as one for the bigger, braver kids.

A theme park deliberately built for ages 2 to 13 rather than teenagers, so both of them can ride most of it. The classic full-day option on your doorstep.

Farm animals, outdoor play and indoor barns, so a wet forecast doesn't cancel the day. Well matched to the 3-8 age range.

Two-tier soft play frame, low climbing wall, pirate ship, crawl tubes and a bouncy slide, plus Messy Monday and sensory sessions during the week.

Bigger than the average soft play: multi-level frame, a spooky room, an astro slide, a climbing wall, two mini bowling lanes and a slot racing track. The bowling is what makes it work when you have a toddler and a seven-year-old to keep happy at once.
One email a week: what is on this weekend within a sensible drive, and the places worth booking before they go.