19 December to 4 January. Term dates are set council by council, so treat the edges as approximate. The Christmas break splits in two: the run-up, all grottos, light trails and pantomimes, and the strange quiet week after, when everywhere is empty and the museums are the best they are all year.
Collected from the councils, libraries, theatres and venues running them, and refreshed nightly. More arrive as organisations publish their programmes, so this list grows between now and the break.
Come and join the fun at Failsworth Library’s Lego Club.
Six miles of lights along the prom from the big switch-on night to early January. Drive it, walk it, or catch a heritage tram through the middle of it, which is the version kids remember.
A Christmas experience at Otterspool running on selected dates from 28 November through to Christmas Eve, including both November and December weekends plus 21 to 24 December. Popular weekend slots sell out early, so booking ahead is worth doing.
Step into a world of imagination this Christmas on board Santa’s Steam Train Adventure at the Ribble Steam Railway & Museum!
Midwinter needs an indoor plan most days. These are the reliable indoor days, ranked by the venues families rate most.
Working steam engines, the story of Cottonopolis, and hands-on galleries in the world's oldest surviving passenger railway station. Free, and the live demonstrations are the bit kids actually remember.
Five floors, free, and it covers three things small children reliably love: giant dinosaurs, an aquarium and a space gallery. The best wet-weather day within half an hour.
The city's story with an overhead railway carriage to climb aboard and Little Liverpool, a dedicated hands-on gallery for under-6s. Free, on the waterfront, and the window views are half the fun.
Free, right in the city centre, and properly set up for children: the Lion's Den family gallery has its own play space and the family activity programme costs nothing. Closed Mondays.
A T. rex skeleton cast, live frogs in the vivarium, Egyptian mummies and a genuinely good natural history floor. Free, university-run, and less overwhelming than the big London equivalents.
A small entry fee now, then a pay-per-play card for the attractions: a giant sand and water quarry, mini golf, go-karts and play areas, funded by a world-record ice cream shop. Cheap after 3.30pm, glorious in any weather.
Planning further ahead? The rolling school holidays page always shows the current or next break, and the what's on board has everything dated across the region.