May half term on a budget

May half term on a budget

Monday 27th May - Friday 31st May 2024

Enjoy the May half term around the West Midlands without spending a fortune. We have taken the mayhem out of May half term and pulled together a list of all the fun happening around the West Midlands that is free or budget-friendly.

Activities 

Crafty Cubs & friends half term event at Resorts World Birmingham

Resorts World is hosting lots of free half term fun where kids will be able to get creative with Crafty Cubs workshops, enjoy a petting zoo in the atrium getting up close with some exotic animals, and their popular hunt is also back with a Wild Safari theme for some added fun around the building.

Tuesday 28th May - Thursday 30th May, 11 am - 3 pm

For more information visit Resorts Worlds website.

Touchwood Solihull 

Robocode

During the May half term, Solihull-based company Robocode is inviting children aged 6-17 to come along and take part in activities to understand the fundamentals of technology, coding, and digital arts. An educational fun event to inspire future generations.

Activities will include a gaming racing simulation, a robotics coding exercise where children can navigate robots on a map of the local area, a VR experience to enhance spatial awareness, and a 3D modelling exercise where participants can print their creation and take it home.

Monday 27th - Friday 31st May

For more information visit Touchwoods website.

Footie Fest

All football fanatics are invited down to Touchwood for ‘Footie Fest’ – a week-long program of activities in partnership with the Solihull Moors Foundation. Test your football skills in a wide range of challenges, with the best performers earning some exciting prizes as a result of their hard work.

Monday 27th – Friday 31st May 11am – 3pm

For more information visit Touchwoods website.

All at Sea half term eco fun at Merry Hill 

Wild Earth Movement is heading to Merry Hill for May half term, hosting plenty of eco fun to inspire your little ones with rainforest-inspired activities.

Monday 27 May - Sunday 2nd June

For more information visit Merry Hills website.

Thinktank Science Garden

The Science Garden offers free adventurous fun, bringing themes of engineering, mechanics, and transportation to life through over 30 hands-on exhibits. The garden is packed with surprises and is the perfect place for all the family to enjoy some outdoor fun.

The Science Garden is included in the Thinktank admission price, or it is free every day from 3 pm.

For more information visit the Thinktanks website

Castle Bromwich Historic Gardens

Get Kids Growing – Gardening Workshop 

Get kids muddy this half term and  Children's Gardening Week. They can learn about what plants need to grow, get their hands mucky and plant something to take home.

Prices from £3.00 - £5.00

Tuesday 28th, Wednesday 29th and Thursday 30th May, 10:30 am - 11:30 am

For more information visit Castle Bromwich Historic Gardens website.

Nature Clay & Play Workshop

Get crafty, letting your little ones' imaginations run wild creating some enchanted clay creations in the middle of nature.

Prices start from £6

Thursday 30th May, 1:30pm - 2:45pm 

For more information visit Castle Bromwich Historic Gardens website.

LEGO® build workshops with Brick Galleria

Experience a day of fun-filled, animal inspired LEGO brick building workshops for the whole family. Hosted by professional LEGO® Brick Artists, Kevin Hall and Emily Corl from Brick Galleria. Let your imagination run wild taking inspiration from your surroundings and build what you can see.

Children aged 4 and over

Prices from £12.00

Saturday 1st June, 10:30 am - 11:15 am. 

For more information visit Castle Bromwich Historic Gardens website.

Forest School 2024

Forest school is a child centred outdoor learning experience which encourages holistic growth and development in the outdoors for children & adults.  Enjoy a 2 hour long outdoor session taking part in an array of activities from den building, fire lighting, slacklining, storytelling, free play and so much more.

Saturday 1st June,10:30 am - 12:30 pm. 

Prices from £3.00 - £10.00.

For more information visit Castle Bromwich Historic Gardens website.

Green Men and Garlands at St Mary’s Guildhall

Celebrate May the Tudor way! Join the Guildhall Tudor’s in their Mediaeval Kitchen to find out all about the Tudor May Day celebrations and make your own willow crown to mark the joy of the new season. The perfect family friendly day out, celebrating tudor traditions for the first day of summer.

Saturday 25th May - Sunday 2nd June

Prices from £5

For more information visit the St Mary’s Guildhall website.

Botanical Gardens

Jurassic Gardens

The return of the Jurassic Gardens this May half term, mini explorers can roar as the gardens welcome back the very popular Velociraptor, and for the first time, a towering T-Rex, and an armoured Ankylosaurus! There’s also dino-shows,  arts and crafts, meet and greet sessions and so much to do, learn and watch.

Saturday 25th - Monday 27th May 

Prices start from £12.25

For all the dino information visit the Botanical Gardens website

The Butterfly House

The return of the butterfly house for 2024, a magical experience as you walk through the Butterfly House and see a kaleidoscope of colourful butterflies from across the globe.

25 May –  September 2024

Entry to the Butterfly House is included with a valid entry ticket to the Gardens

For more information visit the Botanical Gardens website.

20% off admission at the Botanical Gardens, Birmingham when you travel by bus.

Bear Grylls Adventure

Bringing together eleven epic experiences pushing you to your limits, Bear Grylls Adventure is the ultimate destination for adrenaline junkies.  From archery, axe throwing, shark diving, high ropes and zip lining you're sure to go on an adventure. 

30% off the High Ropes at Bear Grylls Adventure, when you travel by bus.

Curious About Birmingham - Quirky heritage walks

Curious about Birmingham, have fun exploring Birmingham spotting things you've never noticed before. Between 10am - 4pm dive into a treasure hunt around the city, the perfect activity to do with the family in the sunshine.

For more information visit the Curious About Birmingham page.

Parks

Cannon Hill Park

Sheldon Country Park

Sandwell Valley Country Park

Brueton Park

Swanshurst Park

Don't forget to visit your local libraries, who often host a whole range of free activities for children during half term.

Food 

During the May half term, take advantage of the food offers available at highstreet restaurants and supermarkets. Kids can eat for free or for up to £1. Be sure to check your local stores.

ASDA - Kids meals for just £1 at any time of day

Morrisons - Children under 16 eat free at Morrisons cafe all day, every day when an adult spends £4.50 or more on a meal.

Tesco - Available from Monday to Friday during school holidays kids can eat free at Tesco cafes when an adult makes any purchase in the cafe. You will need your Clubcard to claim the offer.

Beefeater - Beefeater lets two kids, under the age of 16, eat free breakfast with any adult breakfast purchased for £9.99. Available 6:30 am until 10:30 am midweek and 7am until 11am at the weekend.

Bella Italia - Kids can get three courses and a drink for just £1 with every purchase of an adult meal.

Bills - Up to two kids eat free if one adult orders any main dish at breakfast, lunch or dinner.

Brewers Fayre - Two children under 16 eat for free when one adult orders the £9.99 unlimited breakfast.

Dunelm - All day, everyday, Pausa Cafe is offering a free kids menu for every £4 spent in their in-store cafes.

Frankie and Bennys - Children can get a free main, side, dessert and drink with every adult main ordered.

TGI Fridays - Kids eat free all day everyday with the purchase of an adult main. To claim, you have to simply download their Stripes Rewards app – their customer loyalty scheme – to be able to claim the free meal.

The Real Greek - On Sundays you can get one free kids' meal when each adult spends a minimum of £10 on their food. Available for under 12s.

YO! Sushi - Available from 27th-31st May Monday to Friday. For every adult that spends £10, one child aged 12 or under gets a free kiddo bento box. If you spend £20, two kids can eat free and so on, with a maximum of three kids per booking able to eat free.

Hungry Horse Pubs - Every Monday, children can eat for £1 at Hungry Horse pubs.

Sizzling Pub and Grill - Kids can eat for just £1 with a purchase of every adult meal Monday to Fridays from 12pm.

Rediscover the West Midlands and take advantage of these great attraction offers when you travel by bus.

30% off admission at LEGOLAND® Discovery Centre

30% off admission at the National Sea Life Centre

20% off admission at the Botanical Gardens, Birmingham

50% off tours at Sarehole Mill

25% off admission at the Black Country Living Museum

Get 50% off admission at Thinktank

30% off admission at The Pen Museum

30% off Theatre Tours at The Old Rep Theatre

20% off admission at West Midlands Police Museum

Don't forget to plan your journey with National Express Bus during May half term click here to plan your journey.