City Breaks With Kids: Leicester and Leicestershire
The East Midlands isn’t somewhere I have previously thought of as particularly family friendly but a recent visit with my 9 year old son Leo soon highlighted how little I knew of the area.

Written by Annemarie Flanagan

Leicester is pretty direct to get to from most places, and we had a very quick journey from London St Pancras with East Midlands Trains www.eastmidlandstrains.co.uk

The city itself is compact and easy to get around and staying at the independently owned and very comfortable Belmont Hotel (www.belmonthotel.co.uk) we could walk into the centre in no time at all.

Our first stop was handy indeed – literally just a few doors away. The New Walk Museum and Art Gallery (www.leicester.gov.uk/dinosaurs) has a range of galleries and various collections but it was the dinosaur that Leo was most impressed with. The Rutland dinosaur takes centre stage downstairs and quite rightly so, but there are plenty of other things to inspire awe in both mother and son - including some of the oldest fossils in the world.

From the prehistoric to the futuristic our next trip was a short bus journey away to the rather amazing National Space Centre (www.spacecentre.co.uk)
To be honest I didn’t really expect to be able to spend a large portion of the day here, actively enjoying ourselves, but we did.

It’s the UK’s largest visitor attraction dedicated to space and space exploration, and opened in June 2001. Around a quarter of a million people visit each year and I’m not surprised - it’s a fabulous place. There is so much to see and do and it’s completely hands-on with shows and workshops at various points throughout the day.
Leo loved all the different sections and I particularly like the planetarium style cinema (where I could have a rest for a bit!)

We both had a lot of fun making a weather forecast video and watched as other parents and grandparents did the same. It really is a full day out and one that we would definitely recommend.

Leo probably sums it up best he said: ‘It’s awesome – I wish it was closer and we could go more often.’

Snibston Discovery Museum (www.leics.gov.uk/snibston_museum) is another place well worth a visit. It’s on the site of the old colliery and you can take a fascinating tour with former mine workers who describe in gritty detail what it was like to work there. We had already done this tour several years ago and didn’t have enough time to do it again - but it really shouldn’t be missed. It’s living history and parents, grandparents and children alike really enjoy the experience.

Snibston is a lovely museum, very accessible and once again hands-on. It’s pleasing to see how much fun the children (and adults) are having with all the exhibitions and it’s a great example of how you can make science come alive.

They seem to have a bit of a skill at that in Leicestershire.

The Bosworth Battlefield Heritage Centre (www.bosworthbattlefield.com) is a fully interactive attraction where you are transported back to 1485 to witness one of history’s most pivotal battles – Bosworth - which saw the death of King Richard III.

Leo loved dressing up as a knight and trying his hand at shooting a bow (much harder than you think). I imagine the centre could get very busy during school holidays as the gallery rooms aren’t huge – but fortunately we had enough space to follow the exhibition at our leisure. Another hit with Leo, as was our last stop - Twycross Zoo.

Having never been a particular fan of zoos I didn’t expect to be too impressed with Twycross (www.twycrosszoo.org but the baby meercats won me over instantly – cute isn’t enough to describe these funny little creatures. We could have watched them for ages.
 
Twycross is the world primate centre – so there are all types of monkeys here, but there are also lots of other animals to see including elephants, giraffes and leopards.

I was very pleased that they have big enclosures and the animals all looked very healthy and did appear to be happy. I was told that an indicator of their well being is the number of babies being born at the zoo – and we saw plenty.

Whatever your thoughts are about the rights and wrongs of keeping animals in captivity it’s often the only chance many children will get to see some of these beautiful creatures. Some of them are so rare it might even be their last chance.
Twycross Zoo is at the forefront of wildlife conservation - by visiting you will help support this work.

Leicestershire is a relatively big county and whilst it’s not impossible to get around without a car I would think about hiring one if you want to visit a few of the above attractions.

The tourist office has been proactive in promoting itself and last summer had a record number of families flocking to the area for short break stays.

They’re currently offering a special deal where a family of four can stay in a local hotel and visit three attractions for just £109.

The Stay Play Explore package (www.goleicestershire.com) has already proved to be a huge success - it’s a great way of seeing an area and sampling just a few of the family friendly activities.

Leo’s verdict on our East Midlands trip was thumbs up.

He really loved the space centre, Snibston and the zoo – and said Bosworth and the dinosaur gallery were ‘pretty cool too.’

If, like me, you had have never though of Leicestershire as a place with much to do for families go see for yourself, you will be pleasantly surprised.