This hidden gem is well worth seeking out. Arguably one of London's larger city farms, there is an abundance of animals from all the farmyard favourites to tropical birds and even some alpacas. A beautiful shire horse gives cart rides in the summer months and there are regular events for all the family. It's free to get in and there is plenty there to keep you coming back.

www.newhamcityfarm.org
Stansfeld Road, Beckton, London, E6 5LT
Closest station: Royal Albert DLR
Bus: 300, 376, 262
+44(0)20 7474 4960

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This walk brought the history of the Thames to life for the whole family. Led by Fiona, an intertidal archaeologist we strolled along the river with stops for background facts. Then onto the part my sons had been waiting for. Clad in plastic gloves and wellies we were led down the safest path onto the foreshore outside Tate Modern and let loose to beachcomb (strictly no digging). An amazing array of items were found by the group and expertly identified by Fiona. We went home with clay pipes, a Victorian jelly mould and a piece of a 17th century 'Witch pot' tossed into the river full of pee to ward off evil spirits. And my seven-year-old son's highlight, a musket ball.

Dates and times depend on the tides so check www.walks.com and search for mudlarking. Meets at Mansion House tube. No booking needed, £8 for adults and free(!) for kids.

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Darting through the chilly winter night to the steaming outdoor pool, or sunbathing and splashing here in summer is my idea of fun in London. Just a saunter away from Covent Garden Market, and shielded by a disguise of tower blocks, Oasis Sports Centre is one of London's hidden treasures. It is such an unexpected contrast to the shops and offices that surround it- a true Oasis.

Website: bit.ly/ymkL2F
168-173 High Holborn, London WC1V 6JJ
+44(0)20 7831 1804
Google map: bit.ly/zGhkja

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Keep little ones and teenagers intrigued on a shoestring budget with a day trip to the Natural History Museum. The impressive cathedral-like structure plays host to one of the largest natural history collections in the world.
The collection includes everything from microscopic slides to mammoth skeletons, a dinosaur gallery to Darwin’s work on natural selection and an enormous life-size model of a blue whale.
The National History Museum also offers special exhibitions, an outdoor ice skating rink (in winter) and a wildlife garden. Admission to the permanent collection is free.

www.nhm.ac.uk/
Cromwell Road London, United Kingdom SW7 5BD
+44(0)20 7942 5000
Google map: bit.ly/yAK0x7

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Recently I took my mother for a trip onto the London eye to celebrate her 75th Birthday. When purchasing our tickets, I was asked if I was her carer as she walks with a walking stick and I enquired why. They said that the carer goes on free so in essence it's a buy one get one free ticket. The London Eye was a wonderful experience and I would recommend it to anyone.

www.londoneye.com
Riverside Building, County Hall Westminster Bridge Road, London SE1 7PB
+44(0)870 990 8881
Google map: bit.ly/A9PFVh

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The Hunterian Museum at the Royal College of Surgeons is a lot more fun that its name might suggest. It contains more that 3,500 specimens, mainly collected in the 18th century by John Hunter, the anatomist.
There is a vast array of pickled body parts, the skeleton of a 7’ 7” ‘Irish giant’, the tooth of an extinct giant sloth, and a slightly grisly display of pickled foetuses. More recent additions include Churchill’s dentures.
There is also the opportunity to try your hand at simulated keyhole surgery, and watch footage of brain surgery. Educational and fun at the same time!

www.rcseng.ac.uk/museums
35-43 Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, WC2A 3PE
+44 (0) 20 7405 3474
Google map: bit.ly/wEx9wO

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Brockwell Lido has been a vital part of Brockwell Park life since 1937.
The Art Deco Grade II listed building was recently renovated, extended and transformed and now offers fantastic health and fitness facilities all year round.
The Lido is managed in partnership with Fusion, a registered charity, who also run Camberwell's freshly-renovated baths.

Dulwich Road, London SE24 0PA
+44 207 274 3088
Open Mon-Fri 06.30-22.00, Sat 07.30-21.30, Sun 07.30-21.00
Buses 3, 133, 159

* Lucy is our Been there local for London. You can read her profile here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/articles/london-local-lucy-mallows.jsp and follow her tips here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/travellers/LucyRM.jsp

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You might think there's nothing more to Lucas Gardens than an elegant, Zen-like, ornamental garden and a few straggly weeds. However, venture into the Victorian park, past the strategically-arranged boulders and you'll discover that Lucas Gardens stretches back as far as the eye can see. It contains vast areas of grassland, where locals spread out and sunbathe, kick a football about or have a picnic, and finishes up in an elaborate children's playground. All that's missing is a ping pong table, so come on Boris, where are you with your Wiff-Waff project?!

Lucas Gardens
Peckham Road, Camberwell, SE5
Buses: 12, 36, 171, 436 to Southwark Town Hall
Google map: bit.ly/nLjSgd

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All Fired Up is a really lovely little cafe where visitors can choose a piece of ceramic art, a teapot, a plate or a cup and saucer and then paint it themselves to create a unique, individual work of art and an unusual gift for a friend. At the same time, sustenance is available to aid the creative process, with all manner of home-made cakes, sandwiches, Italian coffees and teas on offer. The shop/cafe stocks wrapping paper and cards and is a great destination for birthday parties and nursery visits.

All Fired Up Ceramics Cafe
34 East Dulwich Road, London SE22 9AX
+44 (0)207 732 6688
www.allfiredupceramics.co.uk
Mon-Sat 09.30-18.00 (late opening to 22.00 on Thur), Sun 11.00-17.00
Bus 12 to Peckham Rye
Google map: bit.ly/nmVYDY

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When I tell friends I know of a haven of peace and tranquility in Peckham I am often met with raised eyebrows, but it does exist! Peckham Rye Park is a beautiful oasis located to the south of the bustling, noisy streets.
Peckham was mentioned in 1087 in the Doomsday Book, when it was called Pecheha, an Anglo Saxon word meaning 'village among the hills'.
During the reign of Henry 1, Peckham was a farming village and the land was used for growing crops and fruit. By the 18th century it was famous for its melons, figs and grapes.
In 1767, William Blake visited Peckham Rye and had a vision of angels in an oak tree. The ''Angel Oak', as it was later called, has since disappeared
The park's original layout opened to the public in 1894. There is a large lake and several smaller ponds alive with noisy ducks and geese, a Japanese garden, arboretum, bowling green and woodland walks. My favourite spot is in the Sexby Gardens where plots of lavender give off a wonderfully soporific, mid-summer ambience.

During the Second World War, temporary huts were erected to detain Italian prisoners of war. One still remains, located next to the café.

Peckham Rye Park
Peckham, London SE22 0LR, +44(0)20 7525 1052
Open until 20.30 during the summer
Bus 12 to Peckham Rye
Google map: bit.ly/nBHHNT

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Kew Gardens is a fabulous place to spend time. No matter what time of year you visit, there is always something new blooming or growing, waiting to wow you. But there is so much more to Kew than Gardens. There is beautiful architecture, a treetop walkway, art exhibitions, talks and even a mini music festival in summer. There's also a fabulous indoor and outdoor place space for kids too. Something for everyone!

www.kew.org/index.htm
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, Surrey TW9 3AB
+44 (0)20 8332 5655
Google map: bit.ly/juBH5q

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It's a great family day out which happens over Easter weekend. The trails are all over the country and Ham House is so easy to get to and makes for some really stunning photographs.
The entertainment works for the whole family with loads of activities, interesting areas to explore and lots of great play areas. Kids can enjoy face painting too!

Ham Street, Ham, Richmond-upon-Thames, Surrey, TW10 7RS www.eastereggtrails.com/Ham-House-and-Garden.aspx
Google map: bit.ly/hdu0HD

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From ‘farm to fork’ may be expecting a bit much for a city farm but with responsibly sourced, lovingly cooked food and a farmhouse setting - breakfast at Hackney City Farm is not just about the grub. We love coming with friends, to enjoy a top quality full English, though it's great for families too. The animals (and the farmyard smell) make you feel one step closer to the countryside which beats any greasy spoon I know! On a Saturday follow breakfast with a visit to Broadway Market or on Sunday, Columbia Road Flower Market is always colourful.

www.hackneycityfarm.co.uk
1a Goldsmiths Row, London E2 8QA
+44(0)20 7729 6381
Nearest tube: Old Street, Liverpool Street with buses to within 100m
Google map: bit.ly/hH3s42

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Outdoor ice skating rink at the Tower of London. The setting is fabulous and atmospheric with the Tower looming above. Go on Christmas Eve when the rink is flood lit for a particularly exhilarating experience.

HM Tower of London, London, EC3N 4AB
+44(0)20 8241 9818
www.toweroflondonicerink.com/index.aspx
Google map: bit.ly/i4u2BM

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Cycle down to Springfield Park for a morning cup of tea at the Springfield Marina. Then continue along the River Lea. You can follow it all the way, alongside Walthamstow and Hackney Marshes past Lea Bridge and Millfields park. There are various pubs along the way, and lovely open fields with farm animals. Cycle all the way to the Olympic Stadium - and then around it on the pedestrian path if you wish - then continue along the Hertford Canal, alongside Victoria Park and the beautiful canal path to Old Ford Lock.
Turn right again along Regent's Canal, and come out to finish at Broadway Market for a cold drink or a cup of coffee. If that's all too tiring, refresh with a dip in Hackney Fields Lido.
In perhaps the most urban borough in London, it's the most beautiful and relaxing canal-side walk/cycle ride you can imagine, and with the added bonus of a tour of the new Olympic Stadium. Makes for a brilliant day out for all. An undiscovered gem of a park as well.

Take your bikes on the train to Clapton, Stamford Hill or Stoke Newington, and go down to Springfield Park from there. Springfield Park, Spring Hill, N16.
Google map: bit.ly/c2RKDD

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If you start a day trip to Greenwich at Island Gardens on the Isle of Dogs (easily and enjoyably reached on a driverless Dockland light railway trip from Stratford), you can walk through the historic 1902 victorian foot tunnel to reach all the attractions of Greenwich. It has beautiful wooden lifts to take you into the tunnel complete with lift attendants, historical in themselves. The tunnel drips to add excitement for the children to remind them of the river above, although I hope this is just condensation! Once through the tunnel you arrive right in the heart of Greenwich with a choice of river boat trips, the beautiful painted ceiling at the Old Royal Naval College (activity sheets for children to explore the paintings too), Martitime museum, Royal Observatory and massive beautiful park for wonderful picnics all within 5a five minute walk. No one in the family ever says no to a trip like this as there is something for everyone and can be adapted to anything the British weather may throw your way.

www.greenwich.gov.uk/Greenwich/LeisureCulture/Architecture/GreenwichFootTunnel.htm

Google map: tinyurl.com/3635krq

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Set in the garret of St Thomas’s Church, atop a rickety spiral staircase, is Europe’s oldest operating theatre. Fortunately, (by the look of some of the torturous implements used in surgery) it has long been out of service but still provides a fascinating insight into the horror of what it must have been like to be a patient - or indeed a surgeon - in the 19th century. A simple wooden operating table encircled by several rows of wooden benches, in what is essentially an attic, gives a very cramped and unsettled feeling to the visitor. I was told that the majority of cases were amputations, as internal surgery was too dangerous without antiseptics. Also, without anaesthetics the surgeons had to rely on heavy amounts of alcohol for the patient and a lightening quick technique. Apparently they could perform an amputation in under a minute, though patients often died from shock. Isn’t the NHS marvellous? Well, modern medicine anyway…

The Old Operating Theatre, Museum & Herb Garret
9a St. Thomas St, London SE1 9RY www.thegarret.org.uk/index.htm
+44 (0)20 7188 2679
Google map: bit.ly/j8SNZ7

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'A free destination for the incurably curious' is what this small museum on the Euston Road calls itself, and it certainly is. Henry Wellcome was a Philanthropist and Collector of art and medical curiosities which are still housed in the original building. I pop in here regularly with my kids, have a pastry in the Peyton and Byrne cafe and explore the extensive collection of artefacts and interactive exhibits on display. Children get a free Wellcome pack and a friendly welcome. Oh, and they learn quite a bit too.

www.wellcomecollection.org
+44(0)20 7611 2222
183 Euston Road, London NW1 2BE
Google map: bit.ly/lQBqsQ

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This is the perfect museum for kids. There is a lot there, an aquarium, a natural history museum and a music gallery, but all on a fairly small scale. Most importantly they understand that children need to do more than look, they need to touch, play and get involved, and here they can. There are magnifying glasses in the aquarium, quirky instruments to play in the music gallery, and fabulous and free creative activities and story-telling sessions. When you have exhausted all on offer inside you can stroll through the pretty gardens and visit the small menagerie.

100 London Rd, Forest Hill, London, SE23 3PQ
www.horniman.ac.uk/
+44(0)20 8699 1872
Google map: bit.ly/iQfW9K

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Smack in the middle of Hoxton’s urban sprawl, the Geffrye Museum’s elegant 18th century almshouses are set behind a verdant front lawn and backed by historic walled herb and flower gardens. Indoors, period rooms extend chronologically, each full of furniture, ceramics and paintings, illustrating the history of the British middle-class interior from the 1600s to the present. The contemporary wing introduces a light-filled cafe with views onto the gardens, serving modern British fare, a book-filled shop, and the first of several children’s activities spaces. Beyond the Quiz Desk, ‘Feely Box’ (!), and tables teeming with children colouring, completing quizzes and reading lies 20th century Britain, as well as spaces for workshops, seminars and temporary exhibitions. A vibrant and community-orientated venue for young and old alike, it truly draws its period rooms into present-day London.

136 Kingsland Road, London E2 8EA
+44 (0)20 7739 9893
www.geffrye-museum.org.uk
Google map: bit.ly/mlg798

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