Child friendly London

With its wealth of bars, restaurants, clubs and hotels, you’d be forgiven for thinking London was an adult-only city. But you would be wrong. London actually has an awful lot of attractions aimed directly at children and families. Plus, many of these attractions are free or much cheaper than you’d expect from a global city the size and importance of London.

In the Kensington area of London you’ll find the capital’s best museums for kids, including the Natural History Museum and the Science Museum. These museums have kids’ only sections and activities; the large animatronic dinosaur permanent exhibition at the National Museum and the Brought to Life section of the Science Museum are fantastic places for kids to learn and experience science and history in a child-friendly environment.

There are plenty of hotels in this area so it’s a good place to base yourself. Millennium Hotels has two Kensington hotels, the Millennium Hotel Baileys London Kensington and the Millennium Gloucester Hotel. Click the link to take a look.

If your kids love animals then the London Aquarium on the South Bank and London Zoo in Regent’s Park are absolute musts. Alternatively, London has a selection of city farms including Hackney City Farm which boasts a pottery, craft and textile workshop and Deen City Farm near Wimbledon which includes a riding centre.

If your kids don’t like to sit still, take them to the Lee Valley White Water Centre where they can go white-water rafting in an Olympic standard course, which will be used by Olympic athletes during London’s 2012 Olympic games. Alternatively, hop aboard a RIB boat and speed along the River Thames at an eye-watering pace.

London is the theatre epicentre of Britain. Clustered around Covent Garden are the country’s best theatres playing all manner of musical, dramatic and classical performances. Some of the best for children include the Lion King, which has won many awards for its stage adaption of this Disney Classic, the Wizard of Oz which is an old-time favourite and even one parents can enjoy and Les Miserables, a show that’s been wowing West End theatre goers for 23 years.

Finding somewhere to eat with kids in tow in London is an uphill struggle. So we have narrowed it down for you. Some fun restaurants for children include Planet Hollywood, the Hard Rock Café and the Rainforest Café for international favourites including burgers, fajitas and pasta dishes; My Old Dutch for pancakes and Ed’s Easy Diners for the best in old-school American diner grub like hot dogs, burgers and chilly fries.