Keeping kids busy during summer vacation can be an expensive affair. This year, with the price of everything from food to petrol increase, it can be very costly. But fear not. We asked the nation’s top money bloggers to share the ingenious tricks they use to entertain their kids on a budget — or even for free.
Faith Archer, muchmorewithless.co.uk
Sign up for mystery shopping and you can get paid for taking your kids on trips.
Mystery shopping involves visiting businesses anonymously to check things like customer service, cleanliness, and food quality.
I use it to cover the costs of travel that I would otherwise pay. We went to a trampoline park, ten pin bowling and laser tag through mystery shopping service Proinsight.
Sometimes you can get a gym membership for several months, which can work well for family outings during the school holidays.
We went to a trampoline park, ten pin bowling and laser tag through mystery shopping service Proinsight
Mystery shopping doesn’t pay well, and you have to swot up the place you’re going in advance – check a lot of things while you’re there, take pictures, and then fill out questionnaires. But it can be worth it for a fun day out.
For example, when judging bowling, I was charged £15 plus up to £60 for tickets, food and drinks. Be careful not to exceed the surcharge if you are trying to save money.
I signed up for a mystery shop at Kaspa’s Dessert Lounge for two, but no one wanted to miss it, so the four of us ended up spending way more than the limited allowance.
Ruth Taylor, moneysavvymumuk.com
See if you can help your kids find a skill or interest that will help them earn some pocket money. My son Jake (14) taught himself to fix cell phones by watching videos on YouTube.
He fixes phones for all our friends and family and has had several regular customers. He can replace batteries and broken screens and even uses a soldering iron we gave him for Christmas.
My daughter Olivia, 13, earns some pocket money by watering people’s gardens
He has so far earned hundreds of pounds, which he spends on a trip to Canada with his grandfather.
My daughter Olivia, 13, earns some pocket money by watering people’s gardens. She loves being outside so she really enjoys it.
Since both kids have some of their own money to spend going out during the holidays, that takes the pressure off a bit.
Emma Stretton, emmawritesitall.com
Take your kids to the shop window for a fun afternoon out. My kids and I can easily spend an hour or so away from Pets at Home watching all the guinea pigs, rabbits and fish.
I know many parents who take their children to a local garden center. Dobbies offers free gardening lessons for children throughout the summer.
We also like to take a good look around Ikea. Last summer we even took our son to the Tesla garage even though we had no intention of buying one. The children were allowed to sit behind the wheel.
I know many parents who take their children to a local garden center. Dobbies offers free gardening lessons for children throughout the summer.
We also go to the Smyths toy store at the beginning of the summer holidays where they can find something fun. Then they earn rewards during the holidays and at the end we take them back to get what they wanted.
Al Baker, thepennypincher.co.uk
Children can eat for free at a number of cafes and restaurants during the summer holidays. For example, M&S has a Kids Eat Free offer until August 12. You can get a free kids breakfast or lunch if you spend at least £5 on a single transaction in the cafe.
Kids can also eat for free in Morrisons cafes, when an adult buys a full meal for £4.99 or more.
Hey! Sushi offers free meals for children under the age of ten, Monday through Thursday between 3:00 PM and 5:30 PM. One child eats free for every £30 the accompanying adults spend on food, and up to three children per booking eat free.
Free and £1 kids meals are also offered by Hungry Horse, Asda, Bella Italia, Beefeater, The Real Greek, Preto, Brewers Fayre, Cafe Rouge and Tesco. Check the conditions before you leave.
Lynn Beattie, mrsmummypenny.co.uk
Turn a day out into a treasure hunt by giving your kids a list of ten items they can try to spot. I give my three boys a list of things in nature, like a red kite, cow parsley, an oak – and they have to try to find as many as possible. It gets them to notice wildlife and keeps them entertained.
We also do geocaching, which is like a free nationwide treasure hunt. You can download the geocaching app on your smartphone and while on the road you can log in to see where there is a treasure hidden nearby.
You will be given GPS coordinates of where to find the treasure and then you can enjoy tracking it down. Treasure is always hidden in a box – usually with a log so you can leave a message for the next people to find it. When you take a trinket out of the box, leave another in its place for the next seekers.
A National Trust membership costs upfront, but once you get one, you get tons of free days out. National Trust destinations have many free family activities all summer long.
We also save a lot of money on car parking with our membership as they own many of the car parks in lovely spots across the country including near several beautiful Cornish beaches which would otherwise cost a few pounds a day to to park.
Another top tip: We buy a National Trust for Scotland membership because it’s cheaper than a National Trust membership, but we still get free entry to most National Trust places in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. It costs £79.20 per year for one adult and up to six children, while the National Trust costs £83.40 for an adult and their children or grandchildren.