Worcestershire On A Budget: 10 Family Days Out For Under £50
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With the Worcestershire school summer holidays coming up, I’m always looking for days out that are suitable for those of us on a budget. You can check out my list of free things to do in Worcestershire, but the suggestions on this post are for those days when you’re happy to spend up to £50 on a day out, but you’re keen to avoid overspending. Even though these are all relatively cheap options, do check out my discount deals on attractions and days out. I update this every week and there are often savings available on activities in the local area.
Witley Court & Gardens
Once a grand Victorian mansion, now a spectacular ruin surrounded by Capability Brown gardens. Kids can run wild through the grounds, spot the famous Perseus and Andromeda fountain, and explore the woodland trails and wilderness play area. Pack a picnic for the lawns and it’s a proper day out.
- Cost: It’s 15% cheaper to buy online, with a family ticket for 2 adults and up to 3 children currently listed as £30.85. Given that they welcome picnics, if you take your own food and drinks this one’s well under £5. English Heritage members get in free.
- Picnic: Yes – plenty of grass and benches, picnics allowed.
- Website: Witley Court English Heritage
- Review: Plutonium Sox Review of a family day out at Witley Court.
- Dog friendly? Yes.
Evesham Vale Light Railway
A 15-inch gauge railway winding through the Vale of Evesham. The round trip takes about 20 minutes and kids (and big kids) love the steam and diesel engines. There’s also a play area and café on site. No need to book in advance, but they’re not open every day so check their website before you travel.
- Cost: £3.65 per person. Family of four ≈ £14.60.
- Picnic: Yes – picnics are welcome, tables and grass areas available.
- Website: Evesham Vale Light Railway
- Dog friendly? Yes – well behaved dogs are allowed on the trains.
The Falconry Centre, Hagley
Get up close to eagles, hawks, owls, and falcons with daily flying displays that are genuinely impressive. The handlers are knowledgeable and happy to answer questions. Small and low-key but excellent value. I’ve given the prices for visiting because this is the cheap day out option that comes in at under £50. Flying experiences are available if you want to get up close with the birds, but these are a lot more pricey.
- Cost: A family ticket for two adults and two children is £21.
- Picnic: Yes – there’s a picnic area.
- Website: Thefalconrycentre
- Dog friendly? No.
Avoncroft Museum of Historic Buildings
An open air museum with nineteen acres of rescued buildings spanning 700 years. Buildings include a medieval town house, a Victorian prison, a windmill, and a telephone box museum, complete with a Tardis. Two play areas keep the kids happy, and the miniature train rides cost just £1 each. I absolutely love Avoncroft, so much that we got married there. BUT – it has really limited opening times, so you definitely need to check the date before you go.
- Cost: A family ticket for 2 adults and up to 3 children is £39.
- Picnic: Yes – plenty of space and benches.
- Website: Avoncroft
- Dog friendly? Yes.
Arley Arboretum
Beautiful gardens on the banks of the River Severn with rare and ancient trees, a hornbeam maze, and a dinosaur trail. The tearoom does good cake, but there are plenty of spots for a picnic too.
- Cost: If you book online in advance, a family ticket for two adults and three children costs £26.24. This is 10% cheaper than paying on arrival. Entry is free for RHS members.
- Picnic: Yes, picnics welcome and picnic areas are available throughout the gardens.
- Website: Arley Estate
- Dog friendly? Yes.
Droitwich Spa Lido
A heated outdoor pool with a 40-metre main pool and a separate children’s paddling area. On a warm day it’s hard to beat. Advance booking is essential at the Lido. The Lido is located in Lido Park where there are lots of free facilities including tennis courts, a five a side football pitch and a basketball court. There’s also a children’s play area and plenty of space to run around, so you could definitely bring a picnic and make a day of it.
- Cost: £9.70 per adult and £7.40 per child aged 4-15 years. Children under 4 are free.
- Picnic: Yes – there’s a grass area for picnics.
- Website: Rivers Fitness
Habberley Trail
A woodland adventure trail near Kidderminster with custom-built play equipment, den-building areas, and walking routes through the forest. Great for kids who need to burn off serious energy. Activities include a water squirter bridge, roundabout swing, ball dropper, hangman challenge, mesh maze, giant connect-4, basketball shooting game, slides, inflatables, a twister swing and loads more. I still haven’t been to the Habberley Trail but it looks brilliant.
- Cost: Trail admission for both adults and children aged 4 and over is £11 when booked online in advance – the price increases by 50p if you pay on arrival. The price includes a free drink or ice cream.
- Picnic: Yes – picnics are welcome and there are plenty of picnic benches and grassy areas.
- Website: Habberley Trail
- Dog friendly? Yes.
Jungle Safari Adventure Golf, Foot Golf, Pitch & Putt and Driving Range at Ravenmeadow Golf Centre Worcester
Jungle Safari Adventure Golf is an 18-hole outdoor adventure golf course set within a golf centre on the outskirts of Worcester. It’s a proper course with water features, bridges, and plenty of tricky holes to keep kids and adults entertained. Ravenmeadow also has Foot Golf, Pitch & Putt and a Driving Range, all of which come in at under £50 for a family.
- Costs: For adventure golf on its own, you can get a family ticket for £30. Alternatively, if you’re willing to go right up towards the £50 cost for a day out, you can get a family combination ticket that gives you both mini golf and foot golf for £42. Pitch & Putt is £18 for a family ticket. The driving range costs £7.50 per regular basket of balls.
- Picnic: No – only food and drink purchased in their café can be consumed on site.
- Website: Ravenmeadow Golf Centre
- Dog Friendly? Dogs are only allowed on the café patio.
Forge Mill Needle Museum, Redditch
A fascinating museum set in a working water mill, telling the story of Redditch’s needle-making and fishing tackle history. The museum itself features models that recreate scenes of how needles were made – at one time, 90% of the needles in the world were produced in Redditch. Whilst you’re at the museum, there are plenty of other things to do as well. Check out the ruins of Bordesley Abbey and the visitor centre telling its story. There’s also a nature trail, riverside walk, and a play area.
- Costs: Entry is free to the Abbey ruins site, Forge Mill grounds and children’s play area. A family entry ticket costs £16.50 and includes access to the needle museum, visitor centre and special exhibitions.
- Picnic: Yes – picnic tables by the river.
- Website: Forge Mill Needle Museum
- Dog Friendly? Not in the museum itself but dogs are welcome around the site and ruins.
Croome National Trust
Croome is a huge mansion with vast Capability Brown landscaped parkland. There’s a children’s play area and natural play area and absolutely acres of space for them to run around. You can visit the parkland, house and RAF museum on site. This is definitely a full day out if you take drinks and a picnic.
- Costs: This is absolutely at the highest end of the under £50 days out in Worcestershire. A family ticket costs £49.50. However, if you visit this or other National Trust properties regularly, it’s well worth considering joining the National Trust because entry is free. When my kids were pre-school age, we had National Trust membership and went to Croome at least once a week, so it worked out really cost-effective.
- Picnic: Yes – picnics are welcome and there are benches and loads of lovely spots to sit and eat.
- Website: Croome National Trust
- Dog Friendly? Yes – dogs are allowed in the grounds but not the house, cafés or RAF museum.
- Review: Plutonium Sox review of a day out at Croome National Trust.
