Easter will soon land on us all, and for parents and guardians this can often feel like a challenge to find stuff to entertain bambinos for two whole weeks. Well, Daily Info has you covered, with a selection of events and activities for you, picked by one of our in-house parents (who is also scrambling for stuff to do) to take part in, in Oxford and beyond.
Science Oxford
Museum eggs-plorers
Oxford’s museums and art galleries are getting in on the egg-cellent fun with a trail through both the Pitt Rivers and the Museum of Natural History. The Museum of Natural History also have an Autism-friendly opening, where the atmosphere will be more relaxed and quiet for families with members on the Autistic spectrum. The Story Museum are running Lego Master Builders and Story Explorers sessions. Science Oxford is hosting Family Days throughout the two weeks with children and adults able to plan and experiment in their Exploration Zone as well as follow their spring woodland nature trail. And Modern Art Oxford has joined the Oxford Indie Easter Egg Hunt, with a free cupcake when purchasing any item.
Further afield, Banbury Museum has some amazing crafty activities throughout the two weeks, with sessions to make your very own sock bunny, garden scene in a box or a bird feeder from recycled materials. And with such a focus on chocolate, why not head on over to the Roald Dahl Museum for their Crodscolloping Chocolate Trail.
Waterperry Gardens
Down on the manor
With Oxford surrounded by some pretty lavish estates, they are the perfect locale to follow a trail or two. One of the best is at Stonor Park, where you can take in their gardens and solve some puzzles for a treat at the end. You can also find an Easter Bunny hunt through the beautiful ornamental gardens at Waterperry, which runs until Sunday 24th April.
Blenheim Palace is getting in the spirit of things with a host of activities, including balloon modelling, circus skills and appearances from the Easter Bunny throughout the weekend. Children can also take part in a Hotel Chocolat workshop, where they will learn the history of chocolate and get to make their own creations. And over at Waddesdon Manor you can take their nature-inspired trail and stop off for an afternoon tea with some seasonal treats.
Or if you’re looking to properly escape the city, why not head out to the picturesque village of Warborough and take part in an Easter trail around?
Trains, bunnies and dragons
As well as museums and country houses, many other venues are springing into action to help entertain little ones. As you might expect Fairytale Farm are going all out to celebrate Easter with rabbits to pet, eggs to hunt and one Easter Bunny to meet. The Cholsey-Wallingford Railway line will have trains running on Easter Sunday and Monday, whilst those looking for locomotives of a smaller size can find sessions run by the fabulous Trainmaster.
Oxford Castle & Prison have eggs of a different kind, with theirs containing dragons, with children able to decorate their own egg, make a lair for their new pet and then adopt a cuddly one. For some gentle animals, head on down to High Lodge Farm for their easter trail, complete with spring lambs. Those looking to frolic in the forest (with mud pie making, bug hunting and stories) can sign up for the Earth Trust's Easter Forest fun sessions.
And the behemoth that is the Thame Country Fair lands over the Easter weekend with a huge number of stalls and activities, as well as scrumptious food and live music.
Tara Yoga Centre
Egg-citing Activities
Many of the very best Oxford establishments have activities and workshops to keep the younger members of your family amused. Blackwell’s are running a session to make your own Easter Bunny ears, Hill End Outdoor Centre will be holding two days where you can make dens, explore trails and even have a splash in their streams, and you can take part in sessions for crafts and French songs with Alliance Française.
And there are even more things to do this Easter, whatever your child's tastes. The theatrically minded are covered by Flintlock Theatre Company’s holiday courses around Moana and Hamilton. Animal lovers can head down to Oxford City Farm and meet the residents. For those looking for something more relaxing, try a family yoga session at the Tara Yoga Centre. And if you’re looking for a reminder of the religious roots of Easter, Headington Baptist Church will have crafts, competitions and homemade cake at their Easter Extravaganza.
Sonic the Hedgehog 2
A trip to the pictures
For those looking to escape into a different world for a few hours, there are several new films to enchant children of all ages. A pair of sequels have taken over cinemas with plucky videogame icon Sonic (the Hedgehog) squaring up against some witches and wizards. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore can be found in most Oxford cinemas and seem to offer exactly what their respective fans are looking for.
For those looking for different animated thrills, why not check out The Bad Guys, a star-studded piece from Dreamworks following some villainous animals who seek to throw off their reputations and become good. And for younger members of the audience, there’s Rabbit Academy or a Julia Donaldson double in the form of Superworm and Zog.