It’s half-term next week and for many people the biggest challenge is how to keep the kids entertained for a whole seven days. But don’t worry, we have put together a helpful list of fun things to do across Cumbria, all with a bus stop close by so you can leave the car at home.
Families can get out and about in Cumbria for just £2 (for a single journey), thanks to the £2 fare-cap Stagecoach is running through the half-term break. It is part of the Department for Transport’s nationwide scheme which sees fares capped at £2 (for a single journey) until the end of October. Here are just a few of the exciting places the bus can take you to:
Wordsworth Grasmere Spring Make and Play
Drop into the Learning Space for some half-term Make and Play family activities. Explore spring through craft and creativity and bring William and Dorothy Wordsworth’s writings to life in a range of making and creative writing activities. May 31, 10.30am-12.30pm.
Bus service: 555 & 599
Bus stop: Wordsworth Grasmere
Whinlatter Forest
Whinlatter is a fantastic place for a visit over half-term. You can get there by bus and enjoy stunning views, fantastic walks, exhilarating mountain biking, rare wildlife and adventure play for a fabulous free day out.
Bus service: 77 & 77A. The ‘Honister Rambler’ bus 77 runs direct from Keswick Bus Station to Whinlatter daily, from 27th March to 5th November
Bus stop: Whinlatter Visitor Centre
A day trip to Silloth
Silloth is a great place to visit by bus. It’s a proper seaside resort, with wide, tree-lined cobbled streets and a village green next to a long promenade. It’s surrounded by salt marshes and lowland peat mires to the north, with dunes and beaches to the south.
The Victorians came to Silloth to ‘take in the air’ and it’s still popular today with those who want a gentle stroll or bracing walk, and to explore some of the loveliest parts of the Solway Coast. For those with older children, why not take a walk from Silloth to Allonby. This five-mile beach has views across the Solway to Scotland and interesting flora and fauna. On arrival at Allonby, head to The Codfather for delicious fish and chips, or treat yourself to an ice cream at the famous Twentyman’s ice cream parlour.
Bus service: 400
Bus stop: The Green, Silloth
Senhouse Museum, Maryport
This award-winning Maryport museum, high up on the cliffs overlooking the Solway Firth, has the largest and finest collection of Roman military altar stones anywhere in Britain. It is next to a Roman fort that is thought to date from the first century CE and which was rebuilt during the reign of the Emperor Hadrian. The collection is the oldest in the country and was begun by the Senhouse family in the 1570s.
Bus service: 30 & 300
Bus stop: St Mary’s church (10 minute walk)
Barrow Dock Museum, Barrow
Barrow Dock Museum is in a unique location, suspended over a 19th-century dry dock in the historic port of Barrow-in-Furness. There are a range of galleries exploring the history of industrial Barrow and its people, with lots of exciting exhibits as well as a gift shop and a cafe. Outside there is a children’s playground, picnic tables, sculpture, a lifeboat and Walney Channel. Admission is free and the museum is open Wednesday to Sunday from 11am to 4pm.
Bus service: 2 & 5
Bus stop: Dock Museum
Castlerigg stone circle
High up on the hills overlooking Keswick, Castlerigg stone circle has panoramic views of High Seat and Helvellyn. It was raised in about 3000 BCE during the Neolithic period and entry to this magical site is free.
Bus service: 73 (Saturday Only), X4, X5 or 555
Bus stop: Nether Place / Ashtree House / Castle Lane (15 minute walk to Stone Circle)
Acorn Bank watermill
Acorn Bank watermill is a restored, working mill where you can have a go at grinding your own flour. It is open every weekend and bank holiday between 11am and 3pm. Entry to the mill is free but access is through the Acorn Bank garden for which National Trust charges apply.
Bus service: 563
The Penrith to Appleby bus service, number 563, stops at Temple Sowerby. Take the public footpath from Temple Sowerby to Acorn Bank, about 1 mile. No service on Sundays.
Bus stop: Temple Sowerby, Post Office (20 minute walk)
The Lost Spells, Theatre by the Lake, Keswick
A fun, boisterous show for all the family full of paw-tapping music and dancing, played live on stage by talented actor-musicians, The Lost Spells is a riot of colour that celebrates the magic, power and wonder of nature. Adapted from the bestselling book by globally renowned writer Robert Macfarlane and artist Jackie Morris, which has delighted and inspired people of all ages, The Lost Spells is for anyone who wants to celebrate and save the natural world around us before it disappears forever.
The Lost Spells runs at Theatre By The Lakes from Wednesday May 24 to Saturday June 3 at 7.30pm, with 2pm matinees on selected dates. Tickets from £10. 1 hour 40 mins (including interval). Suitable for age 6+. Visit the Theatre by the Lake website for more information.
Bus service: 73, 77, 77A, 78, 554, 555, X4 & X5
Bus stop: Keswick Bus Station
