As the weather starts warming up, here’s a great family day trip from York to try, with a castle, waterfall and proper Sunday lunch to enjoy. Destination: County Durham. Here’s what we made of Raby Castle and High Force. About Raby Castle Raby is what our children call ‘a proper castle’: it’s all in one […]

Agility Adventure Fitness Park, on Millfield Lane, has only been open for seven weeks, but you’d never guess it. We had a look around and were very impressed by what we found: a large, well-designed space packed full of play opportunities for kids of all ages (and adults who want to channel their inner Gladiator!). […]

We followed the scent of lavender along the A64 to explore Wolds Way Lavender and Nature Farm to see what it’s like as a place to visit with children in tow. What is Wolds Way Lavender? It’s a family-run lavender farm bursting with numerous varieties of lavender and herbs. During the summer months, the air […]

A family camping trip can be a wonderful thing: it’s a chance to have some proper old-school, off-grid adventures and to reconnect with each other without the distractions of school/work/life in general. We camp with our three kids every year – by the seaside, at music festivals, in the glorious Lakes and Yorkshire Dales – […]

Our family has always had a love affair with birds – owls in particular –  and the children have become even more obsessed recently thanks to Harry Potter and his beloved Hedwig. So there was a lot of enthusiasm about visiting the National Centre for Birds of Prey in Helmsley, an award-winning attraction set in […]

If you can’t revel in York’s darker side at Halloween, when can you? And goodness knows there’s a lot to revel in, with links to some of history’s most dastardly dudes, from Guy Fawkes to Dick Turpin. Of course you could find out about them by trawling from one landmark to the next, but trawling […]

There’s always a sense of excitement and anticipation as the seasons turn and we enter the darker months, and often a little hint of magic too. It’s a great time to get outdoors and experience the changes up close, from the turning of the leaves to the nip in the air, and we’ve got just […]

We’ve been excited about the new adventure playground at Castle Howard since we heard whisperings about it a couple of months ago. We’d seen the sketches and heard the plan, so we couldn’t wait to get along and see how it had turned out just a few short weeks later. The youngest (four) and I […]

As a music-mad teenager, and then working for a major record label for a few years, I’ve been a long-time festival-goer. I feared that those days would be long gone once kids came along, but then we moved back up north and discovered Deer Shed. This self-proclaimed family-friendly festival takes place just outside Thirsk each […]

There are loads of birthday party options in York for children, making it really difficult to choose what to do (have a look at our best birthday parties in York here). JORVIK DIG is one of the attractions that offers birthday parties, and we went along to try it for ourselves. Our little Vikings have […]

If the thought of taking your children for afternoon tea fills you with dread – the noise! the crumbs!  – consider this: a child is never quieter than in the presence of cake. So imagine just how compliant they are when they’re faced with three tiers of baked goodies! We’re big fans of taking children […]

Here at Little Vikings, we’re really excited about the opening of a unique new attraction in Yorkshire, The Northwood Fairy Sanctuary. It’s set within 100 acres of glorious woodland with 1.5km of imaginative nature trails winding through it: be inspired by a willow walled maze, a large collection of fairy doors on trees, fairy treehouses […]

Day trip, weekend break or holiday, York is a city that’s ideal for children. It’s full of fantastic attractions, family-friendly places to eat, hotels that welcome children and things to do for free. Here’s our 50 top things to do with kids in York and just beyond (CLICK HERE to take a look at our […]

You may have heard on the grapevine that The Grand Hotel & Spa is a luxurious, family-friendly place to stay in York with children (read our accommodation review here), but did you know that you can learn to cook with your children there too? We jumped at the invitation to attend the first parent and […]

There’s very little that would entice me to chuck the kids into the car and drive to a large field for three days of festivalling without my partner in crime for back-up, especially on the last day of the summer term, when everyone’s exhausted and still grouchy about not coming first in every race at […]

When we told our friends that we were heading off into the Yorkshire countryside for a winter weekend break in a luxury woodland lodge, we were met with a lot of envious looks. Until, that is, we mentioned that we were taking our three children – seven, five and three – with us, and that […]

It’s not as easy as you might think to find family-friendly places to stay in York, so we’re always on the lookout for hotels in York with family rooms, self-catering places in York and even camping and glamping options for weekends away and staycations. While we’re big fans of quality budget options, especially when it […]

Bempton Cliffs is an RSPB nature reserve between Bridlington and Flamborough that’s home to 250,000 seabirds. It’s the place on the Yorkshire coast to see gannets, kittiwakes and even puffins nesting, diving for fish and taking their first flight. We braved the A64 on a bank holiday weekend (yes, that’s how seriously we take our […]

We discovered The Balloon Tree a few years back when it was nothing but a great farm shop. Back then we’d never have imagined it would be somewhere that our kids would nag to go, but that’s what it’s become. It’s a lovely countryside destination just outside York, with just enough to keep everyone happy. […]

It’s a few years now since JORVIK Viking Centre’s £4m re-imagining, but the world-famous Viking attraction – one of the jewels in York’s crown (or Viking helmet) – is still looking good. We thought it was time to drop in and check it out again with our children, and we’re pleased to report that it […]