Dog And Scone - Newcastle's Dog Cafe

 

Did you know that there is a dog cafe in Newcastle? Dog and Scone located right in the city centre is the cutest little cafe with the most adorable resident dogs. You can enjoy a drink and a snack in this cosy little cafe whilst getting to know the eight resident dogs who are all super cute and friendly. 

Dog and Scone is located in Pudding Chare which is just off the Bigg Market and not far from central station. It is recommend that you book in advance as it is very popular and often gets fully booked, as there is only twelve people per session which last for an hour. 

A Day Out To Roker On The Sunderland Connect Bus

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It is the summer holidays and days out with the kids can be expensive so I have been determined to explore more of the North East this summer, as we have some fab low-cost days out in the region. Somewhere we have not explored much of is Sunderland, so I decided to explore it a bit this summer with the kids - aged nine and eleven years old. 

As I don't know Sunderland very well I thought it was best if we explored it via public transport, especially as children aged eleven and under travel for free this summer on Go North East buses in the region - making it a super affordable day out. 

Treetop Mini Golf Metrocentre

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Treetop Mini Golf has branches around the UK and it recently opened a branch here in the North East at the Metrocentre. There are two 18 hole courses to choose from - Tropical Trail which is rainforest theme and Ancient Explorer which we decided to try out and was ancient Amazonian themed. 

Family Fright Fest

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Looking for a spooky Halloween themed day out in the North East? Well Family Fright Fest is the perfect Halloween themed family day out for the whole family. Located at Lintz Hall Farm in Burnopfield - on the same site as the popular adult event Psychopath you will find Family Fright Fest. Read on to find out everything you need to know. 

What Is Family Fright Fest

Pumpkin Patch UK Review

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The people behind Family Fright Fest and Psycopath have launched a brand new Pumpkin Patch this year called Pumpkin Patch UK and we were invited along for opening weekend. Located at Lintz Hall farm in Burnopfield you will find Pumpkin Patch UK situated on the same site as sister events Psychopath and Family Fright Fest. 

Newcastle United - St James Park Stadium Tour

 

My husband and son are huge Newcastle fans and we are definitely a football household as my 9 year old son plays football five times a week with his grassroot teams and my husband is a coach at the local football club. They have been lucky enough to go to some Newcastle matches at St James park (tickets are like gold dust these days) and my son loves anything to do with Newcastle, so we decided to book a stadium tour as part of his 9th birthday celebrations recently. 

Brocksbushes Pumpkin Patch

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Autumn is here and that means one thing all thing's pumpkin related! Pumpkin Patches are getting so popular and there is a few here in the North East now, one of which is Brocksbushes Farm Pumpkin Patch in Northumberland. We visited at the weekend, read on to find out what we thought. 

YuMe World Newcastle Review

Looking for something fun to do with the kids in Newcastle? Then what about a visit to YuMe World located in the Gate.  I visited recently with my 9 and 10 year old and they both had so much fun. 

What Is YuMe World? 

YuMe World is a arcade and virtual reality centre located upstairs in the Gate complex, right in the centre of Newcastle. It is packed with arcade favourites from grab a prize machines, 2p machines, air hockey, video games and it even has a virtual reality area. It is quiet big inside and there are so many different machines and games to play on, there really is something for the whole family. 

There are family friendly games like Mario Kart and Lugi mansion and just dance aswell as slightly older shooting and racing games. There are no gambling slot machines or anything it is just fun games to play with your friends or family. 

A Family Day Out With The Shields Ferry

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The Shields ferry is such a great way to start a family day out and we recently used it to have a fun-filled family day out in South Shields. The Shields ferry runs every half an hour across the river Tyne between North and South Shields, journeys take under 10 minutes and it is such a fun way to travel. Even better children aged 11 and under travel completely free with a fare paying adult, making it a super affordable way to travel around the region.

Life Science Centre Newcastle - Review

 AD - We were invited free of charge in exchange for this review, however all opinions are my own. 

It has been a few years since we last visited the Life Science Centre in Newcastle and now the children are a bit older at 8 and 10 years old, it was like a whole new experience. The children had such a great time they didn't want to leave! So read on to see what we thought. 

The Life Science Centre is located in Times Square - right next to the central train station in Newcastle city centre. Getting there is easy with public transport, the central station metro station is just a few minutes walk and there are bus stops nearby and the Times Square car park just a short walk away too. 

Gorilla Bowling Eldon Square Newcastle

 updated December 2024 - Gorilla Bowling has now shut down. 

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Did you know that there is a bowling alley inside Eldon Square shopping centre right in the heart of Newcastle city centre? Located upstairs in the Eldon Leisure complex above the greys quarter dining area you will fine Gorilla Bowl right next door to the soft play. The central city centre location make it perfect for a fun activity with friends or family when in Newcastle. 

Clip n Climb Metrocentre Review

 

Looking for something fun to do in the Metrocentre, well what about Clip n Climb? We visited recently with my children aged 8 and 9 years old and they had great fun. 

Located inside the Metrocentre shopping mall in  Tyne and Wear, near to Namco funscape and the cinema you will find Clip n Climb. You can't miss it as the climbing walls and obstacles are fun, colourful and some are very high and go up to the first floor of the centre. There are 26 different challenges varying in difficulty and height. 

Mr Mulligans Space Golf Newcastle Review

 

Looking for something fun to do in Newcastle city centre with your family? Well what about Mr Mulligans Space golf? We went recently and it was tons of fun for the whole family. 

Mr Mulligans is a space themed indoor mini golf located just outside of the Gate complex in Newcastle city centre next to Zaap Thai and Turtle Bay. There are three courses to choose from easy, medium and hard and you can play any of the courses you like. They also have arcade type games, pool tables and electro-darts for an extra charge and they serve food and drinks. 

Psychopath Event Review

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Do you love a good scare? If so read on to find out all about Psychopath the North East's biggest scream park. If you like scary movies, horror, scares, thrills and want to experience something that will get your heart pounding then read on to find out what all the hype is about. 

What Is Psychopath?

Psychopath is an event held at Lintz Hall farm near Burnopfield in Durham, about a 30 minute drive from Newcastle. It is a Scream Park with several super scary attractions for you to explore that are filled with actors dressed in rather gruesome and frightful costumes. As well as the attractions there are also stage shows, fairground rides and food and drink stalls - meaning you can make a night of it. 

It is outdoors and starts in the evening which adds to the scariness of the whole event. It is not for the faint hearted as it is designed to terrify you and people will jump out on you when you least expect it. But it is good fun and is ideal to visit with a group of friends for a scaretastic night out, it certainly beats sitting in a bar. 

Northumberlandia - The Lady Of The North

 

Did you know that there is a giant lady landform sculpture that you can walk up in Northumberland? Located on the outskirts of Cramlington, you will find her and it is free to visit with free onsite parking too. Read on to find out more. 

What Is Northumberlandia?

Well Northumberlandia or the Lady Of The North as she is often referred to is a giant - I'm not kidding she is huge at 100 foot high at her tallest point and she has four miles of footpaths around her. She is set in 46 acres of public park which is lovely with forest areas, ponds and footpaths around or up her. 

It is the world's largest landform sculpture and she has been there about 10 years now. If you see aerial photos of her then you will see she is a giant female, however as she is so big when you are walking around you will only be able to see certain features - her head is very noticeable for example. 

Horse Riding Lessons At East Boldon Riding Centre

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Ever wanted to learn to horse ride? or maybe you have a child who adores ponies and you think they would like riding lessons. If so read on to find out what we thought of riding lessons at East Boldon Riding Centre, located in Boldon Tyne and Wear. 

We were kindly invited to East Boldon Riding Centre to try out a riding lesson and see what we thought. My daughter Sophia (9) has been riding for a year at a different riding school and is pony crazy. Plus I was horse crazy as a child / teen and rode for 10 years up to a high level before giving up in my late teens - something I massively regret. So we do know a little bit about horses and it is actually something we are interested in. 

The Great North Museum - Hancock

 

Newcastle-upon-Tyne is home to some great museums, some of which are FREE to visit. One of these museums is the Great North Museum - or the Hancock museum as us locals may refer to it. Located close to the city centre just a few minutes walk from Haymarket bus and Metro station's and Northumberland street. Visiting the museum is free (however donations are very welcome), making it perfect for a low cost family day out in Newcastle. 

The Great North Museum has been in Newcastle for a long time and I remember visiting myself as a child on school trips and with my parents back in the 90's, when it was known as the Hancock Museum. About ten or so years ago it had a bit of a makeover and is now known as the Great North Museum: Hancock. 

A Family Day Out In Amble Northumberland

Living in the North East we are spoilt for choice with lovely coastal towns to explore, especially in Northumberland. So when the children had a extra day off school for the jubilee we decided to head to Amble in Northumberland for a family day out. Amble is located on the North East coast near Warkworth and Alnmouth and is a lovely harbour village filled with independent shops, places to eat and beautiful coastal views.

 It is about 30 miles north of Newcastle (about a 40 minute drive up the A1) or you can catch the bus from haymarket bus station in Newcastle city centre - the X18 or the X20 which takes about an hour and half (please check  the Arriva website for details). 

Festive Tales With Father Christmas At Woodhorn Museum

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On Saturday we were invited along to Woodhorn Museum in Ashington, Northumberland to experience the Festive Tales with Father Christmas event and the children had such a lovely time. For those who don't know Woodhorn Museum is a former colliery based just outside of the former mining town of Ashington at the Queen Elizabeth 11 Country park in Northumberland - about half an hour north of Newcastle. Despite only living 20 minutes away I have never visited Woodhorn since I was a child and the children had never visited before so I had no idea what to expect. 

Festive Tales with Father Christmas costs £6.50 per child and includes a gift, which I think is really good value. Adults do not pay but they do need to either buy or use their annual membership which costs £7 per year - under 16s are free. Arriving at Woodhorn in the afternoon everywhere was lit up with hundreds of white twinkling fairy lights which looked magical. 

Alnwick Castle

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As part of our magical stay at Macondland Linden Hall experiencing the Harry Potter Package we were given a family ticket to Alnwick Castle as this is where part of the first two Harry Potter films were filmed. Alnwick Castle is somewhere that I have visited before but it has been around seven years since my last visit and my youngest two children had never been before so they were very excited. 

Alnwick Castle is located in Alnwick, Northumberland in the town centre and right next to Alnwick Gardens and the famous treehouse restaurant. We had a family day ticket as part of our Harry Potter package but you can buy tickets for either just the castle or the castle and the garden combined on the day or in advance online (and save 10%) and they will last for the full year - making them really good value.