Indoor and outdoor activities for children of all ages in Southall
If there is one thing that families need, it’s something to keep the kids amused. Parents in Southall never need to ask what to do with kids at the weekend. In and around Southall, there is plenty of family entertainment. You could visit a different attraction or park every weekend for a year, and still not have seen half of what this area of London has to offer to families.
In no particular order, here is our pick of the 10 best things to do for families within 30 minutes of Southall.
1. Hanwell Zoo
This is a great day out for children from toddlers to twelve years old.
A day packed with wildlife fun, animal ‘meet and greets’, and plenty of educational programmes to help the kids learn about rare species, conservation, and more.
Marmosets, meerkats, and mara are just a few of the creatures that kids will marvel at. Children can run around freely at the zoo’s playground facilities. At Hanwell, youngsters arrive as kids and leave as mini zookeepers!
Where: Hanwell, only 16 minutes from Southall
2. Airport Bowl
A firm favourite with Southall families on wet weekends, Airport Bowl in Harlington is home to an incredible 36 lanes of 10-pin bowls. There are also eight pool tables, a video arcade and a food court.
It’s a big winner with children for birthday parties, with medals for all, food, unlimited squash, photos and balloon modelling all available to add extra sparkle to the party fun.
Where: Harlington, only 22 minutes from Southall
3. Dinosaur Escape
A mini golf adventure. Instead of windmills, near life-size moving dinosaurs try to stop you making a hole-in-one. This is crazy golf taken to another level, with 18 holes meandering through a Jurassic jungle. It’s like taking a step back in time, with the air filled with the noise of the prehistoric past. You’ll be wondering what lurks around the next corner.
It’s not all about hitting a ball with a club, though. There is plenty of dinosaur history and information to collect as you make your way around the course, ensuring that you and your children leave a little more enlightened. Another venue that is great for birthday parties, and exceptional fun for children of all ages – right up to 99!
Where: Northolt, only 10 minutes from Southall
4. Ceramics Café
The Ceramics Café is the place to visit for a fun activity that will build great memories as the children create wonderful keepsakes. Simply select the piece you wish to paint, choose you colours, and paint your design on the item chosen. Return in a few days, and pick up your keepsake. They make perfect gifts for grandparents!
You aren’t left alone to hope your work comes out the way you planned. Experienced staff are on hand to offer all the help needed. A fun activity with a beautiful end result.
Where: Ealing, only 17 minutes from Southall
5. Northala Fields Park
The award-winning Northala Fields Park has something for everyone, and for children of all ages.
With six fishing lakes, three wildlife ponds, a model boating lake, and two well-equipped playgrounds, it’s a fantastic place to spend many hours. Take the family for a ramble through the woods, and see if the kids can find the mosaic in the middle of the park.
Bring the bikes to make exploring a little easier, or, better still, a kite for a bit of flying on the fields – a very popular pastime here.
A visitor centre includes a café, toilets, a fishing office and classrooms.
Where: Northolt, only eight minutes from Southall
6. Jungle Versatile Indoor Play
A fantastic indoor play centre for children up to the age of 12, with rope swings, crawl tunnels, ball pits and more. Fully air-conditioned, it’s the perfect place to bring children when you want them to have the kind of fun that ensures they are worn out by bedtime.
A five-star café sells a range of hot and cold food and drinks, but you don’t need to sit out the fun – parents can join in during the interactive parent and child sessions.
Birthday parties can also be booked here, and there is also a range of seasonal events throughout the year.
Where: Hounslow, only 21 minutes from Southall
7. Oxygen Freejumping Acton
A trampoline park with 150 wall-to-wall trampolines that will get your kids bouncing. There’s a giant obstacle course to tackle, games of dodgeball to win, and basketball hoops to slam dunk from a bouncing start. As if this were not enough, there are fancy dress sessions with prizes for under-fives, and if your bounce isn’t quite up to the mark you can take trampoline lessons with a British gymnastics qualified instructor.
Where: Acton, only 22 minutes from Southall
8. Brentford Leisure Centre
Brentford Leisure Centre is all you would expect it to be, and then some.
A multi-purpose centre, it includes a gym with more than 100 fitness stations, swimming pools for serious swimmers and waves and flumes for the funster, a children’s soft play area, squash courts, and a sports hall for racket sports and five-a-side football.
Activities here include swimming lessons, holiday activities and birthday parties. If you don’t fancy a high-energy afternoon, enjoy a drink and a bite to eat at the centre’s café while the children are learning to swim or with their team on the five-a-side pitch.
Where: Brentford, only 19 minutes from Southall
9. Hounslow Urban Farm
Hounslow Urban Farm is a city jewel, and a fantastic day out for children who wouldn’t normally see farm animals. It is one of London’s largest urban farms, covering a huge 29 acres.
There is a farm café for lunch or tea, a bouncy castle and a souvenir shop. But, of course, these aren’t the main attractions.
The kids will love the animal encounters, which give them interactive time with the animals through the day. Parent the pigs, greet the goats, shake hands with the sheep. Wonder at the majesty of the owl. The fun doesn’t stop. The farm has a small group of Shetland ponies that give a fantastic introduction to pony riding.
Where: Hounslow, only 23 minutes from Southall
10. The Secret Railway
The Secret Railway – or, to give it the correct name, Hampton & Kempton Waterworks Railway – is the only operational narrow-gauge railway inside the M25. Once used to supply London with drinking water, it is now a visitor attraction that holds events throughout the year. These events include:
- Superheroes Day
- Dinosaur Day
- Ghost Train
- Santa Specials
- And more
There are special museum days that include model railway exhibitions, stationary engines and model boats, classic car and bike shows, and a Christmas Fair.
Wow! So much to do here, and this is before you have even taken a ride on the little steam train.
Where: Hounslow, only 29 minutes from Southall
Southall – a great place for families to live
Southall is a great location for families. There is plenty to do here, so the kids should never get bored. The Taxi of Mum and Dad may get a little exhausted, though, with the weekends the perfect time for kids to let off steam from a hard week at school.
Now we’ve mentioned education, it’s worth noting that 13 of the 18 primary schools in Southall are rated as good by Ofsted. At the secondary school level, the most highly-rated schools are Dormers Wells High School, Villiers High School, and the outstanding-rated Featherstone High School.
Southall is a great place for families to live, and it’s getting even better. Berkeley Group is developing Southall Waterside. This development is ideal for families. Parks, trees, water and gardens. Shops, restaurants, cafés, art and entertainment. With Crossrail on its way here, Southall Waterside will be only 17 minutes from Bond Street. And, of course, within a few minutes of some of the best family entertainment and activities in London.
With the population here forecast to grow by 13% by 2030, the potential for profitable property investment is huge. For more information about Southall Waterside property, contact the team at Gladfish today.
Live with passion
Brett Alegre-Wood
