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Things To Do In London For May Half Term 

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May 24th 2024

https://museummum.com/may-half-term-2023/

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Looking for fun things to do with kids in London over the May 2024 half term holiday? The Easter holiday is only just over, and BOOM! here comes another week we need to entertain the kids. 

Note: May half term (or Summer term) holiday this year falls from Monday 27 May-Friday 31 May 2024. Monday 27 May 2023 is the Spring Bank Holiday in the UK. Check individual school websites for their own dates. 

Fret not. Here’s my extensive guide to the best things to do over the May half term holiday in London. With 100+ things listed, there’s something for the whole family – from eye-catching exhibitions, hands-on workshops, intriguing art, colourful arts, live music, family-friendly theatre shows, special events for children with SEN and much, much more.

This list works for both first time London visitors and locals with its mix of big names in Central London, to hidden gems and local saviours to avoid the crowds. Every event has a link to more information and any ticket price. I’ve included plenty of free events too – we have summer holidays to save for!

So read on for the ultimate guide to May Half Term 2024 with kids!

Updated: This blog was last updated 22 May 2024. Check back for more events as they are announced.

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CONTENTS

FAMILY DAYS AND FESTIVALS

 

HOW TO FIND FREE MAY HALF TERM EVENTS

To find all events marked as “free” on this page, use your browser’s search function and look for the term ‘free’. Free means that there are absolutely no entry or activity charges.

On Thursday, 23 May 2024, I’ll send out a complimentary newsletter featuring up to five free events for each day of the half-term holidays. Subscribe here to receive it.

FAMILY DAYS AND FESTIVALS

Widen your child’s horizons with a family-friendly event, packed with special activities. 

  • May Half Term Family Festival at Natural History Museum: Help build a sprawling bird sanctuary from Lego. Marvel at feathers under the microscope. Join a new Family Nature Talk or quiz an expert in a Meet the Scientist event. 25 May-2 June 2024. Free, drop in.
  • Ford Ride London Freecycle: Enjoy Central London traffic free! Explore London’s iconic landmarks on a seven-mile cycling route. Family-friendly activities at three festival zones include bike stunt shows, live music, face painting, bike-powered activities and street performances. 26 May 2024. Free, register.
  • Family Day – Fun with Faces at National Portrait Gallery: Mould fun faces from clay and bring them to life with stop animation. Make a giant cardboard head mask and join in a procession in the gallery. Paint a portrait on a mug. And create a colourful paper collage portrait. 28 May 2024. Free, drop in.
  • Brockwell Bounce at Brockwell Park: A day of music, entertainment, workshops, arts and crafts, street food, dance classes, funfair rides and much, much more! Includes a hammer and nails big build from our favourites, Woodland Tribe. 29 May 2024. Free, drop in.
  • D-Day 80 Family Weekend at RAF Museum: Cesign a WWII glider, partake in some make-do and mend crafts and build your own Normandy beach in the Sand play area. Plus 1940s-themed live music, and Swing Dancing workshops. 1-2 June 2024. Free, drop in.
  • The Musical Archive Family Day at the National Archives: Create sound effects alongside professional musicians with Enchanted Cinema, make an instrument, hear the collection come to life with a live harpist, and face painting. 2 June 2024. Paid, book.


Thinking the summer holidays already? Keep an eye on my Ultimate Guide to the Summer Holidays for further information.

 

FAMILY EXHIBITIONS 

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  • *LAST CHANCE* The Box Rocket at Discover Story Centre: Relight a planet’s magic Story Stone in this unique, interactive space-themed exhibition. Until 2 June 2024. Paid, book. For ages 0-8 and their families.
  • *LAST CHANCE* Play works at Orleans House Gallery: Free play with vivid colour, inventive objects and peculiar props. By Assemble and Assemble Play. Until 23 June 2024, Tuesdays-Sundays. Free, book.
  • Japan: Myths to Manga at Young V&A. Explore how landscape and folklore have influenced Japanese art, technology and design. Until 8 September 2024. Paid, book.
  • Dinosaur rEvolution at Horniman Museum: Explore the colourful relationship between dinosaurs and birds with animatronic models, touchable fossils and more. Until 3 November 2024. Paid, book.
  • Wonderlab at the Science Museum: One of the Museum Kids’ favourite London places. Get hands on with real scientific phenomena – play with forces on giant slides, see lightning strike before your eyes, or watch live science shows. Daily. Paid, book ahead.
    Watch our Wonderlab Reel here

 

ACTIVITIES FOR ANIMAL AND NATURE LOVERS

 
  • *LAST CHANCE* Bings Nature Explorers at WWT London: Join Bing and Flop for activity trails, storytelling, character appearances, and mini shows on wetland nature and wildlife. Plus pond dipping and otter talks. Until 2 June 2024. Included with paid entry.
  • Weekend of Wildlife at Morden Hall Park: Join the team and visiting experts to discover the wildlife that calls Morden Hall Park home. Explore the deeper reaches of the park and participate in hands-on activities to find living things in the park and learn more about them. 25-26 May 2024. Free, drop in.
  • Reptile Record Breakers at London Zoo: Test your skills against reptiles and amphibians in lawn games. 25 May-2 June 2024. Included with paid entry.
  • Jambs Owl Experience at Hall Place:Hear about how owls survive in the wild, what they like to eat and their nocturnal habits. Includes the opportunity to hold one. 27 May and 29 May-2 June 2024. Paid, just turn up.
  • Kids Lab: Friendly Insects Meet and Greet at Chelsea Physic Garden: Enjoy a walk around the garden and meet the friendly insects that reside within. Take a close look at different micro-habitats and learn about a variety of insects. 28 May 2024, 12:00-13:00. Paid, book. Ages 5+.
  • Discovery Day – Time Travellers at Hyde Park Learning Centre: Create a plant print with Hapa zome, design a park of the future, try calligraphy and meet Queen Victoria. 28-30 May 2024, 11:00-15:00. Free, drop in. 
  • Plants and Potions: children’s workshop at Royal College of Physicians Museum: From blood-letting to pomanders, learn how medicine was practised in the past. Create your own pomander, explore the plants of the RCP medicinal garden and try your hand at smelly bingo! 29 May 2024, 10:30-12:30. Paid, book. Best ages 7-11. 
  • Nature Roadshows at St. James’s Park and Kensington Gardens: Follow a spring scavenger trail, take a closer look at nature with binoculars, create your own nature crafts and try interactive games. 29 May 2024 (St. James’s Park) and 31 May 2024 (Kensington Gardens). Free, drop in.
  • Nature Heroes at Wakehurst: Put on your cape, join a mission and collect a unique Nature Olympics-themed badge. Help Pip, Bud and Sprout as they discover new skills to protect wildlife, unlock the powers of plants and discover funky fungi. 25 May-2 June 2024. Paid, ages 3+.

 

STORYTELLING SESSIONS AND PERFORMANCES

Prepare to pick a pocket or two!

  • Medieval Mayhem at Tower of London: Join busy medieval Londoners for a mini pageant about ravens and a magical giant on the South Lawn. Don’t forget to pop by the Crown Jewels! 29 March-23 June 2024. 13:00 and 14:30 daily, with additional performance at 11:00 on weekends and holidays. Lasts 15 minutes. Included with paid entry.
  • Tale of Two Times at London Transport Museum: Interactive storytelling session exploring changing transport over the last 100 years, and how to travel safely around the capital today. 25-26 May & 1-2 June at 10:30, 11:30, 13:30 & 14:30. Lasts 30 minutes. Included with paid entry, drop in. Best under 7s. 
  • Shipshape Story Time at the Golden Hinde: Meet Captain Book Beard and join them in a selection of seafaring stories and songs. 27 May 2024 at 10:15-10:45. Included with paid entry. Under 10s.
    Note: £1 entry per person for Southwark residents – proof of address and Southwark Library Card required. 
  • The Emperor of Rock at Museum of London Docklands: Help Swinging Sixties East End seamstress Sadie design a fantastic costume in this immersive storytelling session. 28-30 May 2024. Free, tickets allocated on arrival.
  • Dr. You’s Case Notes – The Opossum & The Battery at the Grant Museum of Zoology: Solve mysteries, explore exhibits, and help complete Dr You’s case notes in this interactive adventure around the museum. A storytelling event by Moulded Theatre Company. 31 May 2024.Free, book (13:00 session), or drop in (14:00-16:00). 

 

  • The Mughal Miniatures Dance Party at Southbank Centre: Pop-up living pictures, dance workshops, and a live DJ bring vibrant Indian and Persian art to life. 1 June 2024, 12:00-17:00. Free, drop in. Workshops ages 5+. 
  • Royal Nursery Rhymes at Old Royal Naval College: Discover the names and stories behind some of the royal faces featured in the stunning Painted Hall. 2 June 2024 at 11:30-12:00 and 13:30-14:00. Included with paid entry, book.Best ages 5-10.
  • Story Space at Tate Britain: Explore a diverse book collection celebrating authors of colour, indigenous voices, and characters with various characteristics. Dress-up, drawing, and storytelling activities. Daily during the school holidays, every weekend and Thursdays during term time. Free, drop in.

 

FAMILY WORKSHOPS AND HANDS-ON ACTIVITIES

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  • May Half Term at the National Maritime Museum: Engineering-themed activities. Craft marble runs from straws and paper plates. Enjoy an interactive musical storytelling session about the life famous engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel. Make a monumental megalith sculpture, eco-friendly structures from air dry clay,  indigenous music instruments and Innuit-inspired snow goggles. 26 May-2 June 2024. Free, drop in. Activity changes daily.
  • Routes and Roundels at London Transport Museum: Celebrate the iconic London Transport Roundel, one of the most widely recognisable logos in the world. Design your own roundel, hunt for hidden ones with fascinating facts, or join an interactive storytelling session on transport history. 25 May-2 June 2024. Included with paid entry.
  • Half Term Activities at Royal Mews: Want a right Royal fix? Skip Buckingham Palace and bring the kids here for arts and crafts activities inspired by the amazing horses housed in the Mews. 25-27 May 2024. Included with paid entry. 
  • May Half Term at Florence Nightingale Museum: Explore the remarkable contributions of The Flying Nightingales who worked with the RAF during the Second World War and enjoy a poppies hands-on make-and-take craft session. 25 May-2 June 2024, Tuesdays-Sundays. Included with paid entry.
  • Fingerprint Forensics! A Family Workshop at Bow Street Police Museum: Identify which criminal left their fingerprints at the scene of the crime and make your own police-style fingerprint form to take home. 25, 26 & 31 May and 1-2 June 2024. Included with paid entry, book. 
  • May Half-Term: Intelligence & Invasion Stripes at Bentley Priory Museum: Themed activities in the galleries explore the RAF’s role in the D-Day Landings in June 1944. 25, 27, 29 & 31 May and 1 June 2024. Included with paid entry.
  • Origami Animals at Grant Museum of Zoology: Join science-based artist Dr. Lizzie Burns to make origami bees, butterflies, moths, wasps, frogs, cicadas, birds and more. Fold your own creation and compare it with the specimens on display. 25 May 2024. Free, book (11:00 session), or drop in (12:00-14:00).
  • Hands on Armour – Hot Stuff at Wallace Collection: Try on authentic and replica armour from around the world, and compare European to South Asian designs. 25 May 2024, 13:30-16:00. Free, drop in on first come, first served basis. 
  • Special Steaming Open Day at Markfield Beam Engine and Museum: See an 1886 sewage works steam pump in full swing. There’s lots of green space to run around at Markfield Park, plus child-friendly food on offer in Markfield Cafe. 27 May 2024. Free, drop in.
  • Family Workshops at the Old Operating Theatre Museum & Herb Garret: Make a pipe cleaner skeleton or a Victorian paper doll, and learn about how doctors of the past worked to keep our bodies healthy (27 May 2024). Or create your own cards and decorations using ready made prints and materials (28 May 2024). Free, book. Note access is via a 52-step spiral staircase. 
  • Water Wonders at London Museum of Water and Steam: Celebrate the wonders of water through a history tour, cyanotype workshop and water fun in the Splash Zone! 27-31 May 2024. Included with paid entry.
  • Terrific Triangles at Tower Bridge: Did you know that triangles are one of the strongest shapes to use when building big structures like bridges? See how tall a tower you can make and the patterns you can create simply by using these three-sided shapes. 28 May 2024. Included with paid entry, drop in. Read about our visit to Tower Bridge.
  • D-Day Deception at National Army Museum: Learn about Allies’ D-Day preparations in WWII and create a fake army to deceive the enemy. 28-31 May 2024 at 10:30-12:30 and 13:45-15:30. Free, drop in. Ages 5+.
  • Marching Orders: Daring Deception at National Army Museum: Learn about how the Army has used daring deception tactics to outwit the enemy in this family-friendly tour. 28-31 May 2024 at 11.00-11.30; 12:00-12:30, 14:00-14:30 and 15:00-15:30. Free; first come, first served.
  • A Tour for the Curious at Fulham Palace: Step back in time, complete challenges, and dress up as historic residents in this interactive family tour. 29 May 2024, 11:00-12:00. Paid, book. Ages 2-12. 
  • Make a Mini-Circus at Valence House Museum: Discover more about the history of circuses visiting the borough and make your own circus. 29 May 2024, 11:00 & 14:00. Paid, book.
  • Roman London – In LEGO Half Term Family Workshop at London Mithraeum Bloomberg SPACE: Join LEGO expert builder, The Brick Consultant, as he rebuilds Londinium – in LEGO! 29-30 May 2024, 10:30-15:30. Free, book. Best ages 3+.
  • May half-term: Brilliant banknotes at Bank of England Museum: Design a personalised banknote. 29-30 May 2024. Free, drop in.
  • Photography Workshops at V&A South Kensington: Make your own camera and create photographs without even using a camera in Drop in Design: Experiments with Photography. Combine photography with augmented reality in 
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