10 Fun Things to do This Winter

Warm up with our 10 fun things to do this winter.

These fun things are family activities designed to get you off the couch and moving.

1. Find an indoor play centre, or even an outdoor one that has an undercover or indoor area. Mom and dad can sip on a cuppa, while the children work off some pent up energy.

2. Do some indoor sport. If it’s too chilly to go outside, visit an indoor sport arena or any centre that offers climbing walls, mini golf or bowling. Your children may like to join an indoor cricket or hockey team. Alternatively, find a heated pool.

3. Visit a library (ask about story times for children), after that, take a walk around a museum (check if they offer holiday programmes). Likewise, you can visit an art gallery.

4. Keep children entertained while teaching them about animals at the same time. For instance, you can visit an aquarium – these are usually indoors. If the sun is out, you can visit a bird park, snake park, zoo or animal farm. Some of these may even offer holiday workshops for children.

5. Go for a walk in the local park or around your neighbourhood. Collect pinecones and take them home for crafts.

6. Build a fire (pinecones make for great fuel if you don’t know what else to do with them) and roast marshmallows.

7. If it isn’t raining, go for a hike in a nature reserve, or take everyone for a bike ride in a family friendly area or bike park. On the other hand, if it is raining, pack a winter style picnic with flasks of soup and freshly baked bread, and eat it on a blanket in the lounge.

8. Most importantly, help others. Collect blankets or winter pyjamas, or make a big pot of soup, and take your donations to a crèche or shelter.

9. Make sock puppets with your children, then get them to put on a play.

10. Learn to play a new board game. Younger children may enjoy learning to play Snakes and Ladders or Checkers, while older children could learn to play Cluedo, Monopoly or chess.