Many parents expect to spend £450-plus during the long break. But if you know where to look, there are plenty of free activities
Children and teachers may be counting down to the start of the summer holidays this week, but millions of parents will struggle to keep a lid on the cost of keeping families entertained during the longest break of the year.
Around 60% of parents anticipate spending up to £300 during the holidays on entertainment, while one in 10 expects it to amount to more than £450, according to research by Nationwide building society. However, provided you know where to look, there are plenty of free activities, as well as discounts. Here's how to keep summer spending to a minimum.
Free activities
A good place to start is your local council for information about places to visit and activities. For example, Hartlepool borough council is running a scheme allowing children under 16 to swim for free at the Mill House Leisure Centre every weekday morning from Wednesday 24 July to 30 August. Businesses are also helping keep kids active. Tesco, in conjunction with the Football Association, offers football coaching at Skills Centres throughout England for children between five and 11. You can find and book a session near you at tescoskills.thefa.com/FindSession. Budding tennis fans inspired by Andy Murray's Wimbledon win can learn the sport for free at 2,593 courts across the UK. You can find your nearest court at tennisforfree.com.
Loyalty points
If you've got points stored up on either a Sainsbury's Nectar card or Tesco Clubcard, you can redeem them against the cost of admission on days out. Always check for special offers which might boost their value. For example, from 24 July to 13 August, Nectar is running its "double value exchange" which allows cardholders to double the value of their points – you usually need 1,000 Nectar points for a £5 money-off voucher – when redeeming them at certain restaurants or theme parks. Restaurants include Strada, Bella Italia and Café Rouge. Theme parks include Alton Towers and Legoland and these, and other Merlin Entertainment venues, already offer double value on Nectar points so you will able to get four times the value during the period, turning 1,000 points into £20.
If you're looking to change Clubcard vouchers, £5 is usually worth £20 in tokens. These can be put towards days out at a wide range of attractions including Wookey Hole in Somerset, Cadbury World in Birmingham, and Dinosaur Adventure in Norfolk.
To convert your vouchers into rewards, you need to go to tesco.com/clubcard. When you've the reward you would like to purchase, you enter the amount of Clubcard vouchers you'd like to exchange.
Sharron Barton, 46, from Nottingham uses loyalty points, annual memberships and shares DVDs with friends to help keep her children entertained over the summer without breaking the bank.
Barton, a full-time mother to her three children, Louisa, 11, Sammy, nine and Tasha, six, says: "The internet has made it so much easier to keep the cost of the summer holidays down. If we are thinking about doing any trips I always research to see if we can make any savings.
"I've already collected vouchers from Kellogg's packaging to get a free adult ticket to one of the Merlin attractions – we're planning on going to Warwick Castle this year."
Barton is also saving Nectar points to redeem during the double exchange period. She said: "We often use points to go swimming. We also find discounts on the back of tram tickets for local tourist attractions and you can get as much as 20% off the admission price of art galleries, museums and theatres just by showing your tram ticket."
Voucher codes
If you are planning days out, or a last-minute summer break abroad, check voucher code websites such as myvouchercodes.co.uk, vouchercodespro.co.uk and vouchercodes.co.uk for discounts.
For example, until 31 July, the site vouchercodespro.co.uk is offering £25 off all-inclusive for holidays booked at lowcostholidays.com using the code LATESUN13.
Annual memberships
If you use the same attractions several times over the year, consider buying an annual pass.
For example, if you visit just three National Trust properties in a year – for example, Scotney Castle in Kent, Calke Abbey in Derbyshire and Penrhyn Castle in north Wales – the total cost for a family would be £84.24. Annual family National Trust membership starts from £72.75 with a special offer of three months free if you pay by direct debit and sign up using its website. This covers a family of two adults and children under 18.
You can also usually make substantial savings at most major attractions by booking tickets online in advance. For example, save more than 40% at Thorpe Park when you book two or more days in advance.
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