Struggling to find events and activities to keep the kids entertained this half term? We've got a list of the top 12 family-friendly things to do in Greater Manchester including workshops, theatre and shows.
1. Head to RHS Garden Bridgewater this half term and find out all the stuff you never knew about the world under your feet! Marvel at the mind-boggling root systems of trees, learn about soil and the creepy-crawly creatures who make it their home. Meet the Bridgewater pigs at feeding time and hear about how they help to look after the garden and get up close to some amazing mini-beasts with ZooLab.
2. Join Crafty Families for an exciting and engaging art class for families and under 11’s. With a different theme each week you’ll leave the session having created your own pieces of art.
3. Sign up with a crew of infamous Buccaneers on a high seas search for buried gold with The Lancashire Railway Pirate Adventure. You will earn your sea legs as you learn the basics of map reading, singing sea shanties and of course the best way to buckle your swash.
4. Roll up your sleeves and join in the Challah baking workshop with a seasonal twist. In the workshop you will be baking Spiced Winter Challah bread – a traditional Ashkenazi Jewish bread that is braided and traditionally eaten on ceremonial occasions such as Shabbat.
5. Get ready for a road trip full of fun adventures as Peppa Pig prepares for her Best Day Ever. The brand new Peppa Pig live show packed full of songs, games and laughter, it really is the best day ever for Peppa Pig fans!
6. Join Afrocats this half term as they take over the Whitworth with cultural and creative movement activities and arts & crafts workshops for children, young people and families.
7. Come and see the adventure of the deliciously smelling Gingerbread Man and meet the bravest biscuit of all times! Stuff and Nonsense apply their usual brilliance with a mix of puppetry, live-action, great music, humour and a stunning staging of this well-loved classic tale.
8. Join the expert Explainers at the Science and Industry Museum for an action-packed show that tells the story of how science met industry right here in Manchester, building our world and shaping our lives today.
9. Get ready to go on an exciting pre-historic adventure with a dinosaur aficionado Dr Ben Garrod as he explores the biggest, deadliest and weirdest predators that ever roamed the planet. So You Think You Know About Dinosaurs is a highly entertaining show using film footage from the BBC's Planet Dinosaur.
10. Meet Joe Spud, the richest boy in the country. He has his own sports car, two crocodiles as pets and £100,000 a week pocket money! The amazing new production of David Walliams' best-selling story, Billionaire Boy, will Follow Joe’s adventures as he tries to find what money can't buy.
11. Explore the whimsical world of marvellous machinery and experience the charm of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang with the new temporary display, A Quiet Afternoon in the Cloud Cuckoo Valley at the Science and Industry Museum.
12. Get crafty over half term when you visit Elizabeth Gaskell’s House. Join family craft activities in the Servants’ Hall themed around Victorian greeting cards and make your own seasonal card to take home.