Family things to do in the North

Shekina Rose, Families Editor

With these lighter, brighter days and warmer temperatures, it’s really starting to feel like summer here in the North West! From outdoor family fun days to book-themed treasure hunts and unusual but fabulous live theatre productions, this month’s guide is packed with activities that will keep both kids and adults entertained.

Fun (and free) days out are just the tonic if you’re looking for entertainment that the whole family can get into. Spring Up! at The Vale, Manchester Jazz Festival Family Activities, and Family Fun Day at Central Library (part of Festival of Libraries) will all be brimming with arts, crafts, music, adventure and more.

More Festival of Libraries family fun includes Festival of Libraries’ Look for a Book. Everyone should get involved with this – whether you’re a book worm, space-lover or treasure seeker!

The National Science and Media Museum presents YOU:MATTER, a spectacular immersive show combining the wonders of nature with cutting-edge technology, perfect for visitors of all ages.

Family theatre this month includes the marvellously monstrous There’s a Monster in Your Show at Lowry, and over in Leeds, Seussical Jr – the Musical at Interplay Theatre and Hayao Miyazaki’s Dreams by Mystery Ensemble are bringing live theatre performances with a twist.

Check out this guide if you’re looking for things to do over the May half-term holidays, and if you’re watching the pennies, here’s our guide for free family things to do in Manchester.

Our top picks

There’s A Monster in Your Show at Lowry

There's A Monster in Your Show at Lowry, Manchester, 27 May–1 June 2025 - Book now

Watch out Manchester, there’s a monster on the loose and he’s trying to get on that stage! 

YOU:MATTER at National Science and Media Museum

YOU:MATTER at National Science and Media Museum, Bradford, Until 22 February 2026, From £2.00 - Book now

Everything is connected but we rarely get a chance to really see it – YOU:MATTER is a spectacular audio-visual experience that playfully explores our place in the universe.

Look for a Book

Look for a Book at Spinningfields, Manchester (and other venues), 23 May–1 June 2025, Free entry - Find Out More

Kick off the Festival of Libraries with the Look for a Book challenge – this year it’s going to be truly out-of-this-world.

An image of Dame Maggie Aderin-Pocock, a black middle-aged woman with long hair in a red top, looking directly at the camera with a warm expression. Look for a book
Lovelight Photography and Manchester City of Literature

Bluecoat’s Big Music Weekend: Family Print Session

Bluecoat's Big Music Weekend: Family Print Session at Bluecoat, Liverpool, 25 May 2025, From £5.00 - Book now

Enjoy a hands-on printmaking workshop and create your very own festival posters featuring your favourite artists and bands, all part of the Bluecoat’s Big Music Weekend.

Bluecoat
Bluecoat

May Half Term at Science and Industry Museum

May Half Term at Science and Industry Museum, Manchester and online, 24 May–1 June 2025, Free entry

Enjoy a sense-sational programme of free, hands-on family fun, inspired by the museum’s blockbuster exhibition, Operation Ouch! Brains, Bogies and You.

Mother and daughter play with smell interactive_Operation Ouch! Brains, Bogies and You
Science and Industry Museum

Festival of Libraries Family Fun Day at Manchester Central Library

Festival of Libraries Family Fun Day at Manchester Central Library at Manchester Central Library, Manchester, 8 June 2025, Free entry - Find Out More

Get ready for a fun celebration with the whole family to mark the end of the Festival of Libraries.

A photo taken in an event space in Central Library, in which a man performs for a group of families with young children, who are dressed in bright colours.
Manchester City of Literature

Half-Term at Museum of Illusions

Half-Term at Museum of Illusions at Museum of Illusions, Manchester, 25 May–2 June 2025, From £15.00 - Book now

Step into a world where nothing is quite as it seems at the Museum of Illusions in Manchester.

Museum of Illusions
Museum of Illusions

May Half-Term Family Fun at Elizabeth Gaskell’s House

May Half-Term Family Fun at Elizabeth Gaskell’s House, Manchester, 24 May–5 June 2025, From £0.00 - Book now

Step back in time to a 19th century world of creativity and exploration, where kids can enjoy all sorts of activities, including arts, crafts, games and adventure trails.

Family dressed as Victorians
Elizabeth Gaskell's House

Seussical Jr – The Musical at Interplay Theatre

Seussical Jr - The Musical at Interplay Theatre, Leeds, 9 July 2025, From £15.00 - Book now

Join Leeds Youth Opera (LYO) as they bring amazing music and fabulous imagination to Leeds. 

Seussical Jr - The Musical A multicoloured tree in the style of Dr Seuss
Image supplied by Leeds Inspired

2025 Banner Exhibition

2025 Banner Exhibition at People’s History Museum, Manchester, Until 29 December 2025, Free entry - Visit now

Enjoy a family-friendly journey through the history of activism at the People’s History Museum’s year-long Banner Exhibition.

A textile banner featuring text: 'Manchester Deaf Triangle Club, Lesbian & Gay Group', and different coloured hands doing sign language. 2025 Banner Exhibition at People's History Museum
Manchester Deaf Triangle Club banner, around 1985. On loan from British Deaf History Society.

Adventures in Wonderland at Z-arts

Adventures in Wonderland at Z-arts, Manchester, Until 11 April 2026, From £12.00 - Book now

Tumble down the rabbit hole and experience the most curious adventure, where the surreal and bizarre awaits!

Adventures in Wonderland at Z-arts
Image courtesy of Z-arts.

Free Activity at Aviva Studios

Free Activity at Aviva Studios, Manchester, Until 25 May 2025, Free entry - Visit now

From comedy nights to drop-in family craft sessions, Factory International bring an accessible and inclusive programme of events this spring – the best thing, it’s all free.

Free Activity at Aviva Studios
Image courtesy of the artist, Savanna Darnell.

Operation Ouch! Brains, Bogies and You at the Science and Industry Museum

Operation Ouch! Brains, Bogies and You at Science and Industry Museum, Manchester, Until 4 January 2026, From £10.00 - Book now

Get ready for a sense-sational adventure packed with super-sized science and brilliant biology!

Operation Ouch! Brains, Bogies and You at the Science and Industry Museum
Promotional Stills for Operation Ouch: Brains, Bogies, & You at the Science & Industry Museum - 13th February Image courtesy of the Board of Trustees of the Science Museum.

LEGOLAND Discovery Centre

LEGOLAND Discovery Centre, Manchester Barton Square, The Trafford Centre, Manchester, M17 8AS - Visit now

The ultimate indoor playground! LEGOLAND Discovery Centre is an immersive indoor attraction where iconic sites from Manchester’s skyline and other famous UK buildings can be enjoyed by both kids and adults.

LEGOLAND Discovery Centre

Discover and Explore at the Science and Industry Museum

Discover and Explore at the Science and Industry Museum at Science and Industry Museum, Manchester, Until 30 September 2025 - Book now

Whether you’ve half an hour or a full day, you’ll always find something new to discover at Manchester’s Science and Industry Museum.

Discover and Explore at the Science and Industry Museum
State of Mind installation at the Science and Industry Museum. Image courtesy of Orbie Pullen Photography.

Outdoor Art Club at The Whitworth

Outdoor Art Club at The Whitworth, Manchester, Until 19 July 2025, Free entry - Visit now

Get your wellies on and enjoy fun and creative outdoor activities.

Toddler standing on grass with a paintbrush in hand turning to the right to look at the camera. He is wearing a navy blue rainsuit with a burgundy and navy blue long sleeved tiop underneath. He is standing in front of large cream coloured sheets that have been strung up on a washing line. The sheets have mud marks making on.
Fiona Jenkins

2025 Banner Bingo at PHM

2025 Banner Bingo, Until 29 December 2025, Free entry - Visit now

Explore the People’s History Museum with your banner bingo card in hand as you navigate their galleries through the lens of craftivism. 

Two young visitors looking up at a banner in a case, holding pencils and an activity sheet.
People's History Museum

Power Up at the Science and Industry Museum

Power UP at Science and Industry Museum, Manchester, Until 3 September 2025, From £8.00 - Book now

From Mario to Sonic and Pong to Fortnite, play your way through five decades of the best video games. Fun and educational. Win-win.

Boy playing retro arcade games in Power Up.
Image courtesy of the Science and Industry Museum.

More families events

Free Activity at Aviva Studios
Until
ComedyManchester
Free Activity at Aviva Studios

From comedy nights to drop-in family craft sessions, Factory International bring an accessible and inclusive programme of events this spring – the best thing, it’s all free.

Free entry
Haphazard 2025 at Z-arts
FamiliesManchester
Haphazard 2025 at Z-arts

A free day of bizarre behaviour and exciting live performance at Z-arts. Expect the unexpected. Playful, unpredictable, and not easily forgotten.

Free entry
Image by Jonathan Schofield.
Spotlight on

Walking Tours in Manchester by Jonathan Schofield

Presenting the best walking tours in Manchester for history buffs, culture enthusiasts, and those looking to scratch beneath the surface of the city.

Take me there

Family things to do in the North

HOME Manchester
Manchester
Theatre
HOME Manchester

Offering a packed schedule of events and things to do, HOME Manchester is one of the city’s leading hubs for arts and culture.

Manchester
Park
Platt Fields Park

Platt Fields Park in Fallowfield is steeped in history, the land having been acquired by the Platt family in 1225.

The MerseyMade building in Liverpool
Liverpool
Shop
MerseyMade West Kirby

In the MerseyMade shop you’ll find bottled gin from the likes of Turncoat Gin, Anfield Gin, Albert Dock Gin and Three Graces Gin. Yep, Liverpool REALLY likes its gin.

Cumbria
Event venue
Penrith Old Fire Station

Main venue for Eden Arts, an artist-led organisation based in Eden in Cumbria creating projects around mass participation, local distinctiveness and digital engagement, from Picnic Cinema to The Winter Droving.

The Whitworth
Manchester
Gallery
The Whitworth

This much-loved gallery-in-a-park is open for business, showcasing some of the city’s finest contemporary and historic exhibitions.

Culture Guides

Experience a unique deep listening art installation inviting audiences to lay down and be bathed in sound and light.
Exhibitions in the North

From city-wide art festivals to open-air sculptural installations, we have exhibitions from all around the North, both indoors and out.

Music in the North

Gigs are coming in hot this spring – from long-awaited returns to one-off happenings you’ll blink and miss if you're not careful.

Theatre in Manchester and the North
Theatre in the North

Eclectic as ever. You'll find inventive reworkings, world-class contemporary dance and Greater Manchester's inaugural Improv Festival in our guide.

portrait of Lorsung in a dark shirt with dark hair and dark round glasses
Literature Events in the North

We've got laughs and we've got leftfield on the live literature radar this month. Something for everyone, from poets playing with form to short story writers looking long.

Classical Music in the North

Read our latest highlights from the live classical music offer in Manchester and the North, taking in a number of the region's most cherished orchestral forces and venues.