Haunted Halloween Hunt at Kirkstall Abbey
31 October 2023 – 05 November 2023
With over 870 years of history, our abbey ruins are the perfect place for a haunted Halloween hunt! Soak up the atmosphere of the former monastery as you follow the trail to seek out the creepy creatures, spooky statues and peculiar props that have turned up especially for Halloween.
If it is your first visit, please remember to bring your ID as proof of Leeds residency to get a free annual pass to the abbey.
28 October 2023 – 05 November 2023
Step into the shadows of the museum and follow our spooky shadows trail this October half term.
Celebrate Halloween by creating your own shadows as you explore the museum with our fun family trail.
Family Halloween Fun at John Lewis Leeds28 October 11am-3pm
Take part in spooktacular Treasure Hunt around the store and collect your treat from the Customer Services department on the fourth floor.
Get Halloween party ready with the face painter on the Ground Floor.
Colour and craft your own Halloween mask or ghoulish glow in the dark bracelet at the craft station.
Take a spooky selfie at the Halloween selfie wall.
Activities are suitable for children over 3 and available while stocks last.
Shiver me timbers! October half term at the Royal Armouries promises to be packed with pirates and hordes of highwaymen.
Come and hear some great adventure stories and enjoy lots of live combats, plus loads of fun activities – pirate flag making, temporary tattoos – to keep the kids out of mischief. We’ve also got two cracking bands – Blackbeard’s Tea Party (Saturdays and Sundays) and Kimber’s Men (mid-week) – to entertain the whole crew with sea-shanties.
And there’ll be no daylight robbery as admission to the museum is FREE!
Halloweenie at the Bumps, Roundhay
PAY AS YOU FEEL
An outdoor Halloween event for children up to 7years old! Includes spooky trail, slime kitchen, games, crafts and face painting! Pay as you feel upon entry – cash or stripe payments accepted.
LEEDS 2023 warmly welcomes you to join us on a thrilling journey of creativity and exploration.
Get ready to ignite your family’s imagination as half-term approaches!
Explore Smeaton300’s Half-term Events:
Engineery: Building Better Futures | Fri 27 Oct – Sun 28 Sep | Leeds Industrial Museum| FREE: Immerse yourself in the world of engineering at the Leeds Industrial Museum. Explore a diverse range of exhibits, workshops, and captivating demonstrations. Engage in Lego bridge-building, stone-carving, and coding workshops.
Make and Create Family Festival: Part 1: Sat 28 Oct, 10:30am | Whinmoor Library | | FREE | Part 2: Sat 4 Nov, 10:30am | Middleton Library | FREE: Join us for an exhilarating two-part family festival jam-packed with activities and workshops. Discover the magic of flight, build your very own bridge or water wheel, and unleash your creativity with code and crafts. Both days will also have opportunities to climb onboard Moon Palace.
Moon Palace: Daytime Observation Session | Fri 3 Nov, 12:00pm | Armley Leisure Centre | FREE: Moon Palace is taking off again, this time at Armley Leisure Centre! Drop into our striking mobile observatory anytime throughout the day for an other-worldly encounter.
All That Lives: Zion Studio Mexico City Sculptures and Ofrenda | Fri 27 Oct – Sat 4 Nov | Leeds Playhouse | FREE
Programmed by Centre for Live Art Yorkshire (CLAY), ‘All that Lives’ Provides a space to reflect on our losses, fusing art-forms and cultures with this unforgettable celebration of life and death
Join us at Leeds Playhouse for a thrilling, family-friendly experience, including Halloween mask-making, traditional papercraft workshops and more. You can add your own photos, flowers, and offerings to our epic immersive Ofrenda display, honouring those you have loved and lost. This collaboration between Grief Series (UK) and Zion Art Studio (Mexico) promises to be a memorable and rich cultural exchange – reimaging the Day of the Dead with the people of Yorkshire.
See the rest of the All that Lives programme here.
Leeds Owl Trail
Enjoy a walk around Leeds City centre taking in the landmarks and heritage whilst also spotting some unique owl’s. Each owl informs you of why it is there and gives you a brief snapshot of what it has seen in its lifetime. Download and print your free map (or you can buy one for £1 from the art gallery shop). Read more+
FixOurFood: Sustainable and Healthy Diets – Fun-filled Activity Session for Kids
30 October, 10,30am-1pm, Cardigan Community Centre
Need something to entertain the kids during the school holidays? Join the University of York FixOurFood team for a FUN and INTERACTIVE learning experience on healthy and sustainable diets.
Come and try our new Autumn exhibition trail to claim your free pack of Percy Pigs!
Explore our exhibition with something for all the family and enjoy free refreshments. Why not bring a packed lunch to eat in our indoor picnic space?
Booking Details: No need to book, just drop in – it’s all free!
There are a number of local parties and activities at venues around Leeds that are lots of fun and low cost (PLUS you’ll be supporting our local businesses too!).
Room on the Broom Trail at Anglers Country Park (Wakefield)
The Room on the Broom trail takes visitors across Anglers Country Park on a special themed walk. Starting from the Discovery Centre, the trail follows a route around the lake giving youngsters the chance to see sculptures of Witch, Cat, Dog, Bird, Frog and the terrifying Dragon! For extra fun and games along the trail, purchase an Explorer Pack for £2 from the Discovery Centre before you set off. As you journey along the route look out for the wildlife that call Anglers Country Park their home. Some parts of the path may be muddy so sensible footwear is advised. Suitable for bikes and pushchairs.
PLUS this Half Term prepare for an Unforgettable Adventure: The Spooktacular Scarecrow Trail at Anglers Country Park. Open 10am-3.30pm from Saturday 28th October – Sunday 5th November. Trail maps can be Purchased for £2 from the Visitor Centre. 
Haw Park Lane,Wintersett,Wakefield,WF4 2EB. Tel: 01924 303980
Free and Low Cost Places to see animals
Hope Pastures rescues, rehabilitates and re-homes horses, ponies and donkeys. They also provide the opportunity for people to meet the animals and learn about them and how to look after them. You can visit everyday free of charge 10am to 3pm. The visitor centre is open at weekends and bank holidays providing refreshments.
Meanwood Valley Urban Farm is a working farm with a wide variety of animals, market gardens and woodland walks. Also visit the cafe, farm shop, and adventure play area for under 12’s. Accessible site, toilet facilities. Open daily, small admission charge.
A family run farm, providing an excellent farm shop. You can take a walk around the outside animal area and feed the animals (£1 per person), they even have Alpacas!. There is also an indoor sandpit and small play area (£2 per child) with ride-ons and Little Tikes slide etc for children. There is lots of free parking and a special picnic area.
Meet the wonderful team of donkeys – they love to meet new people and you can discover their unique characters and stories. They have a good value cafe,great play area inside and out . Themed events run throughout the year including grooming days and interactive sessions. Open 365 days a year from 9am until dusk. Admission and parking are free.
Selling great Yorkshire Produce, with a Deli counter and Butchers Shop. Hot drinks available. Courtyard seating area. Visit the animals of the farm, and buy a bag of animal feed for 70p at the shop.
National Coal Mining Museum, Wakefield
Journey 140m underground and discover 180 years of mining history. Find out about the people and communities at the heart of the industry and uncover how the miners lived at work and play. Explore acres of woodland, spotting plants and wildlife and find out how the excess water from the mine is cleaned and pumped back into a local river. Then let off some steam in our Adventure Playground! FREE ENTRY. Open Wednesdays- Sundays.
Caphouse Colliery, New Road, Overton, Wakefield, WF4 4RH
We have lots of nature walks on our doorstep in North Leeds:
Hetchell Wood Nature Reserve (Scarcroft)
If you find a few conkers still kicking around, have a read of our recent blog for inspiration of 10 activities children can do with conkers!
Eating Out and Offers
If you fancy eating out over the holidays we have lots of ideas of child-friendly restaurants and cafes in North Leeds and the City Centre on the website.
Enjoy unlimited bus travel all day with First Bus great value group tickets!
Up to 5 people can get unlimited travel across all of West Yorkshire on Saturdays, Sundays or Bank Holidays with our FirstDay Weekend Group ticket for just £6.00. Put your parking money towards treating your little ones and get out and about with First Bus! Download the First Bus App from your app store to buy your ticket and plan your journey.
Travelling during the week? Up to 5 people can get unlimited travel across all of West Yorkshire Monday – Friday (after 9:30am) or on bank holidays with our FirstDay Group ticket for just £8.75!
* Information correct at time of publishing, please check all events/activities before travelling in case of last minute changes.
