Family days out
Days out for the whole group
Between the theme park twenty minutes away and the woodland play trails at the grand houses further afield, there's enough here for a full week without repeating a day.
Wildlife and adventure
Peak Wildlife Park lets you get close to exotic and endangered animals from across three continents, and has an indoor jungle-themed soft play area for whatever the weather's doing. Go-Ape, near Buxton, is the pick for anyone in the group after something more exhilarating — treetop adventure in the hilltops of the National Park.
Some of the best 'days out' are the field behind the barns, five minutes after you've unpacked the car.
Steam, caverns and cable cars
The Churnet Valley Railway runs a nostalgic steam train ride through Staffordshire's hidden valley, alongside the river Churnet and the Caldon Canal. Poole's Cavern, near Buxton, takes you into vast limestone caverns lined with crystal stalactites formed over millions of years. To the east, Heights of Abraham takes you up by cable car — rising 554ft for adventure playground, cavern tours, a fossil factory and heritage walks all in one visit.
Alton Towers
Alton Towers Resort is around twenty minutes away, with over 50 rides and attractions plus gardens to explore between them — still the obvious choice for a full-on theme park day.
Grand houses with room to run
Chatsworth's 105-acre garden includes a working farmyard and a woodland playground — rope park, trampolines, slides, water and sand play — so it isn't just a house tour. Hardwick Hall has its own woodland family play trails alongside countryside walks. Sudbury Hall's Museum of Childhood, in the old service wing, is a genuine delight for all ages, not just the youngest in your group.
Ilam Park is worth knowing about too — gentle riverside walks towards Dovedale, and a popular tea-room garden with views across the Italian Gardens.
A day trip that isn't a house tour
Cromford Mills, part of the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site, tells the story of Sir Richard Arkwright's mill — good for slightly older kids interested in how things actually worked. To the south, "The Potteries" covers World of Wedgwood, the Emma Bridgewater factory, the Potteries Museum and Art Gallery, and Middleport Pottery, with the Trentham Estate nearby for gardens, a monkey forest and tree-top adventures.