TOP RATED DAYS OUT IN SCOTLAND
The summer holidays are officially upon us here in Scotland. For parents that means they get to spend a lot more time with their kids during this long school break. To keep the kids entertained it’s important to try new things and there are many different options for your next family day out this summer.
The entries for this rated were provided by the Scottish Hospitality Awards 2022.
CALLENDAR HOUSE (FALKIRK)
Callendar House is a mansion set within the grounds of Callendar Park in Falkirk, central Scotland. During its 600-year history, Callendar House has played host to many prominent historical figures, including Mary, Queen of Scots, Oliver Cromwell, Bonnie Prince Charlie and Queen Victoria.
Visitors can take a stroll around the beautiful parklands, grab some delicious food to take away, stop in at the tearoom for a cuppa ‘n’ cake or book in for a delicious Afternoon Tea. Besides a selection of Teas and Coffees, visitors can tuck into treats such as freshly prepared sandwiches, mouth-watering home baked scones with preserve and scrumptious cakes.
At the Scottish Hospitality Awards Callendar House was a finalist for Tourist Attraction of the Year and took home the award for Family Venue of the Year.
KID PLAYZ (PRESTWICK)
Kidz Play is a family owned and run, seaside themed indoor children’s play centre located by Prestwick beach front on the stunning Ayrshire coast.
The Centre was totally refurbished in 2013 and now boasts a fun and colourful toddler area for kids aged 1-3 years and an exciting and challenging main play structure for children aged 4-11* years or 5ft 2″, including drop slide, astro slide and sports pitch.
They have two party rooms hosting a maximum 25 children each or max 50 children for a larger party or group outing. Their centre also provides a selection of comfortable seating areas, immaculate toilets and baby changing facilities, breastfeeding area, baby food and bottle heating area and our seaside Café and takeaway Rest Ashore.
They were awarded Scottish Children’s play Centre of the Year in 2019 and were a finalist for Children’s Play Centre of the Year at the Scottish Hospitality Awards 2022.
BLAIR CASTLE (PITLOCHRY)
Located within the Cairngorms National Park in Highland Perthshire Blair Castle is part of Atholl Estates and is the ancestral home of the Dukes of Atholl. It offers a wide range of activities for visitors wishing to explore the beauty and history of rural Scotland.
As well as Blair Castle tours and tranquil walks around the Gardens, walkers and cyclists have a wealth of way marked trails to explore. Their Ranger Service also holds events throughout the year, where you can learn about the estate’s wildlife.
On the grounds visitors can find Hercules Garden is a nine-acre walled garden that has been restored to its original Georgian design. Named after the life-sized statue of Hercules which overlooks the garden, it incorporates landscaped ponds, a folly, a Chinese bridge and an authentic orchard of more than 100 fruit trees.
The glory of this garden in summer is the herbaceous borders that run along the 275m south-facing wall.
Blair Castle was named Tourist Attraction of the Year at the Scottish Hospitality Awards 2022.
ODEON LUXE (GLASGOW)
A great option for a family day out as we approach the time of year where all the big blockbusters are coming out. They have their My Limitless membership which allows you to see films as many times as you like for a set price per month.
This is great if you want to make family trips to the cinema a regular thing this summer. It also allows you to save money on your favourite film snacks and drinks
They have 12 luxury screens including iSense which has more speakers allowing for crystal clear audio from every direction and realistic 3D. Every seat reclines and is expertly designed to help customers relax especially those bringing their particularly energetic children.
Located at Glasgow’s historic Springfield Quay there is plenty of parking facilities and options for places to grab food before the movie.
They have invested a lot in making the cinema experience memorable which helped them walk away with the award for Best Cinema Experience at the Scottish Hospitality Awards 2022.
CENTRESTAGE MUSIC THEATRE (KILMARNOCK)
Centrestage was founded in James Little Street Kilmarnock in 2006 by Fiona McKenzie and Paul Mathieson, operating with the ethos that anyone, regardless of age, background or experience, can gain life changing social benefits through active participation in the arts.
After completing Scotland’s largest Community Led Asset Transfer, they’re now operating from the site of the former Kilmarnock Academy. Everything at CentreStage is still built on that original ethos and supports delivery of the organisational vision and values.
From performing arts classes to creative, social and recreational groups for all ages, there is always something to get involved in at Centrestage and their café bar is available Monday to Saturday allowing visitors to meet friends while waiting for their class or to enjoy a pre-theatre meal.
Live performance is always at the heart of Centrestage productions from musical theatre, plays and drama to live music, dance and comedy are staged year-round in our flagship theatre and additional venues. All areas are available for external acts and events.
They won the Best Theatre Scotland award at the Scottish Hospitality Awards 2022.
MONKEY MADNESS (CLYDEBANK)
Monkey Madness is a kids Soft Play centre and Party Venue that caters for children aged from newborns up to the age of 12. They offer is a multi level play frame with 3 floors full of fun activities, including bridges, tube slides, free fall slides, punch bags, and two massive ball pools.
Separate to the main play frame is a Baby & Toddler area specifically designed with the younger child in mind. Here visitors will find a multi level maze filled with tunnels, climbs, drops, slides and ball pools to entertain energetic children.
They pride themselves on the high standard and carefully selected products to create a wide variety of Hot and Cold meals, drinks and snacks to satisfy the needs of the whole family.
Their team are energetic and fun party hosts will make sure that each child has the very best birthday party or special occasion in the separate party area. Parents can pick from a number of party themes to find the best one to suit their child.
This dedication helped them become finalists for Best Entertaining Team at the Scottish Hospitality Team 2022.
SILVERBURN SHOPPING CENTRE (GLASGOW)
Consisting of 125 grocery, retail and leisure units with brands such as Next, Marks & Spencer and TK Maxx, Silverburn has many options for a day out. Opening in 2007 it has historically generated annual footfall of circa 15 million. Sitting on 67 acres with 4,500 car parking spaces, the site is also home to Scotland’s largest Tesco store.
They have a large food court for customers to grab a bite to eat which recently welcomed a branch of luxury dessert brand Heavenly Desserts. For families with young children they have a Fun Street which is a two level indoor play area or they can take in a movie at their 14 screen Cineworld.
Recently Silverburn joined in the celebrations for Pride to 2022 changing the sign to the Pride colours and all proceeds from Fossil’s Pride range were donated to the Trevor Project.
They took home the award for Shopping/Entertainment Complex of the Year at the Scottish Hospitality Awards 2022.
KELBURN CASTLE COUNTRY ESTATE (LARGS)
This historic venue is based around a 13th Century Castle that recently had a makeover from a group of Brazil’s leading graffiti artists to give it a unique burst of colour. The estate is near Largs features dramatic walks, breathtaking gardens and many features of historical interest.
They have their indoor Playbarn which can make it easy for kids and parents alike to lose track of time. Parents can relax in the seating area while the children enjoy the creepy caves, a ball pool and climbing wall. The Playbarn is an ideal party or school trip venue that has room for 30 youngsters.
They have an outdoor cinema which has upcoming showings planned for Mama Mia and Disney’s Encanto.
They won the award for Best Day Out at the Scottish Hospitality Awards 2022. They were also finalists for Family Venue of the Year and Best Entertaining Team.
THE UNIT (GLASGOW)
This family restaurant and event space is operated by Well Fed which is an organisation with a vision of making the community stronger. Their community hub uses a safe space to provide providing free activities and food for whoever needs it.
Their menu includes their ultimate cheeseburgers, signature spare ribs, freshly rolled ice cream and their famous Sunday roast.
Located in the Southside of Glasgow it has a large outside garden and plenty of parking. They were a finalist for Best Family Dining Restaurant at the Scottish Hospitality Awards 2022.
LOCH INSH OUTDOOR CENTRE (KINGUSSIE)
Their accommodation comprises of 12 self-catering log chalets which sleep from 4-8, 2 apartments which sleeps 5 and extensive B&B accommodation in our main lodge at Insh Hall.
They have many activities available on site including skiing and snowboarding and Tubing on the dry ski slope. Visitors can go skating on their artificial Ice Rink, take up archery; and go on one of the walking trails.
Water enthusiasts can enjoy either with or without instruction stand up paddle boarding, kayaking, windsurfing, sailing and Canadian canoeing. There are two adventure play parks for children and a lovely picturesque beach for picnics and barbeques or you can relax and eat in The Boat House Restaurant and The Quarter Deck Bar and sit back and admire the views.
The have picked up several accolades over the years with their Under 15 Windsurf Team who have been Scottish Champions 8 years in a row. In 2016 and 2022 they won the award for Outdoor Venue of the Year at the Scottish Hospitality Awards.
