Throughout August, buses in England will be free for children, and adult single fares are capped at £3, making it an ideal time for affordable family outings. Alternatively, PlusBus tickets offer unlimited local bus travel when arriving by train. Here are six ideas for family trips by bus around England.
Great North Museum, Newcastle
Newcastle's Great North Museum: Hancock features painted mummy cases, fossilized dinosaur teeth, a stuffed wombat, and a fake merman, with free entry. The planetarium offers shows from £2.95. The summer exhibition 'Treasure: Hidden, Lost, Found' (free until 20 Sept) includes Roman coins and Viking silver. A bus ticket provides 10% off in the cafe.
The Tales on the Tyne trail features giant Peter Rabbit sculptures across Newcastle, raising funds for St Oswald's hospice. INNSiDE Newcastle hotel offers family-friendly rooms from £119 for four in August, with a Tynetastic Peter sculpture and free meals for under-11s until 6 September. In Ouseburn, the Biscuit Factory gallery hosts free kids' activities and rabbit-themed food. Bus 306 runs to Tynemouth for beach time under castle-topped cliffs. The Tyneside cinema has selected films at £5 each week.
Forest Fun Near Hatfield, Essex
The National Trust's Hatfield Forest, free to enter, offers 400 hectares of fields and woodland, home to hundreds of deer descended from Henry I's herds. Bus 509 from Bishop's Stortford stops near The Green Man, a short walk from the forest. Lakeside picnic tables and an alfresco cafe are a mile away, past cattle-grazed pastures and 1,000-year-old trees. Loop through woods to Thremhall Priory or follow the Three Forests way to Hatfield Broad Oak and catch bus 305 (not Sundays). In Bishop's Stortford, there's a riverside splash pool and castle mound. South Mill arts centre has kids' crafts for £2, and Much Hadham Forge museum has a free event on 27 August.
Cave Art in Nottinghamshire
The Welbeck Estate's walking map includes a trail to Creswell Crags, where a bus ticket offers free museum entry and 10% off in the cafe. The limestone gorge features caves with prehistoric rock art. Bus 209 from Worksop stops near the Dukeries garden centre and Welbeck courtyard. Welbeck has a free museum and gallery with highlights including Charles I's pearl earring and a Michelangelo Madonna. The Harley cafe serves local food, with kids' soup at £5 and cheese on toast at £6.
Half-Price Harewood, West Yorkshire
Arriving on bus 36 from Leeds or Harrogate gives 50% off walk-up ticket prices to Harewood House, which usually charges over £20 for adults. This grants access to the art-filled house, Capability Brown parkland, and gardens with scented borders, waterfalls, and bamboo thickets. Kids can enjoy a wooded adventure playground with zipwire, treehouse, and willow maze, plus nature safari bags. Summer activities include den-building, gardening, statue-cleaning, circus skills, and mid-August workshops by Tibetan monks. Inside, there's a Cecil Beaton exhibition until 4 October. A 5-mile circular walk from the bus stop takes in deer, buzzards, and the Muddy Boots cafe. Leeds' Royal Armouries museum is half an hour away on the 36 bus.
World-Class Art in Norwich
The Sainsbury Centre's free sculpture park features works by Elisabeth Frink, Antony Gormley, Henry Moore, and Lynn Chadwick, set in 140 hectares of parkland. Inside the Norman Foster-designed gallery (pay what you can), exhibits range from ancient Chinese tomb figures to a Picasso. Kids can stand in a glass box to 'become a work of art.' A bus ticket provides 10% off in the cafe. Bus 25 from the station or city centre runs frequently to UEA, passing Norwich Castle, which reopened after a £27.5m renovation. The castle offers sound-and-light shows and a £2.50 twilight ticket an hour before closing.
Wildlife Watching in the Lakes
Aira Force waterfall is 45 minutes on bus 508 from Penrith station, running beside Ullswater. Look out for dippers, dragonflies, and red squirrels. The area offers walks such as a pushchair-friendly stroll through Pooley Bridge woods or a hike up Gowbarrow Fell. This trip is featured in the book 'Where to Watch Wildlife in Britain By Low-Carbon Transport,' which includes 100 other car-free trips across the UK.
