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You are here > Home > What's On > Family Events

Family Events

For guaranteed fun for all the family check out our list of events taking place across the county.

Whether you are looking for things on this weekend, or looking for what's on today, we have all the amazing events for a great days out with the kids.

Create lasting memories with your loved ones at Durham's family-friendly events. Explore a diverse array of kid-friendly activities, family festivals, and interactive outings that cater to all ages. From educational workshops to entertaining performances, Durham offers a vibrant calendar of events designed to bring families together. Stay informed about the latest family-friendly happenings, and plan your weekends with the exciting array of cultural and recreational activities that Durham has to offer.

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Number of results: 74

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  1. The decorated Throne Room at Auckland Palace

    Add Christmas at the Palace - The Auckland Project to your Itinerary

    Christmas at the Palace - The Auckland Project

    Type

    Type:

    Christmas and New Year

    Market Place, Bishop Auckland

    Immerse yourself in unrivalled festive splendour when you visit Auckland Palace's very special Christmas event.

    Venue

    The Auckland Project, Bishop Auckland

    Dates

    From:
    21 Nov 2025to31 Dec 2025Various Opening Times
    More info for Christmas at the Palace - The Auckland Project
  2. Two people sawing a log - Beamish Museum

    Add Home Front, Home Farm 2025 - Beamish, The Living Museum of the North to your Itinerary

    Home Front, Home Farm 2025 - Beamish, The Living Museum of the North

    Type

    Type:

    Children/Family events

    Beamish

    Visit our 1940s Farm to learn about life in the British countryside during the Second World War.

    Dates

    From:
    20 Sept 2025to21 Sept 2025Open 10:00 - 17:00
    More info for Home Front, Home Farm 2025 - Beamish, The Living Museum of the North
  3. A family posing next to a traditional car at Beamish Museum.

    Add Home Educators' Day September 2025 to your Itinerary

    Home Educators' Day September 2025

    Type

    Type:

    Children/Family events

    Beamish

    Our next Home Educators’ Day takes place on Tuesday, 9th September 2025. There are a range of bookable workshops and drop-in activities for you to try during your visit.

    Dates

    From:
    9 Sept 2025
    More info for Home Educators' Day September 2025
  4. Josef's restaurant at the Radisson Blu Durham

    Add Family Santa Sunday Lunch to your Itinerary

    Family Santa Sunday Lunch

    Type

    Type:

    Christmas and New Year

    Durham City

    A relaxed family-friendly atmosphere, delicious food and a visit from the main man himself – Santa Claus will be delivering a selection box for the kids!

    Dates

    From:
    7 Dec 2025Open 12:30 - 15:30
    From:
    14 Dec 2025Open 12:30 - 15:30
    From:
    21 Dec 2025Open 12:30 - 15:30
    More info for Family Santa Sunday Lunch
  5. Painting of Old Locomotive Engine Wylam Coll from the Hatton Gallery, Newcastle University

    Add S&DR200 - Fuelling the Railway Revolution to your Itinerary

    S&DR200 - Fuelling the Railway Revolution

    Type

    Type:

    Exhibition

    Bishop Auckland

    This special exhibition explores the inextricable link between coal mining and the railways.

    Venue

    The Auckland Project, Bishop Auckland

    Dates

    From:
    27 June 2025to21 Dec 2025Various Opening Times
    More info for S&DR200 - Fuelling the Railway Revolution
  6. Durham Book Festival 2025 logo

    Durham Book Festival 2025

    Type

    Type:

    Durham Book Festival

    Durham

    Durham Book Festival is one of the country’s oldest literary festivals, taking place in and around Durham City, returning this year on 10th to 12th October.

    Dates

    From:
    10 Oct 2025to12 Oct 2025
    More info for Durham Book Festival 2025
  7. Staff and children dressed up as Vikings at Ushaw Historic House, Chapels and Gardens

    Add Viking Weekend - Ushaw Historic House, Chapels and Gardens to your Itinerary

    Viking Weekend - Ushaw Historic House, Chapels and Gardens

    Type

    Type:

    Family Fun

    Durham

    On Saturday 27 & Sunday 28 September head to Ushaw for their Viking Weekend where history comes alive!

    Dates

    From:
    27 Sept 2025to28 Sept 2025Open 10:00 - 16:00
    More info for Viking Weekend - Ushaw Historic House, Chapels and Gardens
  8. Santa greeting visitors aboard the Santa Express

    Add Santa Express at Weardale Railway to your Itinerary

    Santa Express at Weardale Railway

    Type

    Type:

    Christmas and New Year

    Station Road, Stanhope

    Santa Express returns to Weardale Railway this Christmas.

    Venue

    The Auckland Project, Bishop Auckland

    Dates

    From:
    21 Nov 2025to24 Dec 2025
    More info for Santa Express at Weardale Railway
  9. Two women and three children walking around the lake at Hardwick Park

    Add Forest Club - Hardwick Park to your Itinerary

    Forest Club - Hardwick Park

    Type

    Type:

    Family Fun

    Sedgefield

    Forest Club is a hands-on experience designed to engage children with the world around them through natural and play based activities. The programme is aimed at children between two and six years of age. Each session will include a different …

    Dates

    From:
    28 Oct 2025Open 10:00 - 12:00
    More info for Forest Club - Hardwick Park
  10. A child sitting beside an illuminated reindeer on the Enchanted Christmas Trail.

    Add The Plotters’ Forest Enchanted Christmas Trail at Raby Castle Park and Gardens to your Itinerary

    The Plotters’ Forest Enchanted Christmas Trail at Raby Castle Park and Gardens

    Type

    Type:

    Christmas and New Year

    Staindrop

    Enchanted Christmas Trail at The Plotters’ Forest – Day & Evening Experiences. Step into a world of festive wonder this Christmas.

    Venue

    Raby Castle, Park and Gardens, Staindrop

    Dates

    From:
    15 Nov 2025to16 Nov 2025
    From:
    22 Nov 2025to23 Nov 2025
    From:
    29 Nov 2025to30 Nov 2025
    From:
    3 Dec 2025to7 Dec 2025
    From:
    6 Dec 2025to7 Dec 2025
    From:
    10 Dec 2025to14 Dec 2025
    From:
    13 Dec 2025to24 Dec 2025
    From:
    17 Dec 2025to23 Dec 2025
    From:
    29 Dec 2025to31 Dec 2025
    From:
    1 Jan 2026to4 Jan 2026
    More info for The Plotters’ Forest Enchanted Christmas Trail at Raby Castle Park and Gardens
  11. People enjoy looking at a fantastic array of intricate LEGO®️ creations at Durham Brick Show.

    Add Durham Brick Show Weekend - Ushaw Historic House, Chapels and Gardens to your Itinerary

    Durham Brick Show Weekend - Ushaw Historic House, Chapels and Gardens

    Type

    Type:

    Show / Display

    Durham

    On the weekend of Saturday 13 and Sunday 14 September 2025, feast your eyes on a fantastic array of intricate LEGO®️ creations at Durham Brick Show.

    Dates

    From:
    13 Sept 2025to14 Sept 2025
    More info for Durham Brick Show Weekend - Ushaw Historic House, Chapels and Gardens
  12. A skeleton at The Halloween Maize Maze at Thorpe Farm Centre.

    Add Halloween Maize Maze Trail - Thorpe Farm Centre to your Itinerary

    Halloween Maize Maze Trail - Thorpe Farm Centre

    Type

    Type:

    Halloween

    Barnard Castle

    Spooktacular family fun awaits at Thorpe Farm Centre. The Spooky Halloween Maize Maze opens on Saturday 4th October! Grab a map and activity sheet from The Courtyard Café and head off to explore the 4 acre maize and find surprises around every…

    Dates

    From:
    4 Oct 2025to2 Nov 2025Various Opening Times
    More info for Halloween Maize Maze Trail - Thorpe Farm Centre
  13. AGLOW advertising poster with a child looking up to the nights sky with AGLOW illuminated in colours

    Add AGLOW - The Auckland Project to your Itinerary

    AGLOW - The Auckland Project

    Type

    Type:

    Christmas and New Year

    Bishop Auckland

    Auckland Palace's dazzling light trail AGLOW will light up the skies of Bishop Auckland once again this Christmas.

    Venue

    The Auckland Project, Bishop Auckland

    Dates

    From:
    21 Nov 2025to31 Dec 2025
    More info for AGLOW - The Auckland Project
  14. Child colouring in mandala pattern.

    Add Family Activities: Mandala Making - Durham University Oriental Museum to your Itinerary

    Family Activities: Mandala Making - Durham University Oriental Museum

    Type

    Type:

    Family Fun

    Durham City

    Paint your own colourful Indian-style mandala onto fabric.

    Dates

    From:
    6 Sept 2025Open 13:00 - 15:00
    More info for Family Activities: Mandala Making - Durham University Oriental Museum
  15. Children two children laughing. One dressed as a witch and the other wearing an orange top with a bat pattern.

    Add Fa-BOO-lous Halloween - Adventure Valley to your Itinerary

    Fa-BOO-lous Halloween - Adventure Valley

    Type

    Type:

    Halloween

    Brasside, Durham

    This October, join our Fa-BOO-lous Fun event, where there will be more giggles than ghouls for all the family! This event is friendly for kids of all ages - no scaries, but plenty of adventure and fun!

    Dates

    From:
    25 Oct 2025to1 Nov 2025Open 10:00 - 17:00
    More info for Fa-BOO-lous Halloween - Adventure Valley
  16. Audience watching the spectacular fireworks display from the arena: Pyromusical 2024

    Add Pyromusical - Kynren 2025 to your Itinerary

    Pyromusical - Kynren 2025

    Type

    Type:

    Bonfire Night

    Toronto, Bishop Auckland

    Join us for the seventh edition of our sensational Pyromusical on Saturday, 1st November 2025.

    Dates

    From:
    1 Nov 2025Open 19:00 -
    More info for Pyromusical - Kynren 2025
  17. A visitor to the Faith Museum looking at the Neapolitan Nativity

    Add Neapolitan Nativity - The Auckland Project to your Itinerary

    Neapolitan Nativity - The Auckland Project

    Type

    Type:

    Christmas and New Year

    Market Place, Bishop Auckland

    Be dazzled by our monumental 18th-century Neapolitan Nativity scene. This remarkable Baroque créche, known in Italian as a presepe, is a giant Nativity scene staged in a true-life Neapolitan setting.

    Venue

    The Auckland Project, Bishop Auckland

    Dates

    From:
    21 Nov 2025to31 Dec 2025Various Opening Times
    More info for Neapolitan Nativity - The Auckland Project
  18. Baker making a large, decorative loaf of bread at Beamish Museum

    Add Harvest Celebrations 2025 - Beamish, The Living Museum of The North to your Itinerary

    Harvest Celebrations 2025 - Beamish, The Living Museum of The North

    Type

    Type:

    Children/Family events

    Beamish

    Join us to experience traditional harvest celebrations!

    Dates

    From:
    4 Oct 2025to5 Oct 2025Open 10:00 - 17:00
    More info for Harvest Celebrations 2025 - Beamish, The Living Museum of The North
  19. A woman stands next to a Christmas tree with traditional decorations

    Add Christmas at Beamish Daytimes 2025 to your Itinerary

    Christmas at Beamish Daytimes 2025

    Type

    Type:

    Christmas and New Year

    Beamish

    Step back in time and enjoy the wonder of Christmas from across our time periods.

    Dates

    From:
    22 Nov 2025to24 Dec 2025
    More info for Christmas at Beamish Daytimes 2025
  20. Art installation beside New Hall at Locomotion

    Add S&DR200 Public Art Commissions at Locomotion to your Itinerary

    S&DR200 Public Art Commissions at Locomotion

    Type

    Type:

    Children/Family events

    Shildon

    As part of the S&DR200 celebrations, two special public art installations will be unveiled in 2025, each capturing a unique story of the Stockton & Darlington Railway’s legacy and its connection to the community.

    Dates

    From:
    1 June 2025to30 Sept 2025
    More info for S&DR200 Public Art Commissions at Locomotion
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