We take a look to see what – if anything – family deals could save you in reality on a day out
Family tickets are meant to save you money on a day out – but they might not be all they seem at first.
First, you need to fit whatever definition your chosen attraction has decided is a “family”. That could be two adults and two children, or one adult and two children, or only count pre-schoolers as children.
Second, it could be limited to certain dates – meaning you won’t be able to take advantage when you want to.
To find out how good these deals are, we’ve dug into the details of the top 30 attractions around the UK to see who offers the best and worst deals.
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Modern families
In 2024, the most recent year we have national figures for, there were an estimated 19.7 million families living in the UK.
Of those with dependent children, 2 million were lone parents.
Of the families with children living with them, 44% had just one child while almost 15% had three or more. That means traditional “two parents, two children” families are outnumbered by other sorts of family almost two to one.
Despite that, two adults plus two children was comfortable the most common type of family discount we found (13 out of 30 deals), and 73% of the deals are for four people.
Of course, you don’t need to be a family to take advantage of the deals – with friends coming along to make up numbers, potentially different parents heading to different attractions or children going with just one parent.
The most flexible deals we found let you take four people, with no restrictions on those people’s ages. These were offered by Cadbury World; Knowsley Safari Park; GreenWood Family Park; The Royal Mint Experience and Sea Life in Weymouth, Birmingham, Scarborough and Loch Lomond.
What people think of the deals
We decided to ask families across the country what they though of the deals on offer.
Most parents (59%) said they thought family deals don’t reflect the real cost of days out, while almost as many (53%) said they aren’t good value.
More than half of parents (56%) said family deals are designed around a narrow or outdated idea of what a family looks like, and nearly half (48%) said age limits on deals are too restrictive. Almost two in five (39%) said they actively avoid family deals because they don’t suit their household.
When it came to cost, nearly two parents in three (62%) said they limit how often they go because of the expense, while more than two in five (42%) said they budget their Easter holiday plans around the best available deals.
They won’t be caught out by a fake “bargain”, with nearly seven in 10 (69%) saying they usually compare family deals with individual tickets before deciding what to book.
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The best value family deals
These are the locations we found with the biggest discounts for family tickets, as well as what they consider a family to be to qualify:
- SeaLife Birmingham – save £39 (38%) on a 4-person bundle
- Cadbury World – save £36 (35%) on a 4-person bundle
- Legoland – save £35 (55%) on a 1 adult, 1 pre-schooler bundle
- Warwick Castle – save £30 (26%) on a 2 adult, 2 children bundle
- Sea Life Scarborough – save £26 (31%) on a 4-person bundle
The worst value family deals
These are the attractions with the lowest discounts for family tickets, along with their definitions of what a family is to qualify for them:
- GreenWood Family Park – save just £2.40 (3%) on a 4-person bundle
- Alnwick Castle – save just £2.85 (4%) on a 2 adult + up to 4 children bundle
- Alton Towers – save just £3 (9%) on a 1 adult + 1 toddler bundle
- Folly Farm – save just £3.80 (4%) on a 2 adult + 2 children bundle
- Knowsley Safari Park – save just £4.50 (6%) on a 4-person bundle
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Our tips for getting the best deal
- Always compare: Don’t assume a family deal is the cheapest option. Add up the cost of individual tickets and compare – especially if your family doesn’t fit the two-adults-and-two-children setup
- Check the small print: Look at age limits, height restrictions, and any date-specific pricing. A deal that looks good on the surface may not apply to your children or on your preferred dates
- Look beyond the headline price: Some attractions offer flexible bundles for different family sizes, or discounts for booking in advance. It’s worth checking the full range of ticket options before committing
- Share what you find: If a deal isn’t what it seems, leave a review or share your experience. The more parents speak up, the more pressure there is on attractions to offer genuinely fair pricing
Full details of the deals
| Attraction | Bundle description | Adult ticket | Child ticket | Family deal price | Saving (£) | Saving (%) |
| London & South East | ||||||
| Kew Gardens | 2 adults and 2 children: £54 | £24.00 | £6.00 | £54.00 | £6.00 | 10.0% |
| Chessington World of Adventures | 1 adult and one preschooler: £29 | £22.00 | £22.00 | £29.00 | £15.00 | 34.1% |
| Legoland | 1 adult and one preschooler: £29 | £32.00 | £32.00 | £29.00 | £35.00 | 54.7% |
| Hever Castle | 2 adults and up to 3 children OR 1 adult and up to 4 children: £66.60 | £25.50 | £14.05 | £66.60 | £12.50 | 15.8% |
| Battersea Park Children’s Zoo | 2 adults & 2 children OR 1 adult & 3 children: £50 | £15.95 | £12.95 | £50.00 | £7.80 | 13.5% |
| South West | ||||||
| Roman Baths | 2 adults and 2-4 children: £69 | £27.00 | £20.00 | £69.00 | £25.00 | 26.6% |
| Bristol Zoo | 2 adults and 2 children: £67.82 | £21.00 | £17.00 | £67.82 | £8.18 | 10.8% |
| Dartmoor Zoo | 4-person family (max 2 adults, incl. free annual pass): £67.75 | £23.00 | £17.00 | £67.75 | £12.25 | 15.3% |
| Sea Life Weymouth | 4-person family: £50 | £19.00 | £16.00 | £50.00 | £20.00 | 28.6% |
| Monkey World | 2 adults and 2 children: £50.75 | £19.00 | £13.00 | £50.75 | £13.25 | 20.7% |
| Midlands | ||||||
| Alton Towers | 1 adult and toddler: £29 (extra under-5 for £5) | £32.00 | £32.00 | £29.00 | £3.00 | 9.4% |
| Warwick Castle | 4-person family (max 2 adults): £86 | £29.00 | £29.00 | £86.00 | £30.00 | 25.9% |
| West Midlands Safari Park | 1 adult and 1 preschooler (0-4): £19.50 | £20.00 | £20.00 | £19.50 | £20.50 | 51.3% |
| SeaLife Birmingham | 4-person family: £65 | £26.00 | £26.00 | £65.00 | £39.00 | 37.5% |
| Cadbury World | 4-person family: £68 | £26.00 | £26.00 | £68.00 | £36.00 | 34.6% |
| North East & Yorkshire | ||||||
| Alnwick Castle | 2 adults and up to 4 children: £62.95 | £21.55 | £11.35 | £62.95 | £2.85 | 4.3% |
| Flamingo Land | 2 adults and 2 children: £168 | £46.00 | £46.00 | £168.00 | £16.00 | 8.7% |
| Leeds Castle | 1 adult and up to 3 children: £83 | £33.00 | £23.50 | £83.00 | £20.50 | 19.8% |
| Knowsley Safari Park | 4-person family: £75 | £21.00 | £18.75 | £75.00 | £4.50 | 5.7% |
| Sea Life Scarborough | 4-person family: £58 | £22.00 | £20.00 | £58.00 | £26.00 | 31.0% |
| Scotland | ||||||
| Edinburgh Castle | 1 adult and 2 children: £42.50 | £21.50 | £14.00 | £42.50 | £7.00 | 14.1% |
| Stirling Castle | 1 adult and 2 children: £36.50 | £19.00 | £11.00 | £36.50 | £4.50 | 11.0% |
| Scottish Deer Centre | 2 adults and 2 children: £48 | £19.00 | £13.50 | £48.00 | £17.00 | 26.2% |
| Sea Life Loch Lomond | 4-person family: £50 | £19.00 | £16.00 | £50.00 | £20.00 | 28.6% |
| Enchanted Forest | 2 adults and 2 children: £76 | £27.00 | £15.00 | £76.00 | £8.00 | 9.5% |
| Wales | ||||||
| Cardiff Castle | 2 adults and 2 children: £42.50 | £16.00 | £10.50 | £42.50 | £10.50 | 19.8% |
| Folly Farm | 2 adults and 2 children: £102.60 | £27.55 | £25.65 | £102.60 | £3.80 | 3.6% |
| GreenWood Family Park | 4-person bundle: £85 (off-peak online) – £97 (peak) | £21.85 | £8.65 | £85.00 | £2.40 | 2.7% |
| Plantasia Swansea | 2 adults and 2 children: £31.45 | £10.95 | £8.95 | £31.45 | £8.35 | 21.0% |
| The Royal Mint Experience | 4-person family: £54.99 | £17.50 | £13.00 | £54.99 | £6.01 | 9.9% |
