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More than half of parents (56%) said family deals are designed around a narrow or outdated idea of what a family looks like, and nearly half (48%) said age limits on deals are too restrictive.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
Featured switching deal
Our top pick
Barclays £200 switch offer
Customer rating
4.3/5
- Switch bonus£200
- Offer ends28 May 2026
- Extra perksFree Apple TV
- FSCS Protected? Yes
- Bonus paid Barclays will text you when you’ve met the conditions, then you’ll get the switch reward within 45 working days
- Eligibility Pay at least £2,000 into your new Barclays Current Account within 30 days of opening
- Direct debits transferred over Must be completed through the Current Account Switching Service, which moves all payments to a new account within seven working days and closes their old account on the switch day they choose, transferring any money to their new account
- Existing customers? Only available to new current account customers who download the Barclays app who are also UK residents
- Eligible accounts Current account with Blue Rewards
Our top pick
Customer rating
3.8/5
- Switch bonus£180
- Offer endsUnknown
- FSCS Protected? Yes
- Switch bonus requirements Switch using the Current Account Switch Service and close your old account within 60 days of starting the switch
- Deposit requirements Deposit £1,500 in the first 60 days from opening the account
- Direct debits transferred over Set up two Direct Debits before or after the switch from a selected list of household bills
- Existing customers? Can't have held any Santander current account on 1 January 2025
- Restrictions Can't have received a switching bonus from Santander already, offer limited to once per person
- Eligible accounts Open a new or hold an existing Everyday, Edge, Edge Up or Edge Explorer current account
Our top pick
first direct £175 switch offer
Customer rating
4.7/5
- Switch bonus£175
- Offer endsUnknown
- FSCS Protected? Yes
- Bonus requirements Switch using the Current Account Switch Service, close the old account and use your debit card five times and log into online banking in the first 45 days
- Deposit requirements Pay in £1,000 within 30 days of opening the account (and leave it there for 24 hours)
- Direct debits transferred over Move two direct debits or standing orders from your old bank
- Existing customers? No
- Restrictions You can't have or have ever had a First Direct account or have opened an HSBC account since 1 January 2018. Offer limited to once per person
- Cashback requirements Extra £35 if you apply via cashback site Quidco or TopCashback (rates vary)
Lloyds Bank £200 switch offer
Customer rating
3.8/5
- Switch bonus£500
- Offer ends30 April 2026
- Extra perkFree Disney+ or cinema tickets
- FSCS Protected? Yes
- Bonus requirements Switch using the Current Account Switch Service and close your old account. The old account must be from a different bank
- Direct debits transferred over Switch three active direct debits from the old account
- Debit card use You need to spend £200 in the first 35 days
- Existing customers? Yes
- Restrictions Offer is limited to once per person and you can't have received a switching bonus from Lloyds, Halifax or Bank of Scotland since 1 January 2023.
- Eligible accounts Switch into a new Club Lloyds, Club Lloyds Silver, Club Lloyds Platinum
- Bonus paid Within 45 days of completing the switch
NatWest £150 switch offer
Customer rating
4.9/5
- Switch bonus£150
- Offer ends28 May 2026
- Extra perksUp to £36 rewards a year
- FSCS Protected? Yes
- Bonus requirements Switch using the Current Account Switch Service, close your old account and log on to online or app banking within 60 days of switching
- Deposit requirements Pay in £1,250 within 60 days of switching
- Bonus paid Within 30 days of meeting criteria
- Existing customers? No
- Restrictions Offer is limited to once per person, cannot have ever received a switching bonus from RBS, Ulster or Natwest and cannot have had a current account on 17 February 2026
- Eligible accounts Reward, Select or Premier Reward, Premier Select
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% |
| Leeds Castle | 1 adult and up to 3 children: £83 | £33.00 | £23.50 | £83.00 | £20.50 | 19.8% |
| 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% |
| 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% |
