Knebworth House

Knebworth is a great day out, with or without kids. The lower section has a spacious outdoor playground with a fantastic wooden fort (we would happily have spent the whole day there), bouncy castle, three types of slides (with attendants) and lots of picnic areas and a covered area for bad weather. There’s also a little railway. The upper section is nearer the house, which we didn’t go in, but from the outside with its crazy turrets and dragons looked well worth a visit. The gardens are gorgeous and can be rambled around for a couple of hours. There’s a surprisingly difficult maze, but the main attraction for kids is the dinosaur park with petrifying lifesize replicas . There’s a pleasant, but expensive cafe near the house (£3.60 for a scone, anyone?), so if you're spending the whole day, you’d be advised to bring a picnic. The only negative is the A1M roaring past so nearby, but then again, this makes Knebworth very easy to get to. I’d imagine it gets very busy on sunny weekends or theme days, but on an overcast Sunday in June it was a great day out. [Jun 10]