Birmingham Library
A perfect venue on a rainy day, the £189m library in Centenary Square is one of the city’s most iconic buildings. There are 10 floors housing everything from exhibitions to toddler fun sessions. Oh, and there are books, books and more wonderful books.
The Black Country Living Museum
Set on a 26-acre site in Dudley, the museum has an entire Black Country village, built brick-by-original-brick. You can also take a ride on vintage transport and go underground to see how grim life was for miners in the 1850s. Bakery demonstrations and silent films at the cinema add to the experience.
Cadbury World
Even without the excuse of having a child in tow, a trip to Bournville to visit one of the best-loved attractions in the country is something to savour. If diving into a bowl of warm liquid Dairy Milk or riding the Crunchie rollercoaster is not to your taste, meeting the Cadbury drumming gorilla will ensure you hum that infernal Phil Collins tune for the rest of the day.
Dudley Zoological Gardens
The zoo and the 11th-century castle have been popular with generations of families in the West Midlands and warrant setting a day aside to visit. At the Arachnophobia workshop in the Rainforest Suite they can even help you cure a phobia of spiders or snakes – they are really just delightful and misunderstood.
Ikon Gallery
The 50-year-old gallery of contemporary art, housed in the gothic former Oozells Street Board School in the centre of the city, is occasionally overlooked by visitors to Birmingham but makes a decent bid for being the best free show in town. Now a gallery of national – and, indeed, international – acclaim, it moved to its current site in 1997. In addition to its impressive collection, it hosts a varied programme of talks, tours, workshops and seminars.
Lapworth Museum of Geology
This free attraction, based at the University of Birmingham and open all week, is home to more than a quarter of a million specimens. It’s the place to be if fossils and minerals rock your world.
Sandwell Valley Country Park
Just off junction 1 of the M5 and close to the heart of West Bromwich, this is an unlikely setting for a fully restored working Victorian farm, but with its nature reserve, grazing meadows, museum and visitor centre it is a perfect venue for a family day out or a spot of quiet birdwatching.
Stratford-upon-Avon
It’s always worth heading down the M42 from Birmingham to Shakespeare’s birthplace, especially if it includes a visit to the theatre. The recent RSC production of Death of a Salesman was a marvel, while this year’s Shakespeare programme has included Othello and The Merchant of Venice; Henry V is yet to come. But there’s more than just theatre on offer in the Bard’s birthplace – the ghost walks and ghost cruises on the Avon are both particularly entertaining.
Thinktank, Birmingham Science Museum
Housed in the Millennium Point complex in Digbeth, the Thinktank tells the story of the industrial heritage of Birmingham. The Spitfire Gallery, with its Supermarine Spitfire and Hawker Hurricane dangling from the ceilings, is a new addition, and the Planetarium is truly a star attraction.
Warwick Castle
The original motte-and-bailey wooden castle, rebuilt in stone in the 12th century, is one of the finest examples of medieval architecture in the land. Attractions include a “flight of the eagles” bird show, archery demonstrations and a Horrible Histories stage show. You could also try medieval glamping in a woodland glade five minutes from the castle.
