Budget-friendly summer activities for families

With the summer holidays under way, families are looking for affordable ways to keep children entertained. Across Devon and Cornwall, museums, farms and community venues are offering a range of free and low-cost activities for children, with most costing £5 or less per child.

In Sidmouth visitors can meet the rescue donkeys at the Donkey Sanctuary and wander the coastal paths, with dogs on leads also welcome, all free of charge.

Bolenowe Animal Sanctuary on the Lizard Peninsula is opening every Sunday from July 26 to August 30 with free admission to visit its horses, donkeys and a small collection of other animals that live on the farm.

Trevaskis Farm, Connor Downs, offers people a chance to meet the resident farm animals, including a British Lop pig, and explore orchards free of charge, and dogs on leads are also welcome.

The Box museum in Plymouth is running free drop-in craft sessions for children aged four to 11 which are inspired by Dartmoor and focused on clay making and medieval games.

The Royal Albert Memorial Museum and Art Gallery in Exeter offers free entry to explore Exeter's heritage through interactive displays, rare artefacts and more.

Falmouth Art Gallery offers free creative workshops which are inspired by its current exhibition Mirrors: Reflecting on Identity.

Redruth Library is set to host a programme of free activities for children and families, including storytimes, author visits and art and crafts workshops.

Nearby Cornwall Gold offers free entry to a tin mill, an interactive exhibition and activities to entertain kids, like panning for gold, which cost £2.

My Chance to Dance in Camborne is offering £2 dance classes throughout the summer and has sessions for children aged five and under with special educational needs and disabilities.

SK8PZ Love It Roller Skating is running every Monday, except bank holidays, at Mounts Bay Community Sports Centre in Penzance and entry is £3 per person.

Plymouth's YMCA puts on free hour-long sessions of youth football every week, including sessions called Kickers for children aged between four and seven.

Mount Wise Swimming Pools in Plymouth offer daily public swim and family swim sessions which must be booked online but are free.

Westward Ho! Rock Pool is a natural, tidal sea pool on the beach and is free to enjoy, however is it recommended to check the tide times as it is covered at high tide.

Bude Sea Pool on Summerleaze Beach is a semi-natural tidal pool which is also free to use.

Across Devon and Cornwall, a network of coastal buses offer a car‑free way to access some beaches.

Bovisand Beach, just a few miles from Plymouth city centre, can be accessed via the number 54 bus, which has a drop-off directly by the beach.

In Exeter, Stagecoach runs the number 95 bus, which connects the city to Sidmouth, and the 57 bus, which runs between the city centre and Exmouth.

Woolacombe and Barricane Beach in North Devon are serviced by the 301, 303, and 31 bus routes running from Barnstaple and Ilfracombe.

The Go Cornwall Bus 56 connects Newquay to Padstow and stops at several beaches along the way.

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