Toad Hall Adventure play is open 7 days a week and offers soft play facilities for children from…read morebabies through to juniors. There's a good under 3s section with a ball pit and 2-stage climbing frame (soft). There are some sit-on soft toys and some blocks. The floor is a bit suspect and there's a bit of an old smell to the area - nothing terrible but you do notice it. The play equipment appears safe but could be in better condition. The main soft play is a triple height affair with climbing, balls, slides and chutes. It's safe and in better condition than the toddler area. At weekends and after school this place can get packed but, during the day it's not too bad. A cafe facility is available serving teas, coffees, soft drinks and snacks. The prices are reasonable. Tables are kept away from the soft play being behind a low wall. They are OK but there's not a good view of the play area meaning that it's hard to have a coffee and take care of your child. For many parents this just seems to mean that they don't watch their child and so you do have to be careful that your child doesn't get set upon by unrully kids. It's not a particularly comfortable place but it's a good local option for a rainy day. Car parking is available.

So this is where it all started...the beginning of a rather bizarre love with swimming pools as a…read moreplace for fun - the memories of youth - I remember the excitement when this leisure pool originally opened in 1976 - it wasn't a rectangle it was round! What was this madness? Half the pool was too shallow to actually swim in and it had waves. This was the very first time I had encountered a "leisure" pool - oh trend setting, thoroughly modern Swindon you have so much to answer for - (along with the famed "magic roundabout"). I still return here with the kids every time we jump on a train to visit my wife's family. It is a great pool but looking distinctly tatty round the edges now. The domed roof desperately needs renewing - it looked spectacular 30 years ago but putting that aside its still super fun. The pool itself is beach style with a separate small kids pool. Good kids pool with 3 slides plus pirate ship.... The main pool has a steep three lane multislide and a new long slide circles inside the building (77m long). But really it is the flumes here that count and these are top. The Domebusters have a had a refurb this year and one of them has been replaced. All are approx 100m in length.So first off The Sidewinder A fairly gentle, spiralling flume aimed at younger children and parents. You can sit or go head first. The Great White My favourite - heads first ONLY never seen that on any other slide! Normally feet first everywhere.... A fast ride with two small vertical drops and several twists and turns. The Storm The new this year straight fast flume - small circumference with a striped lighting effect and sounds.. Didn't get to try this out this time - but will be back to do so....busy with an under 5... The session time was only an hour - which is really not long enough and it is fairly expensive considering the stingy hour. There are not many reasons to visit Swindon but this is definitely one if you are a water slide fan or the kids love to swim. . --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Update So I came back to try out the new flume which I hadn't managed to try out last time. Managed to slip away from a family visit for a couple of hours with my teenagers. Interestingly GLL have taken over the management of the leisure centre since we were here in 2012 (they run most of the pools we visit in London). It had been spruced up a bit with the new corporate livery...but still the stingy session times. We took no notice of the session times and made good use of the domebuster slides. So The Storm was the main attraction - small tube, dark, with striped lightning and fast with the descent as a helix. A big thumbs up from the family - a great slide but not in our top 5 slides. The Great White remains the favourite - head first you can pick up some proper speed and fly over the steepest vertical drops... ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Oasis is a great place to take the family swimming! They have a huge laguna pool that boasts water…read moreslides, a wave machine, a smaller pool for the children and a big water sprayer. They do a range of different classes such as mother and baby Swimming, OAP Swimming and also offer swimming lessons. They have also just started doing gigs with people such as 'The Sugababes' 'Cascada' and 'Shayne Ward' perfoming there.

Just off Marlborough Road - a country park with lakes. Lots of wildlife and lots of 'Ranger'…read morecourses take place here. Also Swindon Sailing Club meet here. A good place to walk - the walk around the lake is approx. 2 miles. Small cafe serving hot drinks and ice creams. A very small railway operates at weekends - good for the children - about 50p a ride. Swings and slides. Plenty of ducks to feed on the lake. Fishing. Crazy golf and pitch and putt - 18 holes.

Coate water is a great place to go for a family walk with the dog. It has a huge lake in the middle…read morewith a nature walk all the way around, which takes about a hour to get around. They also have a big golf course for the more serious golfer and a crazy golf course for some fun! There is also a paddling pool that is open in the summer months and a hut that sells chips/burgers/sweets and drinks! Every sunday during the summer there is also a little ride on train that goes round a little track for the kids! In August each year they do a night called 'Lanterns on the Lake' where people can come and make a lantern with a tea light and then they are all released onto the lake which is such a pretty view! - A must see!

Yeah, good very fun insanely expensive though an absolute rip-off but I had a really good time so…read moreI'll give it four stars

When I was a kid this was like the coolest thing you could ever do for a birthday party. Three…read morepools, rapids, loads of flumes, a pirate ship, a raining cloud, snakes that shoot you with water, palm trees...I know! How awesome is that! As a kid this experience is totally a 5 star, pee in the pool with excitement experience, there is a little cafe where you can have chips and fizzy pop with your friends after hours of fun in the pool. As an adult, it holds all the excitement but doesn't quite deliver. We are grown-ups after all and a big plastic snake is only believable up to a point. It's worth it if you really like flumes though as they are pretty fast. I was call in advance first as sometimes they don't have enough staff to have them all open at once.

Last year I decided to try some of this windsurfing lark at The Channel view leisure centre,…read morededicated water to all things water sports related. I went on the absolute beginners course which to begin with is expensive. £124 for two days. But once you get your level one it goes down to £34 for 5 sesh so gets better as you do. What consists of the beginners course is to begin with an on land simulator to make you feel an utter charlie. YOu are embarrassingly guided by qualified wind surfing tutors. You are then allowed out in the wet stuff after a few hours and this is where the real fun begins. Expect to get wet, col and spend more time off your board than on it...Well me anyway. It was so much fun my face was hearting from smiling so much over the two days. It's a great way to meet people and you become quite close to your group over the time and I still speak to a couple of the people I met there. There is so much more at CBWAC with Kayaking, sailing, rowing and power boating. If summer pops up this year you must visit here!

This Centre is housed in a purpose-built facility in South Cardiff, on the edge of the River Taff…read moreby Cardiff Bay. Despite the name, they actually offer activities both in the water and on land - including climbing (using Channel View's indoor climbing wall and automatic belaying equipment, as well as the outside bouldering facility); archery; bell boating in a vessel up the Taff; bush survival skills; trail biking; sailing; windsurfing; course and sea fishing; rowing; etc. For parties and corporate days they do day packages, and this is what I've experienced - all great fun, with excellent tuition and guidance, and a choice of 16 different activities (though obviously you have to choose in advance and book which you want to do, as there's not enough time to fit all of them in!). Great for a team day out away from the office.

Wow Greenbanks is a truly amazing place to go for a whole day (Yes a whole day) in the summer…read more Greenbanks has some parking out side basic changing rooms and showers. A good sized grass area to sit on and watch children swim enjoy picnics etc. There are 2 pools a large swimming pool which is too deep for young children and a shallow pool with and a water slide in this pool children over 2 years can walk around. Children do need to be watched at this pool children need to be supervised around water at all times. Over in the corner there is an area with water slides and squirters the kids love running around in that area and getting sprayed with water.

Outdoor swimming pool in Street, that is over populated with school kids both inside and around the…read moreoutside during summer. Also offers a tuck shop and a wet slide area for kids. Offers both big pool and little pool for children, and is always well staffed. Cheap entry too.

I just love finding big empty spaces in bustling cities and Christ Church meadow is a particularly…read morebeautiful example. It seems pretty unspoilt and natural, although it can get pretty busy in summer. It's best first thing in the morning or just before dusk, when the sun can be seen rising or setting over the countryside or the magnificent backdrop of Christ Church. The Cherwell and Isis surround it and there's no better way to spend a summer day in Oxford than to take a picnic and laze around by the river in the sun watching the cows graze. There are various rules, such as no bikes, which adds to the tranquility, but also serves as a reminder that this isn't actually a piece of wilderness, but a controlled tourist area in Oxford. Still, the rules seem sensible and considerate towards the wildlife. I'm really grateful the college hasn't tried to commercialise the meadow at all. You can access the meadow through the Memorial Garden on St Aldates, a gate next to the Botanic Gardens or a gate between Merton and Corpus Christi on Meron Lane. Make sure you don't get locked in after sunset!

Choose a long, hot summer day (if we ever get another one)…read more... ...take the Salters Steamer from Abingdon into Oxford. Refresh yourself and gird your loins at the 'Head of the River', then take a leisurely stroll through Christchurch Meadow It's beautiful, quiet, and completely unspoilt by the city around it. Take a loved one, sit on the grass and just watch the world go by. The perfect summer day, and the perfect place to sit and escape the daily grind. Lovely.

The Link Centre has it all…read more Swimming Pool Sports Halls Outside 5 a side pitches Squach Courts Ice Rink Climing Wall Bar Cafe There's probably more than that - but I think you get the idea. My boys attended the Hi5 Kids club in the holidays and were very impressed - they were allowed to use most of the facilities - so it felt like a treat for them not a childcare solution! The ice rink is home to Swindon Wildcats ice hockey team. Another reason to visit!

I have only ever used the Link centre for its swimming pool, which is gala size (25m with 6 lanes)…read moreand is great for swimming training. The changing facilities have a lot to be desired, very small and cramped with not much locker space available. There is an amazing climbing wall available here to all those climbers out there. They also have squash courts and a large ice rink. This is more of a competitive sports centred leisure centre than a fun day out kind of place. If you want to train/exercise, this is the place to be.

What a delightfully fun day at this cute farm. Everyone was so happy to be out and about on this…read moresunny day. The atmosphere was super family oriented, kid friendly and very educational. There was a cute stand for food and hot drinks on this slightly chilly day. CARAMEL DOUGHNUT Fluffy doughnut with a delicious caramel glaze. It wasn't too sweet and it would be so easy to eat two of these without even blinking! FONDANT DOUGHNUT Fluffy doughnut with a sweet fondant glaze. This was tasty, but a little too sweet for me. My coffee helped wash this down for me. JAM DOUGHNUT Fluffy doughnut with a sweet and slightly tart jam filling. DELICIOUS. A perfect, classic jam filled doughnut. Could eat myself sick from these. Scrumptious! After having these delicious doughnuts, we walked around and fed the animals. This farm is so big on cleanliness and educating everyone about being friendly to all walks of earth. Absolutely loved learning more about farm animals, feeding them and seeing how well they are cared for. A great way to introduce children to learning so much about respecting animals and the environment!

Odds Farm Park is located between High Wycombe and Beaconsfield and is a great day out mainly for…read morethose with children. I went with my nephew and whilst he ignored most of the animals he loved all the tractors to play on. It was a reasonable entrance price and you could stay all day if you wanted. There is a fairly nice cafe on site which was priced fairly reasonably and obviously family friendly. The animals were all lovely and looked happy and well cared for. I would recommend Odds Farm Park for a day out for most ages of children.