this is quiet play area that not many people know about. built in the middle of a new housing…read moreestate, this play areahas a variety of activities for small children e.g climbing frames, swings, slides etc. because it is not very well publiscised it is always very quiet and there are not problems from loud youths. there is also no litter and railings around the perimeter so you feel safe. there is a soft floor area to cushion falls.

Absolutely horrendous, me, my dad, my brother and his girlfriend all went to this zoo in hopes that…read moreit would be A fun family outing. My mom bought the tickets for the wrong day so she couldn't come with us. We got there and went in, showed the tickets we had bought and weren't allowed in as my mother wasn't with us. My dad stated that she couldn't come with us. The man who was working in the kiosk / ticket booth was having none of it. He was quite the rude man and was telling us that we had to buy new tickets under my dad's name. Keep in mind that the tickets you buy online are NON REFUNDABLE. If I could I'd give zero stars. Absolutely terrible.

Where else meerkats can be seen in Birmingham area? Not the only good reason for visit this…read morefacility but just in case you have ever been there, Birmingham Nature Centre is on Pershore Road, behind the Cannon Hill Park, in Edgbaston. The tickets cost £ 4 (adults) and children from 5 to 15 years (£ 1.50), but the little ones (under 5 years old) have free admission. I have been a couple of times, and a part the cockroaches, it always a pleasant spending some hours contemplating wild life and nature over there. The most popular animals are still the meerkats, but obviously that the wildcats, guinea pigs, among other exotic animals also add to the whole experience. Definitely a children's friendly spot, perfect for a picnic in family, if you fancy bringing your own snack. If not, there is a café on the site. A better way of finding more information about the Nature Centre is visiting their facebook page because their page at Birmingham City Council website is very simple and just provides basic information about the locale.

Our family love this place, with a few exceptions! The things we love are:…read more Loads of places to play. There's an under 5's play area that has a tunnel, play house, play kitchen and a really cool ball pit. Not only that, but there are three slides, climbing frames, padded bits to hit and tunnels to crawl through in the air. The older play bit has a gigantic blue slide that is really fast, as well as a football pitch with netting, two trampolines to bounce away on, and that's just for starters. It is possible to lose your child for a good few minutes amongst the maze of places. They've now also added some little tikes cars to zoom round in (beware of toddler tantrums as there are only three) and a couple of small rides at £1 a go as well as air hockey. For parents, there is a great cafe that stocks a wide range of food from the usual burgers etc to Hipp Organic goodies. I can vouch for the hot chocolate and cakes-very tasty. On the counter at reception are also complimentary newspapers and magazines to read whilst your children go mad, though they have to be returned for others to enjoy after you. It's good value and offers toddler specials on weekday mornings during term time which are £3.50 - £3.65 (including parent/guardian) between Monday-Friday entry between 9.30am and Midday. The bad thigs are: It can get REALLY busy at peak times like after school, during holidays and at weekends and there are usually LOADS of birthday parties going on. Parking at busy times can also be a bit of a nightmare. At peak times it's limited to a 2 hour visit, although I don't see this as a problem. We're usually ready to leave after a couple of hours anyway. All in all though, a great way to spend a couple of hours and for kids to expend some energy.

Toddlers and small children will love this place. In this huge indoor playground small ones can let…read moreoff steam and keep dry at the same time. There are different play areas to suit different ages and tastes. Babies and very small ones can have mum and dad nearby with them in their own low-level area, kitted out with soft-play items, and small slides. Older toddlers and big boys and girls can run riot around the rest of the area clambering, exploring, tumbling, and swinging. The deep ball pool is a great place to hide while someone else tries to seek. Or you could go on a sortie to find foam balls to fire at targets from an air-power cannon. Have a conversation with the Tube-O-Phone, why dontcha? A netted area is set aside for small-scale football matches, and a huge colourful, wavy slide sits against the far wall. Food? A cafe offers snacks and meals, and hot and cold drinks. Skip the healthy options and fill up on chips and baked beans. Active kids need their carbs!

!!!DO NOT BUY FROZEN FOOD FROM THIS... !!!DO NOT BUY FROZEN…read moreFOOD FROM THIS COMPANY!!! Received my order yesterday (07-02-23)which was sent on (06-02-23) which consisted of 1kg of frozen river shrimp 2 x 500g whitebait and 3 bags of large bloodworm and when i opened the package the frozen river shrimp had defrosted, the whitebait had defrosted and the live bloodworm were dead , i emailed yesterday explaining what has happened and then was asked the send proof which i did , then got a phone call today from a lovely lady who was trying to resolve this issue and her manager basically said the food is gamma radiated and therefore can be refrozen . But im not risking re freezing food that i would be feeding to very expensive and long lived fish which im sure a lot of other people would feel the same about and although they agreed to refund the dead bloodworm , they refused to refund or replace the so called "frozen" food which wasnt very frozen at all , its safe to say i will never be ordering from them again!!!

AqShirley aquatics As a kid this was amazing and with all…read moretheir exotic and normal aquatic creatures it still fascinates me! There's no fish store in Shirley quiet like 'Shirley Aquatics.' My family and I have a tropical fish tank at home and this is the 'go to' place to purchase new fishes, fish food and just about anything you need for aquariums. They even sell turtles and ponds and water features, pretty cool eh? You have to have a license to take one of them home because their care needs special training. They conveniently sell fish care products such as food and tank cleaning products as well as tank accessories. My tank has some plants and a mini 'Bikini Bottom' with all the main characters from the kids cartoon 'Spongebob square pants' (yes, I am big kid) I've recently graduated and as cool as this place is, it's a little too expensive for people like me so my advice is to save up enough money for fish care and a decent sized tank (or pond) so the fish have plenty of room. This takes me onto the next note. You know how sometimes you go to a place and the staff just don't care, or act as if they do? Well here they actually do care. This is obvious through the shops high standards of animal care and the staff like to know what type of environment you'll be taking the fish(s) home to (if you purchase them). Interestingly they can tell you loads' about the fishes; from where they came from to their care. For example when we got our first tropical fish they asked us to bring in a water sample from the tank to check it was the right environment for the pretty fish we wanted. At first it wasn't and they instructed us on how to fix this. Once that was out the way they advised us about feeding the fish and as our small filter doesn't clean our large tank the staff gave helpful cleaning advice. In my opinion this is the kind of care and customer service most pet stores need.

If there's one activity that my friends and family are mutually fanatic about, then its bowling! We…read moreoften head down to Bowlplex, which is in the Broadway Plaza complex. Underground paid parking is available, although you could be cheeky and look for side-street parking. Bowlplex isn't limited to just bowling. There's a restaurant area, bar, arcade and American Pool upstairs. So, in general there's something to keep all ages engaged. Parties can be booked here too, so don't be surprised to find a whole load of balloons and excited kids if you go at the weekend! They usually have offers available during the holidays, although it gets very busy at this time. Generally, the more games you play, the cheaper it is. There is also a "Munch and Play" deal where you can eat from the grill and bowl (although not simultaneously!) for £13.50 for adults. It's a fun-day out for the family, especially when it's too cold to be outdoors!

Who loves Bowling?? Then if you do, Bowlplex is somewhere you should go. It's situated in the same…read moreBroadway complex where AMC cinema, Frankie & Benny's, Subways and more are located. Bowlplex (Broadway Complex) is situated just before you get to Hagley Road and just after the big six ways roundabout near Broad Street. Bowlplex is a great place to take kids if you have any because of the fun factor. It's a brilliant way to entertain the family but also as a parent enjoy and relax in the bar area which they have- you can even treat yourself to a cold beer or maybe just stick to a J20 which your kids play. They also serve food in the restaurant/bar area but if I remember rightly there is an age restriction in the bar area, so you'll need to be aware of this. I don't have kids so it's something I didn't enquire about when I last went. Not to worry about that though, as there's plenty of activities kids can do; not just bowling. There are arcade type games which the small and the big kids will all enjoy.

This is worth a visit, but very pricey (£21 for an adult that had no discounts; that's about $30)…read more For a family, you're now about $80 for the experience) It's beautiful and nicely laid out so that you can focus on one thing for a bit of time and not worry that you're holding back the ones behind you. As you wind your way up the ramps to the upper levels, you get to see the same exhibit from several angles. Very unnerving to see a shark from above and then realize that his eyes are on the top of his head and they're looking at you as well. The penguins are adorable. Photography is fine as long as you don't flash. The 4D experience was a 15 minutes condensation of the movie Happy Feet. The 4D comes from the fact that the seats shake when they're dancing and you get a spray of water when the shark crashes down. I noticed a lot of education on saving species from being used in medicines or being over hunted. The gift shop was a bit dusty and I noticed that many of the stuffed animals were a bit grimy. PS: yes, the photo I uploaded is of the actual penguins. They seemed to pose for my camera.

I've been twice to the sealife centre now - first time: loved it. There is lots to see, for me the…read morehighlight by far is the fantastic walk through tunnel where there are reef sharks and incredible rescue turtles to admire. The new addition of the penguin section is wonderful too. The second time I went was in the Easter holidays and it was a huge mistake. The centre had MAJORLY overbooked- we were on timed entry but could barely move. I had 3 kids in tow this time and they could hardly see most things because of the volumes of people crowding round each tank. I was gutted because we'd had such a lovely time previously. The staff did their best to manage it but tensions were obviously high and the queue system for the 3D cinema was a bit of a disaster - not enough space for the volumes of people wanting to see the show to wait out of the way of others. We didn't get a look in at any of the talks either- the kids couldn't get close enough to most of them to see what was going on. So that's why I've only given it a 3 star review, and I nearly gave it a 2. No matter what the capacity of a building, if you overbook to that extent you spoil it for everyone. If you go out of holidays- you'll have a wonderful time and i'd give the attraction itself a much better rating at those times (!!!!) but just don't waste your money during school holidays- watch blue planet at home instead!

Wythall park is a lovely little gem that's off the beaten track a little. It has a sand pit and…read moreswings, as well as a roundabout. These are all in an enclosed space for little ones to play safely. The older kids are catered for with a zip wire and a tyre swing, as well as a footbal court. There are toilets that are clean and the park is kept clean too, plus there's loads of free parking. It's open all year round too. There isn't anywhere to buy food and drink but it is a great place for a picnic, so bring your own instead. Something worth noting is that it's also a very popular dog walking area so if your children are scared of dogs, just be aware. Most dog owners are great but when we visited there were a coupe of great hulking dogs that took a dislike to each other and both were off their leads. One owner obviously had no control over his dog either. It all ended safely, but there was a lot of baking and snarling, and that was just the owners, and my daughter didn't like it at all.

This is such a good park for kids! It really is lovely and has a cool playground with swings, one…read moreof those roundabout things and even a sandpit! If only I was a kid again. I think that the park is kept well and always seems to be clean and tidy. There are even some toilets in case you get caught short. It is a great park to bring a picnic and the kids on a nice sunny day. It is also a great place to bring dogs and seems to be very popular for dog walkers. This is a really nice park and it is definitely worth a visit if you have kids, dogs or just generally want to view some greenery instead of the city traffic!