Coventry venues and attractions hosting October half-term budget-friendly activities to support families

Venues and organisations across Coventry are putting on a packed schedule of events and activities this October half-term to help families as the cost-of-living continues to soar.

Families across the city will be looking for budget-friendly ways to keep their children occupied and give them a Halloween break to remember.

Visit Coventry, the city’s destination management organisation, has been working with venues and providers in the city to curate a catalogue of value-for-money days out.

There will be free-of-charge experiences available every day during half-term, from spooky Halloween activities to educational historic attractions to ensure learning doesn’t stop at school.

Visit Coventry has launched a free explorer’s trail, starting from its Visitor Information Centre next to Coventry Railway Station. Young explorers will be tasked with finding out the answers to 10 questions, and discovering Coventry city centre in the process.

One of the highlights is set to be a free family fun day at the Belgrade Theatre on Wednesday, October 26.

The theatre, in the heart of the city, will be putting on a variety of Halloween-themed activities, including a dressing up station with stage costumes from the theatre’s productions, and arts and crafts inspired by upcoming shows – which includes David Walliams’ Demon Dentist.

Meanwhile, in the Cathedral Quarter, entry will be free to The Blitz Museum in the Cathedral Ruins. The museum will give young people the chance to transport themselves back to 1940s Coventry to learn about the Coventry Blitz.

At West Orchards shopping centre, free Lego workshops will be held twice daily throughout the week, while over at Fargo Village a Halloween Makers’ Market will be held on Saturday, October 29 and Sunday, October 30.

The market hall will be filled with traders to help parents celebrate Halloween in style this year.

To close the week, a free, colourful and interactive installation will take over the Anglican Chapel at London Road Cemetery.

Do Touch Monsters, by Julia Snowdin, will be taking place on Sunday, October 30, and will provide an interactive Halloween playdate. The installation asks visitors to take a tentacle and stick them to giant spikes to create their own monster.

Other venues across Coventry will be hosting low-cost activities for family, including at The Wave and the Herbert Art Gallery & Museum. The art gallery and museum will be hosting daily activities to encourage creativity, from creating lanterns and masks, to making enchanted decorative jars.

Visitors are also invited to the newly-opened St Mary’s Guildhall for daily ghost tours throughout the week.

Finally, for families looking to get out and enjoy the fresh autumn air, GoApe at Coombe Abbey Park will be providing sundown sessions to get children active from October 21 to November 5.

Ryton Pools Country Park will be offering an evening of Halloween fun too on Saturday, October 29 – with a ghost train, haunted garden, spider lair, bar cave and more to be visited.

Paul Jones, Managing Director of Visit Coventry, said: “It is fantastic to see so many venues, organisations and visitor attractions offering free or low cost activities for families this October half-term.

“The cost of living crisis continues to grow and we know that many parents would have been considering their options for what they could afford to do during the week.

“Despite the pressures also facing businesses in tourism and leisure, the sector has still been able come together to put on a packed calendar of wonderful free events. We hope families across the region will come out over the course of the week and support our venues and attractions.”

To find out more about what’s on in Coventry during October half term visit www.visitcoventry.co.uk