Head to Felixstowe for Fresh Air and Half Term Holiday Fun

February 18, 2022

Half Term has a habit of sneaking up out of nowhere and taking parents and carers by surprise. “What are we going to do with the children?” As if home schooling wasn’t trial enough, there’s a week’s worth of entertainment, logistics and catering to think about.

Don’t panic, you don’t have to go too far to find something fun to do if you live in Felixstowe, and if you don’t, check out our excellent new trains on a fast, 26 minutes from Ipswich right into the town centre, every hour. Here’s a selection of what’s happening in Felixstowe at half term. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to have all the latest events delivered to your screen.

Roll Up, Roll Up! The Greatest Show on Earth!

The Spa Pavilion Stage show, ‘Circus Spectacular – The Greatest Show on Earth’ is right here in our town.

Just a short walk from the town centre and right by the sea, our own Spa Pavilion Theatre has gone from strength to strength with some spectacular events since reopening.

This ‘truly unhinged but complete experience’ features a fantastic mix of circus style acts and magic. I think you can rely on a bit of audience participation: so much more entertaining than sitting them in

front of the iPad. Did I hear someone say, ‘Roll Up, roll up?”

https://spapavilion.uk/ for times and tickets.

 

Discover Landguard

At Suffolk’s southernmost point, overlooking the Orwell estuary and Britain’s busiest container port there’s more to do than you might think….

Landguard Fort is a fantastic day out for all ages: an imposing structure that overlooks the Orwell and Stour estuaries, there’s hundreds of years of history echoed in the dramatic story of the fortifications that defended the East Coast for over 400 years. Explore where the last opposed seaborne invasion of England, by the Dutch in 1667, occurred and the rich history that the fort has gathered since.

With a special half term trail for the children, guided tours, audio guides and new, downloadable, multimedia tours of the fort as well as guided tours of the outside batteries, Landguard Fort has a great deal to offer, don’t forget the tea rooms (we hear their hot chocolate is rather special) and gift shop. Dogs on leads welcome, except for the shop and tea rooms. https://www.landguard.com/ for tickets and times.

 

Landguard Nature Reserve

The reserve is a strangely peaceful and beautiful area offering approximately 81 acres of flora and fauna. Unusual, rare plants and migrating birds have earned Landguard designated Local Nature Reserve (LNR) status due to its value to the local community and a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) because of its high wildlife conservation value.

 

Fish and Ships

Find a spot on the beach, or head to The Viewpoint Café for a ringside seat from where you can watch the mighty ships up close while they unload and load and set off round to the continent or further afield.

Felixstowe Port oversees over 40% of Britain’s containerised trade, that’s approximately 2000 ships a year including some of the biggest container ships in the world (including the infamous Ever Given) making it the busiest in the UK.

The Viewpoint Café serves all day breakfast, fish and chips, teas, coffees, snacks, cakes, and pastries as well as housing a visitor centre where there is an interactive screen to help you identify ships in the area. You can bring your dog to sit on the usually sunny terrace but do mind Fido is on a lead in the Nature Reserve. Do note, The Viewpoint Café is cashless. https://www.viewpointcafe.co.uk/

 

Get your skates on with the Beach Street Rollers

Who remembers the Roller Skating Rink behind the Langer Road bus station? Ah, happy days. Well, it’s probably your children or even grandchildren that you’ll be taking to this fantastic ‘pop up’ roller skating experience at Beach Street.

From 2-4pm on Wednesday 23rd and Friday 25th February, you can book lessons or just roll. I wonder if I can find my leg warmers….!

While you’re at Beach Street, there’s plenty of shopping and dining opportunities including that perennial kids’ favourite: https://www.beachstreetfelixstowe.co.uk/traders/waffle-shack/ Menu includes GF and vegan waffles. Anyone for a Munchie Crunchie?

Pizza? Of course, there’s by the slice, or share one from the traditional Italian pizza menu at https://www.beachstreetfelixstowe.co.uk/traders/four-three-pizza/ or find not just classic, locally sourced beef burgers, but buttermilk chicken and loaded fries  at https://www.beachstreetfelixstowe.co.uk/traders/patty-macs/

 

Find treasure of the printed variety

Join the Felixstowe Book Hunt this half term and find free books dotted around Felixstowe to keep or re-hide.

The idea is to encourage children to find books to read while getting some fresh air and a bit of exercise too.

This innovative not-for-profit community project for local children is organised by Gracie’s Gorgeous Books and sponsored by local businesses, including Visit Felixstowe, see a full list on their Facebook page.

Local small business owner, Shannon Doherty tells us: “I run a children’s bookshop called Gracie’s Gorgeous Books, and I came up with this idea as I’m very passionate about putting books into children’s hands to encourage them to read more.

“I will be hiding books in and around Felixstowe for the children to find, and clues will be given out on social media. The child who finds the book, takes it home to read and then re-hides it,” Shannon explains.

“The Treasure Hunt is not for profit, and all the books I am supplying for sponsorship will be at cost. It will be me using my own time to hide the books to simply spread some book love,” says Shannon.

Follow Felixstowe Book Hunt on Facebook to find out when and where the books are hidden.