We asked our readers for their top tips to keep the kids entertained during the school holidays without blowing the budget
Art and craft, board games and movies at home all proved popular, as did visits to the park, playground, picnics, riding bikes and camping.
And perennial favourites such as taking advantage of museums and galleries with free entry, and visits to the local library, also rated a mention.
Most creative low-cost school holiday activities
If you’re looking for some fresh school holiday inspiration, some of the most creative ideas included:
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Looking through photo albums together and creating a family slideshow.
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Putting on a concert or play for friends, getting the kids to create the show, make costumes and props, and make tickets and food for the guests.
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Getting the kids to write books and turning them into movies.
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Going on a park crawl, by setting a timer and after an hour at a park, moving onto another one.
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Using old bottles and jars to create terrariums using succulents and plants from the garden.
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Getting together with a group of friends and each taking all the kids for a day, so you only have one day to plan and pay for, and some child-free days during the holidays.
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Making a list of things for the kids to spot then heading out in the car and playing car bingo.
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Cutting out pictures from old magazines and cards and creating new homemade cards for upcoming birthdays and events.
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Scouring the internet in the lead up to the holidays for free and cheap activities to create a lucky dip jar to draw from when boredom sets in.
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Instead of just playing board games, making one, including planning the theme, rules, making the board, cards and questions, then playing it.
