Best things to do with kids in London this week: 15 to 21 June 2026

This is one of those weeks where the family calendar more or less writes itself. Toy Story 5: The Experience at Westfield London closes for free on Sunday 21 June; that Sunday is also Father's Day and the summer solstice; London Zoo runs a dedicated Father's Day programme with talks across the animal kingdom; and on Saturday night, the new season of Regent's Park Open Air Theatre opens with a brand new A Midsummer Night's Dream, which is the most family-friendly play in the canon performed in a real park at dusk. There has never been a better Father's Day weekend in central London to fill with kids' programming.

This is the weekly family guide from tickadoo, the booking platform built by the founders of London Theatre Direct. Live ratings, review counts and prices in this guide were verified on Monday morning at tickadoo.com/london, so what you see is what is genuinely live this week.

The family freebie that closes Sunday: Toy Story 5 at Westfield

Toy Story 5: The Experience at Westfield London (Level 0, The Atrium) runs from 11 June to Sunday 21 June 2026 only. Admission is free, no tickets, no registration: you walk up. Hours are noon to 8pm Monday to Saturday and noon to 6pm on the Sunday, which is the last day. The experience is a properly built-out activation in the centre of the shopping centre, with photo opportunities, interactive activities and the kind of immersive set design that turns into screensaver shots about half an hour in. Queue times have hit an hour at peak, so the move is to go on a weekday afternoon or be at the door for noon on Sunday.

If Westfield West is too far west and you need a Sunday family fix nearer the centre, the Natural History Museum and the Science Museum in South Kensington are free, open every day of the week, and the strongest indoor family combination in London. Both open at 10am.

Father's Day at London Zoo on Sunday 21 June

London Zoo in Regent's Park is running a Father's Day programme on Sunday 21 June described as a "wild day out celebrating dads across the animal kingdom". The advertised talks include the Sumatran tiger Asim and the northern white-cheeked gibbon Jimmy and his son Yoda, plus the zoo's normal daily programme of penguin feeds, lion family viewings and the children's playground. Saturday 20 June doubles up as World Camel Day and Sunday 21 June is also World Giraffe Day, so the camels and giraffes are both getting extra programming across the weekend.

This is a Father's Day plan rather than a separate event: standard zoo entry applies, with tickets from £35 on this week's live pricing (rated 4.5 out of 5 from 3,403 verified reviews). The park itself opens at 10am and the headline animal talks usually start mid-morning. Build the day around two priority talks plus a long lunch by the children's playground.

A Midsummer Night's Dream at the Open Air Theatre

For older children (eight and up) and teenagers, the headline family opening of the week is A Midsummer Night's Dream at the Regent's Park Open Air Theatre, opening Saturday 20 June. The production is directed by Atri Banerjee and runs through to 18 July. The Open Air Theatre stages Shakespeare on a real stage in a real park, with the audience eating picnic suppers in the gardens before curtain and the actors entering through the trees. For a child's first big Shakespeare, the Dream is the canonical entry point: there are fairies, fights, a donkey-headed man, and four young lovers being silly in the woods. The play does what it says on the tin.

Time the visit carefully: the gates open about 90 minutes before curtain, and the gardens have a separate pre-show with food trucks and a bar. Aim to arrive at 6.15pm for a 7.45pm curtain. Bring a blanket. The auditorium has fixed seating and is covered against light rain; if the rain is genuinely heavy, the production posts go or no-go updates by 5pm on the day.

The musical that fits every family: Matilda, Lion King, Mamma Mia and the rest

For families with younger children, the West End is still the best date-night-with-kids destination in Europe. Live ratings and prices this Monday:

Matilda The Musical at the Cambridge Theatre is the standout for ages six to twelve, with tickets from £25 and a 4.6 rating from 4,075 reviews. The book is on the GCSE syllabus so it works as a half-curriculum, half-treat for older primary kids.

The Lion King at the Lyceum is the production we recommend most often for a four to seven year old's first big show, with tickets from £43.75 and the highest live rating of any major musical on tickadoo this week (4.8 out of 5 from 8,231 reviews). The opening sequence remains the gold standard.

Mamma Mia at the Novello Theatre is from £18.75, the lowest entry point on a major family-friendly musical right now, and is rated 4.6 out of 5 from over 5,000 reviews. It is an excellent first-time West End show for ages eight upwards.

For teenagers, Six at the Vaudeville (from £55.63) is the most likely big-impact pick (the production reads like a pop concert with a Tudor history skeleton). Hamilton at the Victoria Palace is from £25 with a 4.8 rating, our highest-rated lower-priced ticket. The Devil Wears Prada at the Dominion is from £25 and pitches perfectly for the 13-and-up crowd. For a much deeper walkthrough by age band, our best West End shows for kids by age guide is the single most-read piece on the site.

The big family attractions, with verified live prices

For first-time London families, our wheelhouse picks for the week, with this Monday's live prices and review counts.

The London Eye: from £29, 4.5 out of 5 from 17,765 verified reviews. The 30 minute rotation in slow glass capsules is exactly the right pace for under-tens.

Tower of London and Crown Jewels: from £37, 4.7 rating from 4,245 reviews. Strongest pick for kids who like castles, knights, and the gory bits. Yeoman Warder (Beefeater) tours run hourly and are excellent.

SEA LIFE London Aquarium on the South Bank: from £28, 4.5 rating from 2,054 reviews. The walk-through ocean tunnel does the job for under-eights every time.

Frameless at Marble Arch: from £29.51, 4.7 rating. The immersive art venue plays best with the eight to fourteen age band and tends to be the second visit on a London trip rather than the first.

Kew Gardens: from £25, 4.7 rating from 1,981 reviews. The Treetop Walkway and the Children's Garden together make a full Father's Day morning, and the gardens are at their full summer peak this week.

London Zoo: from £35, 4.5 rating from 3,403 reviews. The Father's Day move (see above) is the obvious one this Sunday, but the zoo also fits a normal Saturday afternoon better than the central tourist attractions.

For the always-free family options, the Natural History Museum, the Science Museum and the British Museum are all free, open every day, and bottomless for kids. The Science Museum's Pattern Pod (under-eights) and the Natural History Museum's Wildlife Garden are both quiet free corners that the bigger crowds skip past.

Father's Day weekend itinerary

Saturday 20 June. Morning: Westfield London for the free Toy Story 5 walk-up (closes the next day, so this is the Saturday move). Lunch: Westfield has a strong food court (the Sushidog and Crosstown stalls in particular). Afternoon: tube into central for Trafalgar Square and West End LIVE on the main stage (free, see the free things to do this week guide). Evening: Regent's Park Open Air Theatre at 7.45pm for A Midsummer Night's Dream, with picnic supper at 6.15pm in the gardens.

Sunday 21 June, Father's Day and summer solstice. Morning: London Zoo from 10am, with a priority animal talk in the first hour (the tiger talk runs in the late morning). Lunch in the zoo or in Regent's Park outside. Afternoon: Tube to Trafalgar Square for the second day of West End LIVE (quieter than Saturday, easier to get close to the stage). Late afternoon: tea or ice cream somewhere on the South Bank, with the kids in the playgrounds. Evening: a long sunset walk; daylight on the solstice runs to about 9.21pm in central London. If everyone has the legs, Parliament Hill on Hampstead Heath is the strongest free family sunset.

Total spend across both days for a family of four (two adults, two children eight and up): the zoo (about £130 to £150 for the family entry), train fare, lunches, ice creams, plus anything you upgrade. The Toy Story 5 walk-up, West End LIVE on both days, the Royal Parks and the sunset walks are free.

The rainy day plan

This is England in June, so the rainy plan is mandatory. Our family rainy day stack for this week, in order: London Transport Museum in Covent Garden (from £27, 4.4 rating, two hours of buses and tube trains and a play area), Frameless immersive art at Marble Arch (90 minutes), the free Science Museum in South Kensington (a full day if you want it, with the Wonderlab paid hall as an optional upgrade), and any West End matinee that does not finish past bedtime. Matilda (Cambridge Theatre, 2pm Saturday and Sunday matinees) and The Lion King (Lyceum, 2pm Saturday and Wednesday matinees) are the family standouts.

Saving money on a family week in London

The honest answer is that a London family week adds up. The tickadoo+ membership applies across attractions, shows and tours together (think London Eye, Tower of London, Kew, the West End musicals on tickadoo) and is the single move we recommend most often for families on a long weekend. The free anchors above (Toy Story 5 until Sunday, West End LIVE both days, the Royal Parks, the free national museums) mean you can build a credible family Saturday and Sunday on £30 to £40 if it has to be that way.

Frequently asked questions

Is the Toy Story 5 Experience at Westfield really free?
Yes. Free walk-up, no tickets, no registration. It is on Level 0, The Atrium at Westfield London (the western Westfield, not Stratford). Open noon to 8pm Mon to Sat, noon to 6pm on the closing Sunday (21 June).

What is the best Father's Day plan in London this Sunday?
The single strongest plan is London Zoo in the morning (with the Father's Day talks on Sumatran tiger Asim and gibbon Jimmy and son Yoda), West End LIVE in Trafalgar Square in the afternoon, and a sunset walk on Hampstead Heath or along the Thames in the evening. The combination uses the solstice well and the zoo's Father's Day talks add a unique angle.

What age is A Midsummer Night's Dream good for?
Eight and up tends to work, especially for children who have read the play in school. The Open Air Theatre's auditorium is forgiving (you can move about during the interval), the staging tends to lean into the fairy and donkey jokes for the kids, and the picnic pre-show in the gardens is half the appeal. Children under eight tend to find the dialogue heavy.

Are the national museums free for kids this week?
Yes. The Natural History Museum, the Science Museum, the British Museum, Tate Modern, the V&A and the National Gallery are all free for general admission, every day, for adults and children. Some special exhibitions inside are paid (the Le Parc retrospective at Tate Modern, the Marilyn Monroe show at the National Portrait Gallery, the Summer Exhibition at the Royal Academy); the rest of the museums around them is free.

Is there an indoor play option for under-fives this week?
The Science Museum's Pattern Pod and the Wildlife Garden at the Natural History Museum are both free and aimed squarely at the early-years bracket. The SEA LIFE London Aquarium (£28 entry) is also a solid under-five afternoon, especially if it is raining.

Which West End show is the best first family musical?
For ages six to ten, The Lion King is the canonical answer (Lyceum Theatre, from £43.75, 4.8 rating). For ages eight upwards, Matilda The Musical (Cambridge Theatre, from £25, 4.6 rating). For all-rounders, Mamma Mia (Novello, from £18.75) is the easiest sell across ages. Our best London musicals for families guide is the deeper read.

Where can I see live prices and availability for these attractions?
On tickadoo.com/london. The prices in this guide were verified on Monday morning; availability moves through the week, especially for Father's Day Sunday and the family-musical matinee slots.

Plan the rest of your week

The three companion guides for this week sit at what is on in London 15 to 21 June (the full overview), the West End Insider for 15 to 21 June (the full theatre slate, including the Midsummer Night's Dream opening) and best free things to do in London this week (West End LIVE, the Serpentine Pavilion, Toy Story 5 and the always-free museums in detail). For longer-read family planning, best London shows for families with kids ages 3 to 12 goes show by show.

See live prices and availability across every family attraction on tickadoo's London hub. We are tickadoo, the booking platform built by the founders of London Theatre Direct, and we will see you back here next Monday.