Half-term money savers
METRO’S BARGAIN HUNTER KARA GAMMELL LOOKS AT WAYS TO MAKE YOUR CASH STRETCH FURTHER WHEN YOU’RE OUT WITH THE KIDS
Free tourist attraction tickets for train travellers
Get two-for-one entry to more than 150 top UK attractions, restaurants, theatres, exhibitions and more, when you travel by train.
Simply download a voucher and present it with your rail ticket when you visit the attraction.
Offers include the View from The Shard, Tower of London, Big Bus Tours, Legoland and Alton Towers.
Free days out for crafty kids
Holders of Blue Peter badges get the bonus of free days out at more than 200 attractions.
Some of these, such as London Zoo, have suspended the promotion but at Kew Gardens, badge holders aged six to 15 can get in free if accompanied by an adult.
National Trust on a shoestring
Reduce the cost of your National Trust membership and join the National Trust for Scotland to save nearly £10 on the cost of an annual family membership.
Thanks to a reciprocal agreement, you can pay to join a sister organisation north of the border and slash your membership costs – and it is completely legitimate.
Bargain films for families
If you have more than one child, you know how expensive a trip to the cinema can be.
The cost of ticket and treats mean that you can easily spend £50 before you have even sat down.
But Cineworld Cinemas and Vue offer screenings for kids every Saturday and Sunday morning from 10am, plus every day in the school holidays for just £2.50.
The films are chosen especially for little ones to enjoy and change every six to eight weeks to make sure you never miss out on the latest releases.
Ride the rails for less
If you travel by train often, it is worth investing in a Family & Friends Railcard. For £30 for one year, or £70 for three years, with this card you will get a third off adult rail fares for up to four adults and 60 per cent off for up to four kids between five and 15.
Two adults can be named on one card, so when one cardholder isn’t using it, the other can.
Over the course of a year, you could save an average of £114.
Your Railcard doesn’t just save you money on travel, it saves you money with their partners, too.
Visit Offers and Rewards area and things to do in London page to find out more. To buy online, visit familyandfriends-railcard.co.uk
Use your points
Supermarket points schemes are an easy way to save money on days out and restaurant meals.
Tesco Clubcard is one of the more generous schemes and due to Covid-19 any vouchers that were due to expire in May are now valid until November 30.
If you have a stash of points you can trade them for up to three times their value through Tesco’s Reward Partners – and codes are now valid for 12 months from the order date.
Many people lose or forget to use their Tesco Clubcard points, but there’s an easy way to get your hands on ‘lost’ unused vouchers from the last two years.
Just go to the Tesco Clubcard site, enter your details and click on ‘vouchers’ on the left to see a list of the vouchers that you have yet to spend.
Concessions for teachers
Overworked and underpaid, we think teachers deserve a break, too.
The teacher card (ITIC) is an internationally recognised ID card that gives full-time teaching professionals, working at a recognised educational establishment, access to some fantastic discounts around the world as well.
The price of a Virtual ITIC card is £12 (plus £3 for a plastic card) and is valid for 12 months from the date of issue. Discounts include Blackpool Tower, Madame Tussauds, Tate Modern and Hard Rock Café.
Kids eat free
If the thought of packing another lunch box fills you with dread, why not enjoy a meal out for the adults and feed the kids for free?
With some offers, you can walk in – with others you’ll need to register and print a voucher off first.
For instance, at Gordon Ramsay restaurants, kids under 12 can dine free from the children’s menus whenever they eat out with you. That’s all day, every day.
At Beefeater restaurants, two kids under 16 eat free across their cooked and continental breakfast when one cooked adult breakfast is purchased.