day trips from london for kids

I hear good things about Kew Gardens. Legoland (Windsor) is great at that age too.

London Zoo, especially if you are from somewhere that doesn't have a zoo.

To compliment your Matilda experience you could take a 20 minute train ride (according to their website) to visit the Roald Dahl Museum. https://www.roalddahl.com/museum

It’s in the town where Dahl lived and would give your children a closer look at this great author’s environment and life. The website says it’s designed for 6-12 year olds.

What about taking the train to Moreton-in-Marsh,mthen take taxi to Bourton-on-the-Wate. In Bourton you could go see the Model Village, which is a one-ninth scale replica of the village, it’s amazing and children love seeing it. It’s behind the Old New Inn. You can google it and find out a lot more information about it. They could also take off their shoes and socks and walk around in the River Windrush which runs through the river, it’s only a few inches deep. I see children playing in it every time I’m there. Then the children could see what an English village is like., also get a train ride,

these are all fantastic, and interesting, recommendations!

thank you. :-)

Hampton Court is great for kids. The kitchens are fascinating. If you go during peak time they have people in costume with "acts" going on periodically. They will also have demonstrations going on in the kitchens during peak times. The gardens are very nice and there is a maze that my 7 y/o loved.

Maybe take the boat on the Thames to Greenwich. Walk up the hill to the Royal Observatory. Lovely area plus a fabulous interactive Naval Museum. You can also walk from Greenwich UNDER the Thames to make a connection back into London. My grandkids loved this fun excursion. And so did their grandparents......

How about a theme park? Paultons Park in Romsey is an ideal park for children your age (it's still my favourite!) however, unless you're driving it would require a train to Southampton Central and then a short bus ride to the park. https://paultonspark.co.uk

Then there's Chessington, a theme park and zoo and closer to London, from their website: "Chessington is within 35 minutes of central London and regular South Western Railway services run from Waterloo, Clapham Junction and Wimbledon. Take the train to Chessington South Station. The park is approximately 10 minutes walk from the station. Chessington South station is located within Zone 6 of the London Travel zones and accepts Oyster cards."
It's not as geared towards younger children as Paultons Park but still suitable for 6 year olds. https://www.chessington.com

Nobody has yet mentioned the Warner Brothers Harry Potter Studios tour in Leavesdon. Take the train from Euston station to Watford Junction, then the shuttle bus to the studios. We spent a wonderful day there, amongst hundreds of kids there on school outings.

Bekonscot Model Village and Railway at Beaconsfield north of London. Britain’s oldest model/miniature village. Used to love going there as a kid and riding on the train!

Easily and quickly reached by train from Marylebone station in London or the M40 Motorway if driving.

I am so happy you posted this as I came here with the same question! I will be visiting London in about 2 weeks with my 2 children and have been researching day trips. We have the Harry Potter tour in Leavesden on the books and I’ve been looking into the boat to Greenwich. I can’t decide if Stonehenge is worth it or if there is a better option for our kids. I am looking forward to reading more suggestions!

My kids both really enjoyed Hampton Court Palace last summer.