Budget-friendly school holiday fun
The summer holidays are fast approaching. Check out our ideas that are big on fun and light on your bank balance.
A long summer is stretching ahead for children (and parents!). With the expense of Christmas looming, parents have the added cost of keeping kids entertained over summer which can put some strain on your budget.
If you’re trying to stick to a budget, saving for something or looking for some savvy savings ideas, there are a number of low cost ideas for maximum fun at minimum expense in Sydney and the Central Coast that don’t cost a fortune.
Staycation fun
Keep kids busy and laughing even when you’re at home.
Go camping
No need to go bush to experience the fun of camping! Let the kids pitch a tent in the backyard or make an indoor campsite. Move furniture aside, and gather up sheets, blankets and pillows to build a cozy fort.
Have a holiday bake-off
Bring out your child’s inner chef! Homemade pizzas, cakes, biscuits and even no-bake slices are easy options to get kids baking.
Grow a veggie garden
Kids love to watch things grow, and planting a veggie garden can also encourage healthy eating habits. You don’t need much space. A few pots or a planter box on an apartment balcony is enough to grow fail-safes like silverbeet, lettuce, cherry tomatoes, and strawberries. These can be purchased as young plants or you can cultivate your own.
Create a home movie or play
This summer, make holiday dramas a matinee performance. Encourage the kids to write, direct and perform in a play of their own. Older kids with smartphones can have a go at filming and editing their own movies.
Make a model
Kids love to work with their hands, and modelling clay is cheap and easy to make. In a large saucepan combine 1 cup salt, 2 cups flour, 4 tablespoons cream of tartar (you’ll find it in the baking aisle of the supermarket), 4 tablespoons vegetable oil, and 2 cups water. Stir over a low heat until clay thickens, and allow to cool. Divide this recipe into smaller quantities and add a few drops of food colouring to each batch for rainbow clay.
Getting out and about
Give the kids an exciting day out – at almost no cost!
Visit a gallery or museum
Plenty of museums and galleries offer free entry. Here are a few you may not have heard of:
+ Museum of Contemporary Art Australia located in Circular Quay, and a great place to let the kids experience modern art, with activities for children.
+ Chau Chak Wing Museum, University of Sydney – the kids will love the LEGO® Tutankhamun exhibition marking the 100-year anniversary of the discovery of Tutankhamun's tomb (open until late January 2023).
+ The Rocks Discovery Museum – located in The Rocks, and tells the story of early Sydney.
Pack a picnic
Pack a picnic hamper, a soccer ball and maybe the cricket kit, and head off for a day outdoors. Some of the best picnic spots with kids playgrounds include Bicentennial Park, Homebush; Centennial Park, Sydney, and Broadwater Park and Bike Track, Kincumber.
Make a splash with aquatic fun
Try these budget-friendly spots to let the kids cool down and burn off some energy:
+ Vera's Water Garden, Memorial Park The Entrance – small in size, big on fun, especially for preschoolers. Best of all it’s free!
+ Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre – whirlpools, water slides, and a splashers playground all for a family pass of $31.
+ Gunyama Park Aquatic Centre Zetland. Sydney’s newest public pool features a ‘beach’ pool, slides, fountains and even a mega-drencher in the kids' water play area. Family entry $22.
+ Dawson-Damer Park, Oran Park, is the Macarthur region's largest water play space. It has a number of water and non-water activities, including water slides, water spinners, a ninja warrior course, swings, trampolines, basketball facilities, picnic areas and much more.
Head off for a bushwalk – city or the mountains
There’s no need to travel far to experience a bushwalk that provides plenty of outdoor adventure. Try these beautiful spots to bring your kids back to nature:
+ Lake Parramatta Reserve Circuit Walk
+ Lane Cove Riverside Circuit Walk
+ Narrabeen Lagoon Trail
+ Mooney Mooney nature walk – Brisbane Water National Park, includes the fun Phil Houghton suspension bridge spanning Piles Creek.
For those keen to venture up to the Blue Mountains, there’s plenty of bushwalks suited to younger walkers and a number even include swimming holes to cool off at. Click here to find out more.
Bikes, skateboards and scooters
Wylde in Western Sydney Parklands is the largest combined mountain biking and BMX hub in Australia, featuring more than 15km of purpose-built mountain bike trails, a BMX racetrack and the largest pump track in the Southern Hemisphere. Best of all, it’s free.
Also at Oran Park, the Julia Reserve Youth Precinct is Oran Park's teen central. It has the largest skate park in South West Sydney catering to beginners right up to elite skaters. It also comes with a basketball court, table tennis tables, kick about space and state of the art Youth and Recreation Building.
Saturday night fireworks
Head into Darling Harbour and let the kids stay up late to see the free fireworks every Saturday night in the lead up to Christmas. Cost: Free.
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