Top 10 Family Attractions in the United Kingdom

Longleat has something for everyone. There's one of the best safari parks in the world, a huge maze to get lost in, a boat ride on a lake full of seals, a train ride, a child-sized castle cum adventure playground and - almost forgot - a fabulous stately home, garden and landscaped park for the grown-ups. Regularly voted the UK Family Attraction of the Year by all kinds of guides, this is one place that won't disappoint.

Highlight: You may not be too impressed when the monkeys smile at you and then whizz all over the windshield of your car but, take it from me, your kids will love it.

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Legoland has 150 rides, all kinds of shows, water slides, boat trips and more. And everywhere you look, you'll find amazing creations made of Legos. In Miniland, at the center of the park, 35 million pieces of Lego have been used to create scenes from London, Paris, Amsterdam and elsewhere in Europe. The park is aimed at children between 2 and 12 years old and some of the rides have height restrictions for the younger ones.

Highlight: In the Roboland workshop children learn about computer control and build their own robot from Legos.

The Vikings played a major role in the development of York - including giving the city it's name. Jorvik, on the site where archaeologists first uncovered the remains of a 1,000 year old Viking city, brings this past to life. We all tend to think of the Vikings we've seen in the movies, raiding marauding and pillagings. Jorvik introduces families to the daily lives the Vikings who settled York - their work, their religion, their family life.

Highlight: Walk the reconstructed streets of the Viking city of York and come face to face with a Viking.

If you've ever watched a program about archaeology on television and wished you could have a go yourself then Dig is for you. At Dig, visitors take part in an excavation and discover real objects from ancient civilisations. Through exhibitions and participation, you'll understand how archaeologists use their finds to recreate the past. Kids of all ages love grabbing a trowel and getting dirty as they dig through 2,000 years of the history of York.

Highlight: Meet real archaeologists, handle artifacts from York and see the most recent discoveries.

The world's only man-managed nesting colony of mute swans. For more than 600 years, nearly a thousand mute swans have nested at this Dorset site, completely tolerant of, if not indifferent to close up humans. Watch the swans build their nests and tend to their eggs. Little people might even get to see the cygnets hatching.

Highlight: In May and June, hundreds of cygnets hatch and wander around the paths of the nesting site.

Together with the nearby Roman Army Museum, Vindolanda recreates the lives of the Roman legions who lived and worked in the North of England. Based on excavations of a settlement near Hadrian's Wall, the site includes a full-scale reconstruction of a section of the defensive wall in stone and timber, as well as reconstructions of a shop, temple, house and croft. The archaeology at Vindolanda is ongoing and there are recent finds of Roman boots, shoes, armour, jewellery and coins in the museum.

Highlight: Photographs of rare ink on wood letters written nearly two thousand years ago.

Ten museums over 80 acres illustrate the industrial revolution beside Thomas Telford's cast iron bridge, the world's first. The Ironbridge Gorge, known as the Birthplace of Industry, is a UNESCO World Heritage site. Visitors can learn about the first factory made products and the tools and machines that made them. There's a Coalport China Museum, a tile museum, a pipe makers workshop, a reconstructed Victorian town and more.

Highlight: Enginuity is a new, interactive design and technology center where kids can learn how things work and design their own bright ideas.
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This is the sort of place that is easier to enjoy than to describe. Contained in a series of transparent geodesic domes that squat on the Corwall landscape like sci-fi mushrooms, the Eden Project describes itself as a place that "is all about man's relationship with and dependence upon plants". It's a kind of green theme park where all kinds of issues and questions are explored. Although not specifically aimed at children, there are plenty of child-centered activities including trails, restaurants with healthy children's menus and play areas.

Highlight: Playstructures naturally "grown" from willow and bamboo.