the easter holidays mean days off work and a chance to spend precious time with the family but it can be hard to think of enough things to do to keep the little ones active this roundup of events from across the country will provide fun everyone and make sure the kids are worn out in time for bed looking to entertain the kids? try these fun family days out this easter weekend  scotland  keep your little ones entertained for hours with probably the world's largest easter egg hunt in the maze at traquair castle scotland's oldest inhabited castle also hosts  drumming and singing, egg decorating, storytelling and an easter bonnet parade £23 (family); apr 5; traquair house, innerleithen, peeblesshire; 01896 830323; traquaircouk  little monkeys can perfect their mischief making skills with an easter weekend of merriment, mirth and tomfoolery at stirling castle learn how to play the fool at the royal court, enjoy medieval dancing and take part in the games in the gardens free with entry to the castle (from £870); april 3 and 4; stirling castle; stirling castle, castle esplanade, stirling, fk8 1ej; 01786 450 000; stirlingcastlegovuk  traquair is scotland's oldest inhabited castle and has a host of events planned for the weekend  learn how to be a court jester at stirling castle with a special workshop for kids  wales  what better way to celebrate the spring than by helping bring new life to the world? at carreg cennen castle children can help bottle feed any lambs or keep a beady eye to see if they can spot any of the signs of a ewe in labour free with admission (adults £4); carreg cennen castle,llandeilo,carmarthenshire,wales, sa19 6ua; 01558 822291; wwwcarregcennencastlecom  experience a victorian easter at penryhn castle, a spectacular 19th century fantasy castle play games, hunt cadbury’s easter eggs, enjoy crafts, games and explore the chocolate dung tower free with admission (adults £1070); penryhn castle, bangor, gwynedd, ll57 4hn; 01248 353084; nationaltrustorguk  celebrate spring by feeding young lambs like this one at carreg cennen castle  the splendid fantasy medieval castle at penryhn makes for the perfect family day out  north east  children can discover their inner ray mears at  hadrian's wall this easter bushcraft enthusiasts will learn how to light an open fire and build an outdoor shelter, take part in scavenger hunts and leaf printing and negotiate their way along a trail blindfolded children £10; april 7, houseteads roman fort, haydon bridge, hexham,  ne47 6nn, 0844 249 1895; nationaltrustorguk  strange things are afoot among the gardens of belsay hall in alice’s magic mirror garden have you found alice, the cheshire cat and company hiding in the mirror maze, or is it just their reflections? £1 with admission (£3750 family); apr  19; belsay hall, belsay, nr morpeth, northumberland; 01661 881636; english heritageorguk  housestead roman fort on hadrian's wall offers children a chance to copy ray mears  look for alice in wonderland in the grounds of belsay hall  north west  never mind hunting for easter eggs, why not try dancing with them put on a blindfold and dance with the people of blists hill in shropshire, but mind you don't step on the eggs covering the street if you want to avoid the yolk, try shadow lamp making and the great easter bunny hunt from £1150 (child), £1695 (adult); mar 28 apr 12; blists hill, legges way, telford, shropshire; 01952 433424; ironbridgeorguk  the old sweet shop in blists hill victorian town museum in shropshire, which is hosting an easter egg hunt  after a quick crash course in off road rules, wannabe bradley wigginses are given a bike and let loose among the rolling, neo classical splendour of tatton park on tuesday for gentler fun, go on a magical journey with the lindt gold bunny through the fairytale world of the brothers grimm £10 for cycling, lindt tour free with admission (£2750 family); apr 3 7; tatton park, knutsford; cheshire, 01625 374428; tattonparkorguk  explore the beautiful gardens and lawns of tatton park in the lindt gold bunny's magical journey  yorkshire and the humber  entertain the family this easter with the traditional fairground, farm and children's activities at castle howard try your luck at 'hook a duck' and test your aim on the coconut shy, before having a go on the traditional fairground rides, meet  creepy crawlies and visit the mini animal farm free with admission (£2160 family); apr 4 6; castle howard, york yo60 7da, 01653 648333, castlehowardcouk  castle howard in north yorkshire will be transformed into an easter fair  explore the grounds of the stunning fountains abbey while searching for the tiny golden egg children can also  win chocolate prizes on a cadbury easter egg trail, create wonderful window art or put their best foot forward in the egg and spoon race free with admission (£2750 for a family); apr 3 6; fountains, ripon, north yorkshire, hg4 3dy; 01765 608888; nationaltrustorguk  search for tiny golden eggs in the spectacular national trust property fountains abbey  midlands  what better way to celebrate easter than in the home of chocolate, cadbury world visitors can enjoy live shows from resident magicians, ventriloquists and other entertainers as well as taking part in easter egg hunts and easter bonnet competitions free with admission (£4728 family); apr 3 6; cadbury world, linden rd, bournville, birmingham b30 2lu; 0844 880 7667; cadburyworldcouk  the entrance to cadbury world, where families can enjoy the ultimate chocolate experience  budding actors can have a go at treading the boards with the royal shakespeare theatre workshops include blood, guts and gore, speaking shakespeare and stage fighting you can also paint eggs to look like shakespeare characters and and watch the tudors celebrate easter free/from £250; april 3  12; various venues; rsc, waterside, stratford upon avon, warwickshire, 0844 800 1114; rscorguk  combine your shakespearian tour with a visit to anne hathaway's cottage in stratford upon avon, where the bard courted his future bride  south west  spend easter sunday at highclere castle, the iconic filming location for downton abbey kids can enjoy a treasure hunt around the castle’s  groundsother family friendly attractions include an easter bonnet parade, bouncy castles, zip wire rides and a petting farm £500; april 5; highclere castle, newbury rg20 9rn; 01635 253210; highclerecastlecouk  highclere castle, famous as the setting for downton abbey, has its own easter events planned  crack the clues at tintagel castle's treasure hunt to win a chocolate reward a courtly character from the past with stories of times gone by will help you on your quest free with admission (from £380); april 3 6;  tintagel, cornwall, pl34 0he; 01840 770328; english heritagecouk  crack the clues at tintagel in cornwall, the rugged ruins set right on a cliff edge overlooking the sea  east of england  if you’re looking for a knight in shining armour this easter, then march over to hedingham castle for its medieval siege and fair and go nearly a thousand years back in time experience the bustle of the camp and see displays of archery, birds of prey and a fearsome trebuchet in action adult £14; apr 3 6; castle hedingham, halstead, essex, co9 3dj; 01787 460261; hedinghamcastlecouk  knights jousting at hedingham castle  imagine an easter without chocolate or the easter bunny? mrs cromwell will guide you round her home and give you a taste of how easter was under her husband oliver cromwell then learn about easter traditions by decorating eggs and making an easter basket  adult £6, child 350; apr 4; oliver cromwell's house, st mary's st, ely, cambridgeshire cb7 4hf; 01353 662062; visitelyorguk  enjoy an easter guided tour of oliver cromwell's house in ely  london and the south east  there will be fun for all the family at a birthday party to mark 500 years  since thomas wolsey built hampton court palace guests will be treated to live period music, hog roasts from the tudor kitchens, a champagne bar and a son et lumiére show culminating in a spectacular firework display family £50; apr 3 5, 630pm; hampton court palace, surrey; 0844 482 7777; hrporguk/hamptoncourtpalace  spring at hampton court palace is always wonderful and moreso this weekend as henry viii's former home celebrates its 500th anniversary  celebrating the transformation of shaun the sheep from television favourite to film star, kew gardens has bagfuls of woolly activities throughout easter, including welly wanging, a vegetable orchestra, easter egg hunt and real sheep free with entry to gardens (from £14); mar 28–apr 12; royal botanic gardens, kew, richmond; 020 8332 5655; keworg  kew gardenson southwest london will play host to shaun the sheep this weekend  northern ireland  pirates will wend their way through bangor in the annul easter parade, which is renowned throughout the province for its colourful, enthusiastic display of dancers, street entertainers, local school and dance groups, and of course the magnificent floats free; april 4; 3pm start; bangor town centre; county down; northdowntourismcom  bangor in county down will be full of people dressed like pirates of the caribbean characters  hop aboard the easter eggspress on easter monday and tuesday for an adventure filled steam train journey from belfast to whitehead with chocolate eggs for children two train journeys each day departing belfast central station £12; april 6 7; belfast central station, east bridge street, belfast, bt7 2ds; discovernorthernirelandcom  hop aboard the easter eggspress steam train in belfast 
traquair wales hadrian's the royal shakespeare theatre ray mears hedingham castle hampton court 500th
take part in probably the world's largest easter egg hunts in the maze at traquair castle  bottle feed lambs in wales  channel your inner ray mears at hadrian's wall  watch fireworks to celebrate the 500th birthday of hampton court  watch medieval jousting at hedingham castle  tread the boards with the royal shakespeare theatre 