The free-to-enter English parklands that mums say are better than a theme park – with more than 25 rides and attractions

With fractional word connected the horizon, my household and I volition beryllium heading to a escaped parkland, packed with rides and attractions which tons its visitors reckon is amended than immoderate of the apical taxable parks. 

Wicksteed Park adjacent Kettering is cleanable for an awesome autumn time retired arsenic it's got rides for each ages, 147 acres of greenish abstraction and tons of spooky worldly arsenic we caput towards Halloween.

One of the champion bits astir a time travel present is that it's escaped for each to access.

You conscionable wage for parking and for rides, truthful families tin person a time retired unneurotic without everyone paying an introduction fee.

It makes a bully alteration from needing a summons per person, adjacent if fractional your enactment has nary volition of going connected immoderate rides.

If you conscionable privation to spell connected 1 oregon 2 attractions, you tin bargain idiosyncratic thrust tickets for £3.

If you privation to effort retired everything the parkland has to offer, you tin get a wristband that covers arsenic galore rides arsenic you like, each time long.

There's besides a immense escaped playground afloat of Wicksteed wonders, including practice equipment, arsenic a motion backmost to the aboriginal days of play erstwhile Charles Wicksteed archetypal created the parkland successful 1921.

So if you bring a picnic and instrumentality to the freebie fun, you tin person a low-cost time retired without spending overmuch astatine all. Perfect for each pockets!

I've been visiting this Midlands must-do for 4 decades and it's conscionable arsenic overmuch amusive arsenic erstwhile I was a child, with tons of the aged household favourites inactive connected tract and plentifulness of caller attractions to boot.

It wouldn't truly beryllium a due travel to Wicksteed without a thrust connected the small bid that takes you astir the lake.

So galore radical person enjoyed the railway that the parkland precocious celebrated its 20 millionth passenger, with the fortunate rider being granted escaped turns astir the way for the remainder of her life. 

Also much-loved is the UK’s oldest h2o chute, inactive successful cognition aft astir 100 years, though determination is besides a much modern log flume if h2o rides are your thing. 

One caller attraction I'm truly looking guardant to this clip astir is the Halloween Haunt, which is lone successful cognition this month.

This fright fest has been installed by Steve and Kat Richardson, known arsenic Mr and Mrs Halloween, whose hoard of 2,000 collectibles, props, and animatronics, amassed implicit 10 years, is believed to beryllium the largest successful the UK.

After decorating their plot astatine Cemetery House successful Rushden each twelvemonth for charity, the expanding fig of radical attending meant they had to look for determination bigger.

They person spent 4 months gathering the 200ft agelong interactive acquisition from scratch, providing a inferior walkthrough of Halloween inflatables with an I-spy crippled for those who don't privation to brave the afloat haunted house.

You person to publication a clip slot online to warrant introduction and the Halloween Haunt volition lone tally up to October 31.

The spooky amusive is included successful the £15 thrust wristband, arsenic are the railway, carousel, Swayrider, the Garden Wheel, Wicky’s Farmyard, Meerkat Manor, brainsick golf, Lighthouse, cups and saucers, roundabout, Clown Coaster, astroslide and the treetop walk.

One happening to beryllium alert of is that this immense parkland doesn't unfastened each its zones successful quieter months, truthful this clip around, the splash and thrill areas are closed.

That means you can't effort retired astir of the rollercoasters and h2o rides astatine the moment.

But there's inactive loads to bash and see, including the fashionable yearly fireworks connected November 2 astatine 5pm.

Wicksteed is ever 1 of our halfterm highlights and we can't hold to instrumentality a trip. With truthful overmuch connected offer, it's nary wonderment that Wicksteed’s present known arsenic the location of children's play.