There are child-friendly Easter egg trails at the main family attractions all over the country. Here at BFB we recommend you pick one where your child can gobble up all that excess chocolate-powered energy. Here’s our pick of the Easter eggs trails and events on offer around the country this weekend.

Egg Rolling

As a mum of two busy boys I love the idea of the egg rolling competition, as long as it’s not one of them tumbling out of control down Devil’s Dyke! To enter you need to bring your own hand-decorated, hard-boiled egg. The egg that rolls the furthest down the Dyke valley wins. There are prizes too for the best decorated egg.
Easter Egg rolling Competition at Devil’s Dyke, West Sussex 5 April, 10.45-12pm

Historic Hunting
For historic hunting outings where you can combine stately glamour, a fine tea and plenty of distractions for the kids, The National Trust has a number of beautiful places to search for eggs.
The beautiful Attingham Park in Shropshire 2-5 April 10am – 4pm has Cadbury Easter egg trails, egg trails over the weekend. Hunt for clues and chocolate around the estate and other fun activites such as face-painting and a huge colouring wall.  Normal admission charges plus £2.50 event charge.

April Fool’s Day

This is not strictly an Easter event but a goodie for the kids. Corfe Castle in Dorset is celebrating the day of jest and jokes. There will be stilt walking and jugglers in the morning and a fools’ school of juggling and circus skills in the afternoon all set in the beautiful and majestic runis of the castle. Normal admission charges apply. April Fool’s jester day 1 April 11.30am – 3.30pm. For more information please call 01929 481294.

Egg Hunting
Join Peter Rabbit and his friends on 31 March for the biggest Easter Egg Hunt in the North.  Over 100 handmade ceramic eggs have been hidden across Cumbria. Find an egg and you win tickets to visit the World of Beatrix Potter. Download a map on the day and get hunting.

Treehouse Towers opens
In London over Easter? Kew Gardens  unveils their new outdoor play area for kids aged 3-11: Treehouse Towers features giant swings, zip wires, scramble nets and slides. A free Easter egg hunt takes place on 4 April, 9.30am to 12.30pm. If it’s raining and you’re in need of a welcome sit-down activity, go see the free puppet show, The Life of A Tree, every day in Climbers & Creepers, their indoor play area for kids (2 -5 April, 9 -12 April and 15 -18 April.) For crafty kids there are free drop-in arts and crafts workshops  and face-painting happening over the Easter weekend and school holidays.

Get lost in Chatsworth
There are Easter events running all weekend and during the school holidays at Chatsworth House in Derbyshire. But the real treasure in the Chatsworth’s 450 year old garden is the maze. Get lost and run off steam in the famous labyrinth. As well as the fun of the maze, there’s plenty more on offer for little ones including a small farm with petting sessions, an adventure playground and a lovely Farmyard cafe for a relaxing tea after all the excitement.

(Images by Stuart Cox and David Levenson, The National Trust)

Are you planning days out this Easter? Let us know your best and worst family days out in the comments below. We would love to hear from you.

The Mercy crochet butterfly dress

The summer’s looking good already as BFB has a sneak preview of Stella McCartney’s new collection for Gap Kids
After the runaway success of last Autumn’s range for Gap Kids, which nearly sold out in the first day, Stella returns with her second collection. Summer clothes are always a joy to buy for kids and Stella’s new designs don’t disappoint. Stella’s created an eclectic mix of playful essentials. Bright colours, soft cotton, crochet and denim set the mood for this unique summer collection.

The Bea navy ruffle blouse

Highlights include gingham check jackets for boys and crochet dresses for girls, flares, denim cowboy shirts and smocked blouses. These are timeless clothes that can be worn, enjoyed and handed down.

Hooded cover-up

“For this second collection I wanted to design pieces that ensure your child looks like an individual with their own style statement, a mixture of simple minimal styles and more detailed pieces to create a summer wardrobe for all your kids’ needs,” Stella explained.

Mark your diaries for next Monday 29 March at 9am when the new collection hits the stores.

Beckett jacket and slim jeans

Lugging child car seat onto a plane can be nobody’s idea of fun, especially a stage 2 monster, but a recent survey by Mumsnet and car rental company, Holiday Autos, found that many of us resort to doing just that rather than take a gamble on a seat being provided by a car hire company. Not only that, but we are often incurring airline excess baggage fees as a result.

Thankfully, Holiday Autos is taking action with a commitment that, provided a seat is pre-booked at least 7 days in advance, it will be delivered, along with fitting instructions in English, or the company will supply funds to purchase a brand new one.

I spoke to the car rental company’s Managing Director, Stuart Nassos, earlier this week and he expressed a further commitment to support families with young children by encouraging airlines not to charge to carry car seats. He indicated that these would be the first steps in a wider campaign.

It will be interesting to see if having a major player in the UK travel industry championing the needs of families with young children will encourage the wider travel industry to adopt a more positive stance too.

Right, I am off to book a couple of weeks car hire in France and I will definitely be checking Holiday Autos out first!

Sian
BFB Founder

There’s no getting away from it, travelling with tots is a challenge but, having travelled so much with Erin (now 4) in tow, I’ve found some strategies that can help make it a pleasurable experience. Here are my top tips:

1. Get an Airmiles Credit Card - My American Express British Airways has been a revelation. I whack everything I possibly can on to it, as well as exchanging my Tesco Clubcard points for BA Miles at 600 per £2.50, and use accumulated miles to upgrade and get free companion flights once a year. As a result, Erin recently snoozed almost all the way through a recent 7.5 hour flight to Dubai on a flat bed first class!

2. Check-in Online – If your airline allows it, DO check in online. It ensures the family get seated together, minimises queuing at the airport and takes the angst out of getting there super early.

3. Book Meet & Greet Airport Parking – Sites such as Holiday Extras and Go Simply often offer this for less than £20 per week more than standard parking. It removes all the stress that can go with the start of a holiday, such as searching for the car park, finding a space, negotiating the often seat-less car park-airport courtesy buses with pushchair, baby, suitcase, handbag etc as well as saving time. Just turn up at departures, hand your keys over and off you go!

4. Pre-Book Lounge Passes – Rather than hanging around the airport shops, investing in lounge passes ensures you have an oasis of calm with a guaranteed place to sit, complimentary drinks, snacks and, in most cases, TVs to help keep everyone happy until departure time. Invaluable when flights are delayed. Virgin have a great new family lounge ‘Vroom’ at Gatwick but it’s hugely popular, so must be booked long in advance, and can only be used if flying Virgin. For other lounges see Holiday Extras.

5. Got a Toddler? Get a Trunki – Erin will not be parted from hers. It’s been a life saver when, thanks to her Mum’s terrible concept of time and inability to ignore airport shopping opportunities, we’ve been racing to departure gates which can be 25 minutes walk for adults, let alone those with little legs. Investing in a Trunki is major insurance against toddler tantrums! From £29.99 – Save 10% by quoting FMBFB at www.funkymoose.com
6. Got a Baby? Get a Hip Seat – If your little one is too big for a hands-free sling and too small for a Trunki, get a Hipseat. This is like a bum bag with a built in seat which takes the strain when carrying little ones for long periods. From £34.99 – again BFB users save 10% at www.funkymoose.com

7. Last to board = Less Bored! – Some airlines allow families with young children to board the plane first, but I advise boarding last. Your little ones will have far less time forced to sit still whilst waiting for take off, and you avoid the horror of a queue of fellow passengers gagging to get to their seats whilst you try to get your kids settled, with essential kit to hand and other hand luggage stowed away.

8. Hand Luggage Checklist – Along with the usual, change of clothes, wipes, nappies, nappy sacks, bottles, formula/drinks (best bought after security for less hassle over liquid limits), sachet or two of infant paracetamol, disposable/folding change mat, favourite cuddly toy or blanket, think about adding a surprise new toy or book to distract your child with when all else fails. Check out our earlier blog on iPhone apps for kids or give in to the evils of the Nintendo DS or portable DVD player. I am guilty on both counts and, after about 10 flights a year with my toddler, still relatively sane largely as a result!

9. Take a Pashmina – They may no longer be the height of fashion but pashminas are invaluable for travelling. They can used as blankets, apronts, sheilds against the effects of travel sickness and impromotu shade against sun on arrival.

10. What’s Your Number 10? - I have run out of tips at 9. Perhaps lovely BFB readers can suggest a number 10? Please add your tips in the comments below.

Guest blogger Michelle Di Leo, writer of the fab kid-friendly restaurant blog Baby Dines Out  shares her favourite places to eat out (or just have coffee) with a baby or  toddler…

I remember the stress of going out in the first few weeks and months after the birth of Jack. There was the good, the bad and the plain ugly. I did not want to settle for the places which just cater for families, which so often means terrible food, deafening noise levels and zero style.
The more I talked to my girlfriends with babies, I realised how great it would be to have a guide to stylish places to eat and shop with a baby that would save us from having to endure the bad on the way to the good: that was the genesis of Baby Dines Out and a new blog was born.

These are my 10 favourite places to eat out with babies or toddlers:

1. John Lewis, Oxford Street: John Lewis have led the way in providing parent friendly facilities and their flagship store makes a fantastic base from which to indulge in a bit of post-baby retail therapy. For new mums, just knowing you can pop in to change or feed your baby, grab a coffee or a bite to eat, can help you gain confidence in getting out and about.
2. Bluewater, Greenhithe, Kent: taking its cue from John Lewis and the better American-style shopping malls, you’re never more than a minute from baby changing and feeding areas wherever you are in Bluewater. A good range of eateries and cafes from Carluccios to Starbucks. Go mid-week when it is quiet!
3. 5th Floor, Waterstones Piccadilly: Great children’s book section, parents room, chic cafe all under one roof? Great for a scheduled visit or an emergency stop-off if you’re near by and need to entertain, feed or water yourself or a tot. The cake is particularly popular with my three year old!

4. Canteen, Royal Festival Hall (also in Spitalfields and Canary Wharf): Relaxed atmosphere, speedy service, great quality, traditional British food which goes down with most toddlers. Mixed crowd of working lunchers as well as families means that high chairs are not a sign of low quality.
5. Brompton Quarter Brasserie, Brompton Road: A stone’s throw from the fantastic museums in South Kensington, open from early till late, baby-friendly and lovely food. The mixed platters are a great way to encourage toddlers to try things without the commitment and expense of a whole dish at which they inevitably turn up their noses.
6. 5th Floor Restaurant, Harvey Nichols, Knightsbridge: If you are thinking your days of passing a couple of hours browsing the designer delights of Harvey Nics are over, think again. The 5th Floor restaurant is surprisingly baby-friendly. They will happily warm milk and baby food and there is a changing table in the adjacent ladies loo. The cafe in the main area isn’t bad either.
7. The Trafalgar Hilton Hotel, Trafalgar Square: If you find yourself anywhere near Trafalgar Square with baby who needs feeding or changing this place is a secret haven. Discreet and quiet during the day time, you can sit down in peace and quiet, have a coffee, feed your baby then carry on. Perfect for maintaining your sanity in the madness of central London.
8. Claridges, Brook Street: This is one of my absolute favourite places for lunch with our three year old. Feels glamourous and luxurious because it is. The helpful staff are not at all snobbish if you turn up with a toddler or baby and without a booking. The food is yummy and beautifully presented (no plastic cups here). There is a baby changing table in the disabled loo, but if you’ve got a toddler the ladies in the Ladies will coo over them.

9. Locanda Locatelli, Seymour Street: Italians simply cannot help making a fuss of babies and children, so if you’re a parent and a foodie looking for somewhere a bit special for lunch this is the place. The toilets are actually in the hotel next door – ask for the disabled loo if you need somewhere to change the baby.
10. Dean Street Townhouse, Dean Street: this new restaurant by the owner of Soho House is flavour of the month and great for spotting media celebs. They are also great with little ones and not the least bit snooty, despite their lofty clientele. They don’t have a changing table but the disabled loo is enormous and completely spotless so don’t let that put you off as this is a lovely place for a thoroughly enjoyable Sunday lunch at a very reasonable price.

Baby Dines Out is written by Michelle Di Leo, mum to three year old Jack, wife to Dan. She lives in Blackheath, South East London and works in communications. She refuses to let parenthood stop her enjoying great food, fashion and shopping. Sometimes.