Parks and gardens: You won’t go far wrong with East Park. It’s the city’s largest green space, with a boating lake, children's playground, wet play area and a splash boat ride.
Aquariums and zoos: The Deep, Hull’s gargantuan aquarium, strikes the right balance between entertainment and education. It has a 10m deep whopper of a tank (with glass lift), an array of marine life, a jellyfish lab, numerous interactive stations and various behind-the-scenes areas. The city doesn’t have a zoo per se, but the Animal Education Centre, home to some 200 animals, including some very vocal squirrel monkeys, is the next best thing.
Interactive museums: Let’s face it; kids aren’t always the most cooperative of museum companions, but Hull’s immersive Streetlife Museum – two centuries of carts, carriages, cycles, cars, trains, trams and an arcade with vintage games (a bit of a thematic head-scratcher but good fun) – and near neighbour the Hull and East Riding Museum of Archaeology – 235 million years of regional history – have enough bells and whistles – audio tracks, reconstructions and life-size dioramas – to win over even reluctant museumgoers. If all else fails, there’s always Dinostar, with taglines like ‘See dinosaur skulls!’ and ‘Touch dinosaur bones!’ and ‘Hear dinosaurs roar!’ you shouldn’t even have to use hard-sell tactics.
Ice rink: Budding Olympian or two left feet? You’ll find out at the Hull Ice Arena. It's suitable for all ages, with pre-school and junior disco skate sessions.