Save with Family English Heritage Membership When Traveling in United Kingdom

Whatever region of England your family travels include, you’re almost sure to visit at least one of these landmark sites: Stonehenge, Dover Castle, the ruins of King Arthur’s Tintagel Castle, Roman forts along Hadrian’s Wall an,d beyond. But even with special family rates, visiting these can quickly add up to hundreds of dollars.

At the current exchange rate, the family ticket to Stonehenge is $83; Dover Castle (worth visiting for a day’s worth of experiences for families) is $49.50. Just one of the forts along Hadrian’s Wall is more than $30 for a family.

These and other major attractions are well worth visiting, all filled with activities and experiences bringing them and their history alive for kids (and adults, too). But the cost does mount up in a week or two.

Happily, for tourists, all these and dozens more popular castles and Roman and prehistoric sites, and famous gardens are members of English Heritage. While you can join for an entire year’s membership to enter all these attractions free, a special pass just for overseas visitors is an even better bargain.

A family pass, valid for two adults and up to four other family members living at the same address and under 18 years of age costs $154 for nine days or $169 for 16 days.  Visit three of the most popular sites and you’ve more than paid for the pass. And it’s valid at more than 100 attractions, so as you travel, you’ll pass other places you can visit, including smaller attractions that can open up new windows into history and provide new activities for children.

Nearly every site has either special kids’ activities or interactive exhibits. At Kenilworth Castle, for example, kids can try on period clothes and climb to the apartments where Queen Elizabeth I stayed while visiting the castle. They can touch the real trebuchet balls that were hurled at Kenilworth when the castle was under siege 800 years ago.

At Dover Castle, they can learn about sieges and try mounting one of their own in the Siege Play Area. They can climb the Medieval Great Tower to discover the pomp and pageantry of King Henry II’s court. At Hastings are interactive exhibits on armor and weapons used when England was invaded by William the Conqueror.

Most attractions also have tea rooms, always popular stops for the cream scones.