Family days out at Dyffryn Gardens

Helios at Dyffryn Gardens during May half term 2025

Experience Luke Jerram’s out-of-this-world new sculpture Helios on 23-26 May and 29 May-1 June. With rippling lights, solar imagery and sounds of the sun recorded by NASA, this is an exciting opportunity to see this audio-visual wonder on display outdoors, on the South Lawn of the gardens. Alongside Helios there'll be lots of complimentary events - details are still being confirmed but here's an idea of what families can expect when visiting Helios this May:

•  Solar-themed crafts for kids
• A dressing up station, with space-themed costumes for both humans and dogs!
• Creative kits so that you can make your own Helios-inspired work of art
• A sun trail around the gardens
• A natural world exhibition in the Morning Room
• Sunbeam-shaped mini meadows on the South Lawns
• The accompanying scale Earth Luke Jerram has created to provide perspective for the size of the sun

Dyffryn opening hours will be affected by Helios, and while the artwork will be on display for both the weekends of the May half term, it won’t be up for two days in the middle of the half term (Tuesday 27 May and Wednesday 28 May). Please see our dedicated Helios page for all the most up-to-date information.

Summer visits

Enjoy the feeling of freedom that summer brings by coming on a family trip to Dyffryn and watch your little ones run, jump, play and go on endless adventures throughout the gardens – you might even get some of the not-so-little-ones involved too.

If you’re coming during the summer holidays there will be lots of activities to enjoy during our Dyffryn Gardens Games family event but there’s still plenty to do if you’re visiting during term time as well. Play hide and seek among the Garden Rooms or in the Arboretum; hop, skip, and jump from log to log in our two play areas or bring a frisbee or ball for a friendly game on the lawns.

Both the Gardens and Gallery Cafés are open every day during the summer holidays (during term time the Gardens Café is open every day and the Gallery Café is also open on weekends) so you can cooldown with cold drinks and ice creams or pick-up a kid’s lunch box. 

This is the fourth year we'll have 'mini meadows' on the Great Lawn for little ones to run in and out of. One of the reasons we grow these meadows is to increase the diversity of pollinators, insects, birds and dragonflies. See how many butterflies, dragonflies and damselflies your little ones can spot and search for creepy crawlies in the hedges, grass, and bark chip.

Dyffryn Garden Games

From 20 July - 31 August Dyffryn will once again become home to the Dyffryn Garden Games.

There'll be several games and sports dotted around the gardens to help families get outdoors and play together this summer. Who will win the hurdles? Who will be the family table tennis champion? And who will take the prize at archery? Who will stand in first place on our special Dyffryn Garden Games podium?

Part of the National Trust's Summer of Play initiative, there's no need to book and no extra charge to play the Dyffryn Garden Games (normal admission applies - admission is free to National Trust members).

Log Stack play areas

There are two Log Stack play areas at Dyffryn, one outside the pay barrier near the Welcome Centre and a larger one in the Arboretum. These wild play areas have plenty of space for youngsters to run, jump, explore and play.  

Balance along enormous trees which were felled as part of the arboretum revival plan, jump from log to log along the stepping stones and have a picnic on hand carved picnic stumps. 

The area is home to squirrels, birds and lots of creepy crawlies, so bring a magnifying glass or some binoculars and get spotting. 

Planning your family visit

Here’s the information you need at a glance to help plan your next day out at Dyffryn Gardens:

• Children under five visit for free.
• There are baby-changing facilities at regular intervals around the gardens as well as accessible toilet facilities.
• There are pram, wheelchair and mobility scooter-friendly routes and wheelchairs and a mobility scooter can be rented (free of charge) from the Welcome Centre.
• We have two log stack play areas.
• For safety reasons we can’t allow any kind of children’s bike, scooter or trike in the gardens unless it has a long handle on the back and is controlled by an adult at all times.
• Dogs are welcome so even the family pup can join in (please see here for information on visiting Dyffryn with your dog).
• The cafe serves children's lunchboxes and a range of hot and cold food and drinks, as well as treats for your four-legged family members.
• We also welcome picnics.

Sensory and Explorer Backpacks

At Dyffryn there are two different backpacks you can borrow to help you and your littles explore the gardens in new ways.

Sensory Backpacks

These backpacks contain ear defenders to help support children who struggle with unfamiliar or loud sounds, a children’s book (both English and Welsh) which can encourage some quiet or calm time reading in nature, worry stones and fidget toys to help soothe over-stimulation and improve focus and a kaleidoscope to create magical visual illusions.

Explorer Backpacks

These backpacks are inspired by ‘50 things to do before you’re 11 ¾’, with a compass to find your way, a tennis ball to measure velocity when rolling down hills, a magnifier for viewing bugs, binoculars for birdwatching and a tape measure and instructions for how to measure and age a tree. There’s also seasonal spotter sheets and a nature book.

The sensory and explorer backpacks are free for anyone to borrow with no booking or deposit required (they’re available on a first-come, first-served basis). Ask the Welcome Team to borrow a backpack next time you visit and watch your little ones experience Dyffryn Gardens in new and fun ways.

Even in between events, Dyffryn is a great option for a family day out. With every new season the gardens change and evolve so there is always something new to see. 

We also have self-led seasonal trails to enjoy. Pick-up a trail leaflet at the Welcome Centre to be guided round the seasonal highlights of the gardens. Please see the Visit the gardens at Dyffryn page for more information on the current seasonal walk.

And with a café, shop and second-hand bookshop (with a great selection of children's and YA literature), there’s always plenty to do at Dyffryn Gardens. So whenever you choose to visit, you know that you and your family will make some lovely memories.