Homestyle Gossip

By collecting Airmiles, you can enjoy a choice of hundreds of free days out and free activities across the country. This includes a range of driving experiences. From driving a tank to handling a rally vehicle, there’s something for all the family.

While many of the free activities that relate to driving require you to be 17 years old or over, with a full drivers’ licence, there are plenty that don’t. Youngsters from the age of 8 can enjoy a quad biking experience (although under 18s must be accompanied by an adult). Alternatively, with Father’s Day coming up, why not book a dad ‘n’ lads military driving experience? Kids from 8 years old can join their dads as they drive the same vehicles the squaddies do – over the same kind of terrain.

Ever wondered what it’s like to drive a fire engine, or handle a 340 horse power juggernaut? In Louth, Lincolnshire, these are free days out that anyone over 17 years of age with a full driving licence can enjoy. Passengers are welcome – meaning kids can sit next to dad (or mum) as they play at being Fireman Sam!

Like your free days out to pass in a hurry? Then why not try rally driving? Also available as a part-day or half-day experience, you get to drive a powerful performance car like a Subaru Impreza or Lotus Elise over a rally circuit at top speed. Power slides all the way – just watch how you drive home afterwards.

For a safer alternative, you can race round Brands Hatch from just 405 Airmiles, courtesy of a simulated F1 session. Just like the real thing, free activities like these are something the whole family can enjoy – at any age.

You can use your Airmiles for a wide – and wild – variety of free days out. And that includes many free activities aimed at animal-loving kids and parents. They range from falconry and owl handling, to being a shepherd or a zoo keeper for the day. With so many free activities to choose from, you’ll never be stumped for an original birthday present again.

For the ultimate in free family days out, you can’t beat a visit to London Zoo. For just 250 miles (200 miles for children under 16, and free for under 3s) you can enjoy one of London’s premier attractions. Use your Airmiles to bag cheap hotel rooms too, and you’ve really got something to roar about. Alternatively, at Broxbourne Zoo in Hertfordshire youngsters of 14 years or more can enjoy the ultimate work placement experience, and become an assistant zoo keeper for the day.

One of the most unusual free days out is learning to be a falconer. For those fit enough to clamber over stiles, this and the Owl Handling experience are available to those aged 16 and over (14 for Owl Handling). Falconry is one of several free activities based around country pursuits. Remember “One Man and his Dog” with Phil Drabble? At Bingley, in Yorkshire, you get the chance to have a go yourself, learning how to work with sheepdogs before penning a flock of sheep yourself. One of the few outdoor activities with no weather restrictions – but at least you can dry off in the pub afterwards.

Whether we’re in a recession or not, taking the whole family out for a day is one of the most expensive things that parents can do. Whether you go to the cinema, to a theme park or just out around the shops and for a meal, when you have children you can easily spend over £100 on what should be a simple, inexpensive trip out.

Family tickets at theme parks, where the typical family unit of two adults and two children is expected, often cost in excess of £50 before you even begin to factor in travel costs, food and the all important expense on souvenirs. If only there was a way to enjoy free days out that the children would enjoy?

When you collect Airmiles, there is. By collecting Airmiles you can exchange your Airmiles for free activities, such as tickets to Alton Towers, Thorpe Park, or even more adventurous activities such as quad biking or paintballing.

Airmiles can be collected whenever you pay for something with a Lloyds TSB Airmiles Duo Credit Card Account, meaning that just by spending what you would normally spend on food and other essentials, you can achieve free days out with Airmiles.

You can also collect Airmiles by exchanging your Tesco Clubcard vouchers for Airmiles. You can get Tesco Clubcard points on things like paying for your gas and electricity with E.ON.

Theme park tickets can be very expensive for large families, but by collecting Airmiles you can turn this ‘would be’ expense into one of many free activities.

No matter how hard we try, we can never stop our children from growing up; it’s a part of life. One of the things many children can’t wait to do is to drive a car, but they usually have to wait until they are 17 for that. However, when you collect Airmiles, they don’t have to wait that long at all, as you can use them to get free days out for your children on driving course activities.

Some of the free activities and days out available with Airmiles include a children’s rally driving experience and a ‘first drive’ experience, where children can drive a real car for the very first time. On the first drive experience, children get to drive a car, such as a new BMW Mini, on a special circuit (that is very safe, so don’t worry) under the watchful eye of a trained instructor. It’s one of the best free days out you could choose for your child, and they’ll thank you forever – especially when the experience stands them in good stead when they come to learn to drive.

Other free days out (yes, that’s free days out not cheap days out) for children include the rally driver experience, where children as young as 12 get to drive a real rally car on a rally circuit. Don’t worry, there’s a minimum height restriction so your child can reach the pedals. When you’re collecting and using Airmiles, free activities like this won’t cost you a penny.

If you’re not into driving activities, other free activities include paintball days out, a spy camp for amateur James Bonds and a make-up consultation day for children who prefer a bit of pampering.