Easter family fun that doesn’t break the bank

Easter is fast approaching and you may be wondering about ways to entertain the family over the holiday. In particular, activities that don’t cost a small fortune.

So in this article we’ve put together a selection of ideas that may help you to get started. In particular we focus on:

• Fun British Easter customs;
• Games for all the family to enjoy;
• Great ideas for your best Easter egg hunt ever.

Fun British Easter customs

Did you know that all over the UK there are weird and wonderful Easter customs taking place? You just need to check out what might be happening in your area and take the family along for a free fun day out.

A few examples are:

• Plastic duck racing

Over the Easter weekend there are many plastic duck races across the UK, usually in aid of charity. The races involve hundreds or even thousands of numbered yellow ducks being launched into rivers. Check out one that might be happening near you!

• Easter bunny

Many areas organise some kind of Easter parade featuring the Easter bunny. In particular, check out historical sites near you, such as The National Trust, which has Easter parades and treasure hunts at many of its venues for a cost of £3.50.

• Traditional dancing

Many different types of dancing have become well-established Easter traditions across the UK. Three in particular to look out for are:

• Morris dancing

Morris dancing is a type of English folk dancing in which Morris dancers dress in white, with bells on their trousers and either a stick or handkerchief in their hands. See if you can find them performing near you.

• Maypole dancing

Dancers dance around a pole to which is attached an array of colourful ribbons which the dancers use to create different patterns as they dance. 

• Nutters dance

If you are anywhere near to the village of Bacup, near Lancaster on Easter Saturday, check out a dance troupe called the Britannia Coco-nut Dancers – known locally as “The Nutters”. They dress in clogs, red and white skirts, black trousers and shirts and dance through the village, drinking a pint of beer in every pub along the way. 

• Easter egg rolling and jarping

As well as dancing, look out for the strange British traditions of rolling and jarping!

• Easter egg rolling

Many places in the UK have some kind of Easter egg rolling activity over the Easter weekend. And if you happen to be near Preston, their Easter egg roll in Avenham Park is a 150-year old Easter Monday tradition for all the family to enjoy.

• Orange rolling

Not to be outdone, there is a Good Friday tradition of rolling oranges in Dunstable. Oranges are rolled down the very steep slopes of Pascombe Pit, and all are welcome to join in at a cost of £3 per child (which includes ball, bunny ears and a chocolate egg).

• Jarping

Jarping is the tradition of knocking one hard-boiled egg against another to see which egg cracks first. The World Egg Jarping Championships take place every Easter Sunday at the Hearts of Oak pub in Peterlee, County Durham.

Games for all the family to enjoy

As well as going out and about finding fun events, there are plenty of activities and games you can organise either at home with the family or perhaps in a local park with friends.

Here are a few ideas for both inside and outside:

• Indoor games

  • Pin the tail on the bunny: An Easter version of the donkey game. Display a large poster of the Easter Bunny, blindfold the participant, and have them pin where they think the tail is.
  • Easter Bingo: There are a wide variety of printable Easter Bingo cards available online which make it easy to organise an Easter version of this game.
  • Minute to win it: Buy a large packet of plastic easter egg cases and have a competition to see who can either collect the most or build the highest tower in 60 seconds. 
  • Egg decoration: If you’re feeling crafty, get out paints and stickers for the family to decorate hard boiled eggs.
  • Guess the number: Fill a jar with either small chocolate eggs or jelly beans and have participants guess the total.

• Outdoor games

  • Easter egg rolling: create your own version of Easter egg rolling by finding a local hill and rolling either decorated eggs or coloured balls down it.
  • Plastic duck race : you could also stage your own version of a duck race floating different coloured or numbered ducks down a local river or stream.
  • Egg and spoon race : this could be done either using hard-boiled eggs or Easter eggs and on an individual or relay basis.
  • Bunny hop race: Participants have to hop like bunnies to the finish line. You could add in an element of fancy dress to make this even more fun.
  • Easter basket toss: Place baskets or buckets at varying distances from the play line, with different numbers of points for each one. Participants have to toss either small eggs or bean bags into the baskets or buckets. The highest score wins.

Great ideas for your best Easter egg hunt ever

Of course one of the most traditional Easter games is an Easter egg hunt. There are many different varieties of this depending on the age of the participants. So here are three ideas for young children and three for older children and teenagers:

• Easter Egg hunts for young children

When organising things for young children it’s always a good idea to make sure that everyone gets a prize of some sort. So as well as whatever you decide to hide, you may want to have a few special awards and prizes up your sleeve to keep everyone happy!

• Find the most eggs

The simplest option is just to hide small eggs then see who can find the most. You need to make the hiding places pretty easy to find, such as in the fruit bowl, amongst the children’s toys. in a wardrobe or understairs cupboard, or under the bed.

• Warmer / colder

A variant on the above is to help the children to find eggs by using the words “warmer” and “colder” as they get closer to or further away from the eggs. 

• Use fillable eggs with instructions

Instead of hiding small chocolate eggs, use plastic ones with instructions in. When a participant finds an egg they have to follow the instructions (such as doing a somersault, touching their toes or hopping like a bunny) then get a chocolate egg for doing so.

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• Easter Egg hunts for older children and teenagers

Older children and teenagers will most probably enjoy an Easter Egg hunt, even though they may be reluctant and protest it’s too childish. So a great idea is to offer more “grown up” prizes as well as chocolate eggs. These could include:

• A pizza and movie night.
• Friends round for a sleepover.
• More screen time.
• More phone credit.
• A new item of clothing.
• A cinema trip.
• A late bedtime.

• An Easter Egg hunt with clues

An Easter egg hunt with clues is more challenging than just looking for eggs, and can be great fun. Participants start with the first clue, which then leads to the place with the next clue and so on until the final clue leads to the main prize. An alternative is that if children have smartphones you could get them to text you from the various clue points of the hunt, and you text them the next clue back.

• A team relay Easter Egg hunt

Split participants into two or more teams. Each team needs a separate set of eggs to hunt for. Give the first member of each team the clue to the first of their eggs. They then need to find it and bring it back to their team. Then the next member of each team receives their clue and goes searching for the next egg. Again, you could vary this game by team members texting each other when they have found an egg, and you then give them the next clue.

• A points-based Easter Egg hunt

Instead of chocolate eggs, use fillable eggs with a card saying how many points they have earned for finding it. Prizes at the end depend on how many points they have picked up during the hunt. An alternative to this would be that each egg contains a home-made voucher for a specific prize, for example some of the prizes on the list above.

We hope that this article provides some ideas and inspiration about fun things to do with your family this Easter, and that you all have a great time.

Do visit us here again soon at Loans 2 Go for more hints and tips on day to day family living and finances. And if you and your family need any additional finances this spring, remember that Loans 2 Go offer a range of personal loans which may be able to help. Full details, including terms and conditions are available on our website. Borrowing is optional and may not be suitable for everyone, so always consider your circumstances and affordability before applying.

This blog/article provides general information only and does not constitute financial advice.