Top 10 Family Activities In North London in 2026

Location: Outside Brent Cross, Prince Charles Drive, NW4 3RW.

Game Over runs a set of themed escape rooms in Brent Cross, each one a race against the clock to solve the puzzles and get the door open.

Each room is dressed to match its story, with props and locks built into the set.

The themes run from the School of Magic to the Lost City of Atlantis, and most welcome children from age 10.

The Nightmare Hotel is the exception, kept for ages 16 and up, so families with younger children will want to pick a different room.

The puzzles reward a group that talks to each other, which is part of what makes the format work for parents and children together.

Booking ahead is the sensible move at weekends, though walk-ins are taken when there is space.

➡️ Good to know: doors open from 2 PM on weekdays and 10 AM on Saturdays and Sundays.

Location: Level 4 of the Red Car Park, Brent Cross Shopping Centre, London NW4 3FP.

TeamSport's Brent Cross site fills Level 4 of the Red Car Park with three karting tracks, eight bowling lanes and a bank of arcade machines.

The tracks split by age and confidence:

• Mini Racers takes 4-to 7-year-olds.
• The Starter Track suits beginners and mixed family groups.
• The main circuit lets older drivers push to 45 mph across its 350m layout.

The bowling lanes come with bumpers and ramps for younger players, with pool tables and arcade games for when the racing winds down.

Food and drink are on site, and the venue handles children's party bookings.

➡️ Book a karting or bowling slot on the TeamSport site.

Location: Outside Brent Cross, Prince Charles Drive, NW4 3BR.

Florescenza brings a full garden centre to the edge of Brent Cross, with cut flowers, house plants, and rows of trees and shrubs to browse.

The displays shift with the seasons, so there is colour and scent to take in whatever time of year you visit.

Staff know their stock and will happily steer you towards plants that survive a bit of neglect, which is handy if the children are the ones choosing.

Home delivery is available if carrying a plant around the shops all afternoon does not appeal.

There is good family shopping built into the centre too, from toy aisles to gift counters:

TG Jones

Location: Lower Mall, Brent Cross, NW4 3FB.

TG Jones covers books, stationery, cards and gifts, and keeps a Toys R Us section at the back stocked with games and toys for most ages.

Click and collect and gift services are also available.

Fenwick

Location: Upper Mall, Brent Cross, NW4 3FP.

Fenwick spreads designer fashion, beauty, gifting and homeware across three floors.

Families can book a personal shopping or beauty session, grab a meal at one of the in-store restaurants, and find a family room and baby changing on site.

John Lewis & Partners

Location: Lower Mall, John Lewis Car Park, Brent Cross, NW4 3FL.

John Lewis & Partners stocks the full department store range, from fashion and beauty to homeware, tech and toys, with a nursery department for younger families.

You can also find their ‘The Place to Eat’, which offers coffee and lunch with a children's menu, and you can book a nursery advisor or a styling session.

Location: Lower Mall, Brent Cross, NW4 3FP. Opposite M&S.

District is Brent Cross' street food hall: a row of independent kitchens sharing more than 130 seats on the Lower Mall.

The shared tables suit families, since nobody has to agree on one cuisine.

• Pasta Remoli offers handmade pasta and Roman-style pizza, with a children's menu and gluten-free, vegan and vegetarian options.
• Yaay Yaay handles fresh Thai, from Kaprow chicken to Panang curry, and Three Uncles serves Cantonese roast meats, bao buns and noodle bowls.
• Smoky Boys piles up burgers, wings, loaded fries and shakes.
• Smatcha pours matcha drinks, and Oshpaz cooks Central Asian plov, so there is variety across the room without leaving the hall.

Location: Arkwright Road, London NW3 6DG.

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Camden Arts Centre is a free contemporary gallery in Hampstead that pairs changing exhibitions with a family workshop programme.

The exhibitions rotate through the year, and the workshops and short courses cover hands-on subjects like ceramics and natural dyes.

Most need booking ahead, and some carry a fee, so check the programme before you set out.

Opening hours run Wednesday to Sunday, 11 AM to 6 PM, with occasional closures when the building is being worked on.

Location: Around Camden Town, North London (NW1).

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Camden's side streets double as an open-air gallery, with murals layered across the brickwork.

Harmood Street, Hawley Mews and Stucley Place hold some of the bigger pieces, and they are more walkable than you’d expect.

💡 Local tip: You can look for Irony's photorealistic portraits around Camden Town and Gnasher's monkey.

Hunting the murals down gives children a reason to keep moving between the stalls and back streets.

And, as the walls get repainted often, no two visits turn up quite the same set (so yes, if you did this a few years ago, this is your reminder to do it again with your family!).

Location: Finsbury Park to Alexandra Palace, North London. The Spriggan is near the old Crouch End station.

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The Parkland Walk follows an old railway line for 4km (~2.5 miles), running from Finsbury Park up to Alexandra Palace.

The surface is flat and car-free, which keeps it doable for small legs and easy for bikes.

Children usually come for the Spriggan, which is a man-sized creature pushing out of the brickwork near the old Crouch End platform.

The old stations and bridges along the route are leftovers from the trains that used to run it.

It also holds the title of London's longest linear nature reserve, so there are trees, birds and the odd unexpected bit of wildlife to spot on the way.

Location: North End Way, London NW3 7HE. Part of Hampstead Heath.

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The free zoo is the reason most families come to Golders Hill Park, which is a small animal collection inside this corner of Hampstead Heath.

On any given day you might find ring-tailed lemurs, a Scottish wildcat, red-necked wallabies, kookaburras, fallow deer, donkeys and bantam chickens.

There is no ticket and no time limit, so a quick walk or a long afternoon both work.

Beyond the animals, the park has a children's play area for up to age 12, flower gardens, a duck pond and open grass for a picnic.

Location: Highgate Hill, Highgate, London N6 5HD.

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Waterlow Park climbs a Highgate hillside across 26 acres, with long views over the City of London from the top.

Two small play areas are tucked into the southern end, and three spring-fed ponds string through the middle, busy with ducks, herons and frogs.

If your family is into tennis, you can also find the park’s six tennis courts, and if you’re feeling like a picnic this weekend, you can also find plenty of space for that too (especially now that the weather is looking better!).

It is the quieter neighbour to Hampstead Heath next door, which tends to make life easier with younger children in a stroller.

Most of these spots fall within a short drive of Brent Cross, which makes it a workable base for the day, somewhere to start, regroup over lunch, or finish with a bit of shopping.

You can plan your visit to Brent Cross here to see all the ways to get to us by car, taxi, train, bus, or bike.

Parking is free year-round, which takes one headache out of arriving with children and all their kit. EV drivers get RAW Charging's points on site.