I just came to Mildenhall about a week ago and was wondering is there anything for my kids (12, 9,8,and 7yrs old) to do around here? Tried the Bob Hope Center when I arrived, but soon found out that my kids were too old to play in the area. They got kicked out. So I tried the Youth Center, but I didn't realize in order for them to have fun I will have to spend over $120. I love my kids, but I am running out of ideals. And school doesn't start until the end of August. Please help me find something before they drive me up the wall. Thank you!
Wow...so much information!!! Thank you all for the different web sites. What I'm realizing is that a base is only what a person makes of it. Our family plan is to get out and have fun :) Thanks again everyone!!!
Dear D. M.,
You said your 12 year old was interested in the Viola. There is a string group here at Lakenheath. Try getting hold of Barbara at ____@____.com. LaDine works with a number of stringed instruments and may be able to connect your student with others of like interest.
A.
Hi D.
Take it from me, the only people that ever leave and did not enjoy their stay are the people that don't get out and experience the area you are in. There is so much to do, but you have to get out of the base, unless you only want to go bowling. I am from Newmarket so know the area a little :) There is a swimming pool in Mildenhall. There are many fun museums in many towns close by, Lavenham, Newmarket, Bury St. Edmumds to name just a few. There is Centre Parcs in Thetford. Thetford also has an indoor park somewhere as well. My sister takes her kids. There is a saxon village just down the road on the way to Bury St. Edmunds, a real steam train ride locally and zoos and animal sanctuaries that are no more than an hour drive away. Also it only takes about 1 to 1 and half hours to get to the coast. If you like touristy places then Great Yarmouth is great for quiter beaches there is Hunstanton or Cromer. (Remember I have not lived there for 15 years so things might have changed. There is the beautiful horses to see out on the gallops at Newmarket in the mornings, it would mean a very early morning but well worth the sight. Bury St. Edmuds and Cambridge have some beautiful period places to visit as does Lavenham. You don't necessarily have to spend a lot of money, a day to the sea side would be just a drive and a picnic basket as would a day to cambridge walking around the colleges. Just don't be afraid to get in a car and go. Go into Mildenhall or Newmarket and go to the tourist offices there and there will be lots of flyers on local things to do. We never had money growing up but my Mum used to take us on little outings all the time when we were kids (4 of us on a stable lads pay, trust me they had no money :) Take a walk along Devils Dyke see http://www.devilsdykeproject.org.uk/leaf01.html or
http://www.suffolktouristguide.com/Suffolk-Attractions.asp and for Norfolk http://www.norfolktouristinformation.com/norfolk-tourist-...
Anyway hope this gives you some ideas. Oh and if you like fishing, you can go river fishing, My mum goes to Burwell to do most of her fishing.
There is tons to do around here. They have holiday kids clubs everywhere, there's sports teams for anything, soccer is of course very popular. Thetford forrest has anything outdoors including "go ape", you can rent equipment there. There's centre parc in brandon. This website is pretty good: http://www.dayoutwiththekids.co.uk/
Also, there are so many castles and historical places to visit. Some are completely altered to suit kids like Norwich castle. The key is to get away from base and see what the locals do.
My kids are younger, so I kept wishing they were at least 4 so they could join all these teams.
We've been here for 3 years, live in Littleport, and are moving to Italy in late October. If you need anything at all i.e. info on best phone, internet, or who to call for something, email me or call. ____@____.com, 01353 864930.
Søs
We just left Mildenhall (lived in Thetford) and there was so much I wanted to do that we never did. Join the National Trust one year and English Heritage another and check out all the local places. There are also some other air force bases you can stay at (RAF Fairford and RAF Croughton) that are close to other tourist attractions such as Warwick Castle, Kenilworth Castle, Stonehenge, Blenheim Palace. You can also stay at the Royal Naval accomidations. Below I've pasted some info from an e-mail to one of my friends. Oh, also there's a Pick Your Own Strawberries up in Isleham (maybe 10 minutes from Mildenhall). My kids loved that. They have raspberries and other berries too.
We can stay in TLF at RAF Fairford, RAF Croughton, and RAF Mawgan (they all have an American presence). Fairford and Croughton are both in the Cotswolds area. They aren't very big, but you can find lodging there. We've only been to Fariford. Their commissary has very limited hours and their lodging desk closes after I think 9pm (not positive, you'd want to check for certain) but they will leave your room key with the guard at the gate if you arrange to arrive after they are closed. I've heard that Croughton has nicer TLF. Their front desk also closes in the evenings and on the weekends. I know nothing about Mawgan except that there's an American presence and we can stay there. I think it is down on the coast over by Wales.
We can also stay at some of the British Navy lodging facilities. Here's a website for more info.
http://www.rncom.mod.uk/templates/Housing.cfm?id=509
Helensburgh is up in Scotland. There's a minimum of a two night stay and you have to clean the place yourself before you leave. I've never stayed there, but I've heard from people that it's a good deal. I think you might have to bring your own bed sheets and towels but they have pots and pans. If you scroll down to the bottom there is a separate website for The Services Cotswold Centere. I think this is similar to the Royal Navy lodging in that you have to clean after yourself and bring your own linens but it is only 10 GBP a night!
If you want to stay somewhere where there is not military lodging, look for a Premier Inn. It has family rooms that are larger and nicer and you pay a family rate instead of per person.
These are good websites to print driving direction off of:
http://www.theaa.com/travelwatch/planner_main.jsp (UK only)
http://www.viamichelin.com/viamichelin/int/tpl/hme/MaHome... (for Europe too)
If you want to take a ferry to the mainland, my friend says it's cheaper to buy them on-line than when you get there. Also, because traffic can get hairy over here, she recommended buying one for later than your plan on being there. If you're there early and they have space, they'll let you go early. If you're late, you're out your $ and have to buy another ticket.
You can join the English Heritage http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/ and or The National Trust http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-index.htm for free or discounted admission and guidebooks and maps. If you go to their websites, you can search for local places to visit. We are in East Anglia or the East of England.
Some ideas for staying fairly close to home are: Oxborough Hall (between Downham Market and Thetford), Sutton Hoo (Ipswich), Duxford Air Museum (Cambridge), Castle Acre Castle and Castle Acre Priory (just nort of Swaffam), Grimes Graves (by Thetford, not good for small children).
Hello there I just left there in May and I have one child there is nothing for kids to do there, that is one of the reasons I hated being there so much we spent 4 years over there you can try tking them to a plave called pay to play in Ely, I never went there but I have heard it was nice, you can always take them to Legoland and Alton Towers that is where we took Jason, our son. Bowling is fun for them as well but you can only do that so much good luck sweetie and hang in there...
