July 26 - Love Letter: To Schools Out in Warwick 🚸🍦☀️

Dear Warwick,

Six weeks to a child, it feels like forever. To a parent, it can sometimes feel like six weeks of asking the same question... "What shall we do today?"

Thankfully, you seem to have spent years quietly preparing the answer.

Because when school finishes for summer, you don't simply put on a few events. You become one giant adventure, where every street, attraction and independent business seems ready to help families make another memory.

Of course, no Warwick summer would be complete without a trip to Warwick Castle. This year, the spectacular War of the Roses LIVE! jousting stunt show (running throughout the summer holidays) joins an already packed programme of family entertainment, from birds of prey to towers, trebuchets and enough history to convince children that learning can actually be rather exciting.

And if one castle visit simply isn't enough (because somehow children always have one more question on the journey home), the adventure doesn't have to end there. Just a short walk away, Market Hall Museum is continuing the story with its Warwick Castle Unboxed exhibition and free summer museum trail (throughout the school holidays), alongside giant skeletons, dinosaurs and fascinating local history. Better still, it links perfectly with Warwick's growing collection of family trails across the town.

Because if your children believe every walk should include a mission, you're in luck.

The free Through the Shop Window Trail (11 July–29 August) transforms the town centre into a giant puzzle, while the Eco Bear Trail offers another excuse to explore Warwick's wonderful independent streets. Somewhere between following clues, peering into shop windows and stopping for an ice cream, you'll probably forget you're actually getting everyone out for a walk.

If that’s not enough of a step back into history for your little ones, then The English Civil War Re-enactment Weekend is taking place at St John's House (August 8 to August 9) – not one to be missed.

And that's before the summer calendar really gets going.

Over the holidays you'll find everything from the Warwick Folk Festival (23–26 July) filling the town with music and colour, to the Smith Street Party (25 July), family fun at The Lord Leycester, creative workshops at Hill Close Gardens, the Big Summer Market (31 August) and dozens of other events bringing Warwick to life throughout the summer.

Of course, not every great day out needs planning.

Some of the best begin with a few hours at St Nicholas Park, where boating, crazy golf, mini golf, the playground and plenty of open space have been wearing children out for generations. Add a picnic, an ice cream and a bit of sunshine, and you've got the sort of day they'll remember long after the holidays are over.

And while the children are busy making memories, perhaps it's worth remembering that the grown-ups deserve a little treat too. Whether it's a timeless piece you'll treasure from Maddison's Jewellers, something beautifully crafted from Hamlington's or Russell Lane's Jewellers, or perhaps a visit to BeHoptimystic to discover calming crystals and thoughtful gifts (because six weeks of entertaining the kids deserves a little balance!), Warwick's independent retailers are always on hand to help you leave town with something just for you.

Eventually though, every family adventure arrives at the same inevitable question... "Where shall we eat?" Thankfully, Warwick has that covered too.

Dough & Brew returns even bigger and better on 24th July, reopening just in time for the summer holidays with fantastic pizza, a dedicated children's menu and their brilliant free Film Club, where little ones can settle down with family favourites and headphones while grown-ups enjoy a few precious moments of relative peace.

Just a stone's throw from St Nicholas Park, The New Bowling Green is perfectly placed for a relaxed lunch after a morning of adventures, while Happy Puccia serves authentic Italian sandwiches and milkshakes that younger visitors are likely to become completely obsessed with.

Perhaps that's what we love most about you, Warwick. You remind us that the best family summers aren't built around one big attraction.

And before anyone quite realises it, six weeks have been filled with memories much closer to home than anyone expected. So, thank you. For making the school holidays feel just that little bit easier. For proving that some of the very best summer adventures don't require passports or long journeys, just a trip into town.

We'll see you out there.

With love,

Warwick Chamber of Trade ❤️❤️❤️