Ryanair extends its summer schedule with three new routes for 2020 on sale now
Ryanair has announced three new Manchester routes to Denmark, France and Ireland, starting in March 2020.
The airline will be flying to Copenhagen (daily), Kerry (twice weekly) and Paris Beauvais (four times a week), as part of its extended UK Summer 2020 schedule.
It is also increasing flights throughout the summer to Shannon in Ireland, from five to six times a week.
Ryanair’s Eimear Ryan said: “Manchester consumers and visitors can now book their summer holidays on 66 routes as far out as October 2020, flying on the lowest fares and with the greenest/cleanest major airline in Europe, with the lowest CO2 emissions per passenger/kilometre.”
To celebrate the new Manchester routes, Ryanair has launched a seat sale on its European network with fares from £14.99 for travel from now until the end of March 2020, which must be booked by Thursday, January 23, only on the Ryanair.com website.
A panto, ice rink, circus, Santa AND funfair all under one roof at huge Christmas event for children
Thousands of families have been flocking to Manchester to escape the cold weather into an entirely indoor Christmas extravaganza.
The UK’s biggest Christmas indoor event Winter Funland 2019, includes a huge ice rink, a Christmas circus, a pantomime, a vast indoor funfair and of course, Santa Claus.
There is also loads of food and drink for sale including vegan, vegetarian, gluten and lactose free options.
For parents of young children, there is plenty of space to park prams and buggies as well as a quiet breastfeeding area and baby changing facilities.
Last year, over 85,000 people visited the event.
Winter Funland event director, Andy Windmill, said: “Last year’s event was a phenomenal success and this year is bigger, brighter and full of even more festive fun.
“We have pulled out all of the stops to ease queues for Santa, quicker service for food and of course – brought in even more exciting funfair rides.”
Winter Funland is at EventCity, opposite intu Trafford Centre and there are over 3,000 free car parking spaces.
It runs until January 4, 2020. Visits are in sessions of four hours.
All-inclusive admission tickets are £23.50 per person and under 3s are free. Fastpass tickets to visit Father Christmas at Santa’s Grotto are also available from the website here www.winterfunland.com
We visit Cockfields Farm in Oldham on a busy half-term day to assess this popular attraction
What is it?
Cockfields Farm is a petting farm with indoor and outdoor play areas and themed events throughout the year.
Where is it?
It is in Oldham in Ashton-under-Lyne, 10 miles east of Manchester, in north-west England.
What did we think?
I was very impressed – when we went there was a fantastic wizardry Harry Potter-style event. Staff had gone to lots of trouble and expense to make it special, plus children were encouraged to dress up for it.
We ended up staying over five hours and the children loved it. Without the Harry Potter activities there would have been less to do but there are indoor and outdoor play areas including a big bouncing pillow. The weather was good which helped as we were outside for half the time.
There are a selection of animals to see including llamas, pigmy goats, pigmy hedgehogs, lizards, snakes, rabbits and guinea pigs. A relatively small collection but there are set times throughout the day where you can meet and hold them.
Highlights:
*The variety of activities on offer and areas to play.
*An indoor role play ‘street’ with shops, a police station and a theatre.
*A big bouncy ‘pillow’ outside – a mixture between a bouncy castle and a trampoline.
*The chance to hold some of the animals during special sessions.
*The fantastic themed events during school holidays.
*The outdoor sandpit and play areas.
Our video
Watch our video of our day at Cockfields Farm then read our top tips for visiting Cockfields Farm below.
Our top tips
*Check out the website to see what themed events are coming up – the Harry Potter themed week when we went was amazing.
*Get there when it opens in school holidays as it gets really busy and the car parks fill up fast, although there is a parking marshall.
*Make sure you know what time events are on throughout the day so you don’t miss something your children would enjoy.
*It is costly so plan to spend a long time here if you can, on a nice sunny day to get your money’s worth.
*There is a café but to save spending extra money you can take a picnic – there are quite a few picnic benches outside.
*Some of the activities cost £1 extra including the diggers and quad bikes, so have some pound coins ready if you want to and take this extra cost into consideration when deciding whether to go. All the animal talks and interaction are included.
Cockfields Farm information
Food: There is a café or you can take a picnic – there are benches and tables outside.
Opening hours: Monday to Saturday 10am to 4.30pm. Sundays 10am to 4pm.
Cost: £8.95 per person (children under the age of one are free). Check the website for prices before you visit as they can be higher during special events. Discounts online.
Best for: Ages three to eight
Time needed: From two hours (we spent five hours there)
