Blenheim Palace with kids – family day out review

The elegant architecture and gardens of Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire deserve clear blue skies and glorious sun to set off their splendour – but as we discovered on a day out at Blenheim Palace with kids in the rain, even bad weather can’t stop you having fun.

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Despite choosing an August date to check out the Unesco World Heritage site and all its attractions, including the exciting new Adventure play area, the rain didn’t let up all day.

But with plenty of indoor fun at Blenheim Palace with kids, as well as the maze, play area, gardens and grounds, we set off as planned for some 18th century magnificence, along with some more recent history.

Over 300 years old, Blenheim Palace was a gift from a grateful nation – and a grateful Queen Anne – to the first Duke of Marlborough, John Churchill, following his victory over the French at the Battle of Blenheim.

The only non-royal country house in all of England to hold the title of palace, it took around 17 years and cost a small fortune to build.

Actually, a large fortune – the Churchills received funds of around £240,000 but still had to add in around £60,000 themselves to cover the costs. Today that would be around £100 million, give or take a few million.

And while some of the 18th century’s biggest names were involved, including architect Vanbrugh and sculptor Grinling Gibbons, Sarah Churchill was determined to rein in any over-extravagance – according to the stories, she would even avoid dotting the is and crossing the ts in her letters to save ink.

Just one of the quirky facts we discovered as we explored the state rooms. As you enter, pick up an audio guide (available in nine languages) or scan the QR code and use the free WiFi to download it to your phone, to listen to more information about each of the rooms you pass through.

While the guide is pitched at adults, it was still accessible enough for my 11-year-old, especially the more quirky facts about its original owners – John Churchill and his wife Sarah, the favourite of Queen Anne (and then rather dramatically former favourite!)

Along with the overview of each room, there’s also extra detail about individual pieces, including artworks, tapestries and china.

That was a bit more information than my daughter wanted – although she was fascinated to discover one particular Meissen plate was specially decorated with insects and that the china service was swapped for a pack of dogs.

But you needn’t listen to every section if you don’t want to, with the option to pick and choose depending how much detail you want to hear – a definite bonus with kids.

If you’re visiting with younger kids too (as we were, with a friend and her five-year-old), there are also toy mice dotted around each of the rooms to spot, a great way to slow little ones down so you can take in a bit more of the decor before scampering on.

My 11-year-old definitely wasn’t too old to enjoy spotting the mice as well, all in various different poses, including a couple tucked away inside the cases in the long library – a very well named room, apparently the second longest room in any house in England at 56m long.

Which left space for a lot of books too, more than 10,000 on the shelves in total: we were both rather jealous.

We also bumped into a solider in the Saloon, holding his musket – which was about the same size as my daughter, although she still jumped at the chance to hold it.

Talking us through all the steps needed to actually fire it, from holding bullets in your teeth and pouring powder into various parts of the gun (all, presumably, while dodging bullets shot by the French), I was amazed to learn that experienced soldiers could load and fire the gun twice in a minute.

Even more unexpected was discovering just how many phrases and idioms come from that one action: ‘bite the bullet’, ‘go off half-cocked’, ‘a flash in the pan’, ‘lock, stock and barrel’, ‘keep your powder dry’ all have their origins in firing a musket.

Along the way, we discovered a little more about Blenheim as a filming location too – there’s are regular themed trails, including a Lights! Camera! Action! trail during our visit, for TV and movie buffs to follow. Or you could just spot some of the boards with details of the scenes which the rooms appeared in, including one of the Mission: Impossible films.

As a bonus, there were also a couple of dresses from Bridgerton, including two outfits worn at the debutante ball, complete with feather headdress – while my 11-year-old obviously hasn’t seen the series, it was fun to chat about which outfit we preferred, and just how you curtsey with a train and ostrich feathers balanced on your head!

Elsewhere, a newly restored crown worn by Queen Anne is on display, you can see the room where Winston Churchill was born and learn about an American heiress whose mother was prepared to try almost anything to get her to marry the Duke of Marlborough, as well as spotting other quirky details.

Outside the state rooms, there’s the chance take other tours to discover more parts of the palace, including the Upstairs Tour to find out what it’s like living somewhere like Blenheim during more recent decades, as well as the Downstairs Tour to learn more about the lives of Palace staff and servants. Both have an additional fee, on top of the main entry ticket.

From March 2025, there’s also a new ‘Life Below Stairs’ experience, set within some of the original working kitchens, open to visitors for the very first time, bringing the world of service in Victorian times to life.

If you’re visiting with older kids, it’s also worth looking at the Churchill Exhibition (included with main entry), while younger kids will love the interactive fun in the Stables.

Here you can do everything from climbing into a traditional side saddle to see if you can keep your balance, to putting a bridle on a model horse. There are also a few unusual installations, including floating hats which tell different stories as you stand underneath them, and another interactive horse race – although sadly that wasn’t working on our visit.

It’s all set within the stables where Dukes, Duchesses and their families would have kept their horses, complete with the original tack room and stable office.

From here, you’re also in walking distance of the pretty Water Gardens, with their various fountains, pools and other water features, as well as the Italian Gardens (which you can peek at but not go into) plus more of the pleasure gardens and formal gardens around the lake, including the rose garden and the Churchill Memorial Garden.

With the rain sadly still beating down, we stuck to a quick wander around the closest garden, the secret garden – there’s a sign pointing to it, so it’s not too secret to find, but feels like a very tranquil hidden spot once you get inside.

On a sunny day, there are various walks to take you further through the grounds though and discover some of the 2,000-acres estate.

The Lake walk stretches for three-quarters of a mile and takes around 35 minutes, heading alongside the Great Lake and passing temples and the boathouse on the way.

Or the longer Formal Gardens walk stretches 1.5 miles and takes around an hour – this one is suitable for wheelchairs and buggies, as is most of the lake walk, plus the Queen Pool path around another part of the lake (currently partly closed) and the 4.6 mile Park Perimeter trail. The Formal Gardens has its own audio tour too.

We’d planned to cross over Vanbrugh’s Grand Bridge, stare up at the Column of Victory and wander around to the ‘Harry Potter tree’ which features in The Order of the Phoenix, when Harry sees his father and Snape in Snape’s memory.

If you want to discover more Harry Potter filming locations nearby, check out my review of a Harry Potter tour of Oxford

But even a taste of the wizarding world can be dampened by drizzle, so we settled for a peek through the ornate gates up to the column, before heading down to the other main part of the Blenheim Estate, with some of the best family attractions.

You can walk from the palace and the Great Court (including along the road, if the short-cut over the lawn is a bit soggy!) – allow around 10-15 minutes.

Or even better, hop onto the miniature train which travels along the track from the Palace station to the Walled Garden station, around every 15-30 minutes. It costs £1 per person each way (contactless payment) but it’s well worth it with little ones… and not so little ones too.

At the Walled Gardens, there’s handily a pizzeria and toilets if you need refuelling before or after heading off to play – the Walled Garden pizzeria has kids’ sizes on the menu as well as adult versions.

Because while the gardens themselves are pretty, there are two bigger attractions here, not to mention the Blenheim butterfly house.

First, the Marlborough Maze – an intricate two miles of yew trees with a couple of helpful viewing points as you try to navigate your way to the centre.

The design is inspired by the history of Blenheim, although perhaps that’s more evident when you’re looking down on it than when you’re twisting through all the paths, looking at seemingly identical stretches of hedge and trying to work out whether you’ve just come from that path two minutes ago!

I very quickly lost all my bearings, but after weaving around for about 20 minutes, we suddenly found ourselves at the heart of the maze – which happily then has a quick route to the exit, so you don’t need to find your way back to the start.

And next door is the Blenheim Palace Adventure Play area, which opened in 2023 – and which is a big family friendly highlight at Blenheim Palace for kids.

You do need separate tickets to get inside (priced £5-7 for both kids and adults, free for under threes), with timed entry slots and three-hour play sessions – you can only visit if you already have a palace ticket or an annual pass, not for the playground alone.

Normally tickets need to be booked in advance, but if it’s a quiet day, you can check at the entrance to see if they’ve got space.

And it’s a seriously impressive playground: the water play zone running through the middle means it’s well worth bringing spare clothes whatever the weather (you need to keep shoes on, so consider waterproof sandals or wellies, depending when you’re there).

There are stepping stones too if you don’t want to get soaked, as well as some fun places to get hands on.

Elsewhere, there are climbing structures and slides, a separate garden which you can enter through a giant flowerpot and play inside gigantic carrots (two little girls had decided this was straight out of Peter Rabbit, and designated me Mr MacGregor!)

Or make some music with the natural instruments on the path nearby. I loved the fact that one had two identical instruments to play, but with one slightly lower than the other, so all ages could join in.

For littler ones, there’s a toddler zone with some gentler play, as well as zip wires for braver souls who fancy some more adrenaline-fuelled fun.

Not to mention bridges, tunnels, nets and a whole lot more, in structures inspired by the architecture of Blenheim Palace itself.

If that isn’t enough to keep everyone entertained, there was also a Quest during our visit, with 11 letters to find around the Adventure playground, to unjumble and turn into a word – and prizes including annual passes to win, so I won’t give the answer away, although be prepared to put in some effort to track down every clue.

If we lived closer, having an annual pass would be very tempting – I can’t see how you could possibly fit everything into a single day if you want to venture out into the grounds, visit all parts of the palace, follow the trails and have time to play.

So it would be very easy to come back over and over, to head out into a different part of the grounds and gardens, or to check out the latest exhibition, not to mention events taking place during the year – our last visit took us to a Halloween light trail.

Rain or shine, with younger kids and older ones, this has to be one of the best days out in Oxfordshire with kids.

Blenheim Palace with kids: need to know

Tickets to Blenheim Palace

Tickets cost £41 for adults including palace, park and gardens entry, £24 for children aged 3-16 and must be prebooked in advance (although you can buy tickets online on the day).

Entry also includes a free annual pass, just convert your ticket when you visit, so you get 12 months free for the price of one day.

The Adventure Play area costs £7 for adults and children aged over 3, although there are some discounted after-school sessions for £5. You can also get an annual family Palace and Play pass which gives entry to all areas.

You can also buy tickets with a discount via Tiqets using my code MUMMYTRAVELS6, or tickets with free cancellation, although there isn’t currently an option to prebook playground entry unless you buy direct.

Blenheim Palace opening hours

Opening times vary for different areas and attractions, and for different periods throughout the year, so check online before you visit.

In summer, the Adventure Play and Formal gardens open from 10am, the house from 10.30am, with the various attractions closing between 4.45pm and 5.30pm.

How to get to Blenheim Palace

Blenheim Palace is around 20 minutes from Oxford, at Woodstock in the Oxfordshire countryside, with plenty of free parking if you’re coming by car.

Alternatively, the easiest way to get there by public transport is to take the S7 bus from Oxford to Woodstock which takes around 30-40 minutes. There are also trains to Oxford as well as options from elsewhere in the Cotswolds.

There’s also a 20% discount if you travel by bus, train or bike – use code GREEN20 when you buy your tickets online, then show proof of travel on arrival.

There are also a variety of day tours to Blenheim Palace from London, which visit the Cotswolds as well.

For ideas of more things to do in Oxford with kids, check out my top picks, as well as more ideas for days out from London with kids

Disclosure: My entry was free for the purposes of review – all opinions about visiting Blenheim Palace with kids are my own, as was the unintentional choice of rainy day! This post contains affiliate links – any purchases you make are unaffected but I may receive a small commission

Main image courtesy Picfair, sunny Adventure Play image courtesy Blenheim Palace, all other images copyright MummyTravels

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