Indoor and rainy dayBasingstoke · under 1 km
Basingstoke Sports Centre Soft Play
The soft play area at Basingstoke Sports Centre, run by Better. Birthday parties range from soft play to pool parties, with booking recommended.
Under £10Directions
Things to do in Basingstoke
Basingstoke is the largest town in north Hampshire, with the Milestones Museum at Leisure Park and the ruins of Basing House on its eastern edge.
A day out in Basingstoke
Festival Place, the shopping and leisure centre in Basingstoke, sits beside a council car park with about 3,000 public bays, 118 of them disabled bays. Basing House is a short walk along the River Loddon from its free car park. The site is run by Hampshire Cultural Trust, and its visitor centre is the place to start. The ruins and grounds are of a Tudor house that suffered during the English Civil War, when Oliver Cromwell attacked it. Festival Place has a height limit of 2.1 metres on Festival Way, and the council's list shows the Alencon Link car park, operated by The Malls, as a pay on foot site open 24 hours a day.
Basingstoke station is managed by South Western Railway and has lifts and step free access to all platforms. Basingstoke and Deane council runs the car parks in the town centre, and its car park list shows the long stay sites and their disabled bays. The Malls car park is undergoing major resurfacing from 20 July to the end of October 2026, so check the council's car park page before you go.
Places in and around Basingstoke
Photo: Stephen McKay, CC BY-SA 2.0MuseumsBasingstoke · 2 km
Milestones Museum
A museum in Basingstoke Leisure Park with hands-on science and history for families, plus Christmas experiences in the autumn and winter. It is an indoor option for rainy days and school holidays.
£10 to £25Directions
Photo: Fernweh, CC BY-SA 2.0OutdoorsOld Basing · 2 km
Basing Lime Pits
A former private estate on Basingstoke Common, now a place to walk, play and picnic. Its play area has a 30-metre zip wire, and the site is on the Basingstoke Canal Heritage Footpath Trail, which ends at Basing House.
FreeDirections
Photo: Alfterfoto, CC BY-SA 4.0History and heritageSherborne St John · 4 km
The Vyne
A Tudor mansion in Sherborne St John, home of the Sandys and Chute families for more than 500 years. The house has state rooms, servants' quarters and gardens, with a family trail in the autumn.
Check on the official site for admission prices. National Trust members go free. The Georgian exhibition tours have a suggested donation of £5 per person.Directions
Photo: Mr Ignavy, CC BY-SA 2.0OutdoorsBasingstoke · 6 km
Beggarwood Park
A Green Flag woodland park and Local Nature Reserve in Basingstoke, with a toddler and junior play area, outdoor gym equipment, a pump track and the Café in the Park.
FreeDirections
Animals and wildlifeHook · 6 km
Miller's Ark Animals
A working farm near Hook with pigs, goats, donkeys, lambs and sheep, where visitors can meet animals during a pre-booked visit. The Old Dairy tea barn serves food and cake on open days.
£10 to £25Directions
Coming up near Basingstoke
10 Dec to 3 Jan
Pantomime and theatreBasingstoke · under 1 km
Beauty and the Beast pantomime at The Anvil
Basingstoke's main Christmas pantomime this year is Beauty and the Beast at The Anvil, produced by UK Productions. Ellie Dadd plays Belle, with local favourite Chris Pizzey back as Louis La Plonk and Sarah Jane Buckley as the fairy.
From £19.50Directions
2 Dec to 6 Dec
Pantomime and theatreBasingstoke · under 1 km
Dear Santa Live at The Haymarket
A short stage show based on the picture book by the author of Dear Zoo, in which Santa and his elf try to find the right present for Sarah. Children can meet Santa in his grotto after the show and each child gets a gift.
From £18Directions
9 Dec
Pantomime and theatreBasingstoke · under 1 km
The Snow Queen by Ballet Theatre UK
Ballet Theatre UK brings its touring ballet of Hans Christian Andersen's The Snow Queen to The Haymarket for one evening. It follows Gerda across the frozen north as she sets out to free Kay from the Snow Queen's spell.
From £22.50Directions
20 Nov
Christmas marketsBasingstoke · under 1 km
Festive Friday in Basingstoke
Love Basingstoke's free evening to start the festive season across the Top of the Town, with a Christmas market of small local traders, music in Market Square and crafts for children. Pantomime characters from Pumpkin Pantos join the line-up.
FreeDirections
25 Nov to 23 Dec
MuseumsBasingstoke · 1 km
A Christmas Carol Experience at Milestones
A new walk-through version of Dickens' A Christmas Carol, staged across the museum's streets, where visitors follow Scrooge through Christmas Past, Present and Future and meet the characters along the way. Evening slots run until 7.30pm on selected dates.
Ticketed with timed start slots. The ticket also gives 12 months of entry to Milestones. Check prices on the official site.Directions
5 Dec to 6 Dec
Christmas marketsBasingstoke · 1 km
Milestones Christmas Market
A weekend Christmas market of more than 40 stalls set in the indoor Victorian streets of Milestones, Hampshire's museum of everyday life. Expect local makers, seasonal food and music, and a later finish on the Saturday.
Ticketed. Check the price when booking on the official site.Directions
24 Oct to 1 Nov
HalloweenBasingstoke · 2 km
The Strange Science of Jekyll and Hyde
Milestones Museum in Basingstoke runs a Victorian-themed Halloween event during October half-term. Children judge a Victorian science fair, try hands-on experiments and watch live science shows.
Check the event page for current prices.Directions
21 Nov to 3 Jan
History and heritageSherborne St John · 4 km
Twelve Days of Christmas at The Vyne
The Vyne decorates the ground floor of its Tudor house around the carol The Twelve Days of Christmas, with many pieces made by volunteers and nine illuminated paper dresses by artist Jennifer Collier. Outside, a garden trail has ten games for children aged 2 and over.
Included with normal admission; free for National Trust members.Directions
7 Nov
Fireworks and bonfiresBasingstoke · 5 km
Hatch Warren Fireworks Spectacular
Hatch Warren Community Centre's Fireworks Spectacular lights up the sky over Hatch Warren and Beggarwood. Food stalls, glow-in-the-dark accessories and a DJ come before the display, and the proceeds support the community centre's projects.
From £14Directions
Rainy day ideas near Basingstoke
Indoor and rainy dayBasingstoke · under 1 km
Basingstoke Sports Centre Soft Play
The soft play area at Basingstoke Sports Centre, run by Better. Birthday parties range from soft play to pool parties, with booking recommended.
Under £10Directions
Photo: Stephen McKay, CC BY-SA 2.0MuseumsBasingstoke · 2 km
Milestones Museum
A museum in Basingstoke Leisure Park with hands-on science and history for families, plus Christmas experiences in the autumn and winter. It is an indoor option for rainy days and school holidays.
£10 to £25Directions
Photo: Alfterfoto, CC BY-SA 4.0History and heritageSherborne St John · 4 km
The Vyne
A Tudor mansion in Sherborne St John, home of the Sandys and Chute families for more than 500 years. The house has state rooms, servants' quarters and gardens, with a family trail in the autumn.
Check on the official site for admission prices. National Trust members go free. The Georgian exhibition tours have a suggested donation of £5 per person.Directions
Animals and wildlifeHook · 6 km
Miller's Ark Animals
A working farm near Hook with pigs, goats, donkeys, lambs and sheep, where visitors can meet animals during a pre-booked visit. The Old Dairy tea barn serves food and cake on open days.
£10 to £25Directions
Free things to do near Basingstoke
Photo: Fernweh, CC BY-SA 2.0OutdoorsOld Basing · 2 km
Basing Lime Pits
A former private estate on Basingstoke Common, now a place to walk, play and picnic. Its play area has a 30-metre zip wire, and the site is on the Basingstoke Canal Heritage Footpath Trail, which ends at Basing House.
FreeDirections
Photo: Mr Ignavy, CC BY-SA 2.0OutdoorsBasingstoke · 6 km
Beggarwood Park
A Green Flag woodland park and Local Nature Reserve in Basingstoke, with a toddler and junior play area, outdoor gym equipment, a pump track and the Café in the Park.
FreeDirections
Further afield from Basingstoke
OutdoorsOdiham · 9 km
Basingstoke Canal at Odiham
The Hampshire end of the Basingstoke Canal, with the canal navigable to King John's Castle at Odiham. Walks follow the towpath, and boat trips run on the canal in season.
Boat trips are booked online through the Basingstoke Canal Society. Check the official site for current prices.Directions
OutdoorsTadley · 10 km
Pamber Forest
A 214 hectare nature reserve of woodland, pasture and streams, run by the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust. A two mile waymarked trail runs through the reserve, and the wet woodland of Upper Inhams Copse is cool in summer.
FreeDirections
History and heritageSilchester · 11 km
Silchester Roman Town (Calleva Atrebatum)
The walls and amphitheatre of Calleva Atrebatum, a Roman town near Silchester. The site is in open countryside and is free to visit in daylight hours.
FreeDirections
Photo: Des Blenkinsopp, CC BY-SA 2.0Family days outRiseley · 14 km
Wellington Country Park
A park of more than 350 acres of woodland, lakes and adventure on the Hampshire and Berkshire border, near Riseley. Families can visit the animal farm and the miniature train, with nature trails and play areas.
Day tickets must be pre-booked online and prices vary by date. Check the official booking site for 2026 and 2027 prices. Annual pass and complimentary ticket holders do not need to pre-book.Directions
Plan by season
Nearby towns
- Things to do in Alton (15 km)
- Things to do in Fleet (18 km)
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- Things to do in Winchester (28 km)
- Things to do in Andover (28 km)