Why go there? See this historic and cosmopolitan city before the Olympics crowds descend next year. Children will love... The Dinosaur Gallery at the Natural History Museum, toy shopping in Hamleys and the hands-on art activities at Tate Modern

for a family break. For children, there’s a cabin bedroom, a den with beanbags, baskets of toys and nursery equipment, plus enclosed gardens. The Mill can sleep six adults and four children, plus cots, with prices starting from £6,000 per week.The Cove

-bonding time with his grandfather when they set off together on an expedition to find a toy shop and came back armed with an enormous tub of unspeakably gooey stuff (it’s an unspoken grandparent prerogative that they can buy stuff that parents might not