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Day trips / Wirral coast

From Seacombe to West Kirby: a Wirral coast trail for kids with a ferry, a free farm and two beaches

Take the ferry over, do the science museum in the terminal, the beach and soft play at New Brighton, the free farm on Bidston Hill and finish with the walk round West Kirby Marine Lake. One trail, mostly by train, with what each stop costs.

By FamDays · Checked 19 October 2026 · Published 28 October 2026A full dayAll ages

The Mersey Ferry Snowdrop in its dazzle paint on the river, with the Liverpool waterfront behind

There is a version of the Wirral coast that is a traffic jam at the tunnel and a car park at West Kirby. There is a better one that starts on a boat.

Stop one: the ferry and the science museum

Take the Mersey Ferry from the Pier Head to Seacombe. The River Explorer runs on the hour, 50 minutes for the round trip, but you can get off at Seacombe, because Eureka! Science and Discovery is inside the ferry terminal. It is the children's science museum, £16.95 online for anyone 3 and over, £7.45 for a toddler and babies free, with the first paid visit becoming a 12 month pass. Term time hours are short, Wednesday to Friday 10am to 3pm and weekends to 4pm, so check before promising it.

Stop two: New Brighton

Two stops up the line, or a walk along the prom, New Brighton has the sandy beach, the Marine Lake, lifeguards in season, playgrounds at Tower Grounds and toilets at Harrison Drive. Marine Point behind it has Bubbles World of Play for the wet hour and The Light with Family Specials from £5.75, and a free car park. There are chip shops and ice cream, as there should be at the seaside, and we will leave the ranking of them to you.

Stop three: the free farm

Tam O'Shanter Urban Farm sits beside Bidston Hill, a short drive or a bus from Birkenhead North. It is free, open every day except Christmas, with level paths through all the animal areas, a cafe, toilets and free parking by the entrance. It runs on donations, so put something in the box.

Stop four: West Kirby

Finish at West Kirby Marine Lake, five minutes from the station, where the lake wall is a flat walk with the beach on one side and the water on the other, and the council's watersports centre hires kayaks and paddleboards by the hour when conditions allow. The Dee Lane car park is pay and display from £1.20 an hour. If there is daylight left, Wirral Country Park at Thurstaston is ten minutes on with a visitor centre, a cafe, a beach and the start of the Wirral Way.

The FamDays verdict

A boat, a science museum, a beach, a free farm and a lake wall, in that order, is a full day for the price of the ferry and the museum. Skip Eureka! if the budget is tight and it is a day out for under a tenner a head on the train.

Plan your visit

Getting thereMersey Ferry from the Pier Head to Seacombe (under 5s free, child £9, family £39), then Merseyrail Wirral line between New Brighton, Birkenhead North and West Kirby; by car the M53 and A554
Eureka!£16.95 online for 3 and over, toddler £7.45, baby free; the first paid visit becomes a 12 month pass; pay and display car park £3.50 for three hours
New BrightonBeach, Marine Lake and playgrounds free; toilets at Harrison Drive; free car park at Marine Point, locked at 6pm
Tam O'ShanterFree, donations, free parking by the entrance, open daily except Christmas
West KirbyBeach and lake wall free; Dee Lane car park pay and display from £1.20 an hour; watersports hire charged per craft, ring 0151 606 2010
ToiletsEureka!, Marine Point, Tam O'Shanter and West Kirby all list them

Everything families need to know before visiting

Can you get off the Mersey Ferry at Seacombe?

Yes. Eureka! Science and Discovery is in the Seacombe terminal building. Check Mersey Ferries' timetable for the return sailings.

Is New Brighton beach good for young children?

It has sand, lifeguards in season, toilets at Harrison Drive and playgrounds at Tower Grounds, with soft play and a cinema at Marine Point for the wet hour.

How much does the Wirral coast trail cost?

The ferry is £39 for a family of four, Eureka! is £16.95 a head for 3 and over, and the beach, the farm and the lake wall are free.

The places in this guide

Live from our checked listings: prices, ages and when each one was last confirmed.

8 places
The white curved building of Bubbles World of Play on the New Brighton seafrontPhoto: Mike Faherty, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
From £2.50
All agesStandard (non member) prices. Off peak, Mon to Fri school days, stay and play all day: babies 0 to 5 months 2 pounds, 6 to 11 months 4.50, toddlers 1 to 2 years 6.50, children 3 to 11 years 8.50, adults and over 11s 2.50. Peak, weekends and school holidays, 2 hour sessions: 0 to 5 months 2.50, 6 to 11 months 6.50, 1 to 2 years 12, 3 to 11 years 14.50, adults and over 11s 3.50. Member prices are about 50p lower. Socks compulsory, 1 pound a pair from reception. Prices subject to change per the site.
Checked by FamDays on 17 Oct
The Seacombe ferry terminal building, home of Eureka! Science and DiscoveryPhoto: El Pollock, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
From £16.95
All agesOnline prices: adult (16 and over) £16.95, child (3 and over) £16.95, toddler (1 to 2) £7.45, baby under 1 free. Walk up prices are £2 higher per paid ticket (adult and child £18.95, toddler £9.45) and subject to availability. Every member of the group, including babies, needs a ticket.
Checked by FamDays on 17 Oct
The Mersey Ferry Snowdrop in its dazzle paint on the river, with the Liverpool waterfront behindPhoto: Rodhullandemu, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
From £9
All agesAdult (16 and over) £14.00, child (5 to 15) £9.00, under 5s free, concession (over 60s and student card holders) £12.50. Family ticket for 2 adults and up to 2 children £39.00; 2 adults and 3 children £42.00. Online tickets can be used on any date or time.
Checked by FamDays on 17 Oct
New Brighton beach with Perch Rock lighthouse at low tidePhoto: Jeff Buck, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Price not listed
All agesWirral Council does not publish a dedicated page for New Brighton beach or the Marine Lake, so admission (presumed open foreshore) and any lake charges could not be confirmed from an official source.
Checked by FamDays on 19 Oct
The dovecote and paddock at Tam O'Shanter Urban Farm, BidstonPhoto: El Pollock, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Free
All agesThe site describes itself as a free urban farm and asks visitors to make a donation or fundraise for the farm.
Checked by FamDays on 17 Oct
Sailing dinghies on West Kirby Marine LakePhoto: Steve Daniels, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Free
All agesWalking the lake wall and beach is not charged on any council page found. Using the lake is charged: the council fees directory lists a Marine Lake day ticket of £14.35 for 2025/26 and £14.90 for 2026/27 (for bringing your own craft), and the council news site quotes Pay and Play hire of kayaks, paddleboards and Funboats at £18 per hour per craft (June 2025). Dee Lane public toilets cost 30p per visit.
Checked by FamDays on 19 Oct
The pond by the visitor centre at Wirral Country Park, ThurstastonPhoto: Jeff Buck, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Free
All agesCountry park with no stated entry charge. Car parking is paid (charges on a separate council page, not captured). Bike hire is available and presumably charged.
Checked by FamDays on 17 Oct
From £5.75
All agesFamily Special screenings from 5.75 pounds a ticket every Saturday and Sunday, and Monday to Friday in school holidays and on bank holidays; special event screenings may cost extra. Toddler Time screenings from 3.99 pounds per child with the parent or carer free. Family Ticket for four: adults pay the kids price on standard price films. Standard adult and child ticket prices were not captured.
Checked by FamDays on 17 Oct

Read next

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Local parent insider tips

Before you set off

  • Check the tide before the beachCrosby's Iron Men are covered for about an hour either side of high water and the council warns of soft sand and mud, so stay within 50 metres of the promenade. At West Kirby, Hilbre Island is only reachable on a falling tide. Liverpool Gladstone Dock tide times cover both.
  • Book the big ones, turn up to the small onesThe safari park, the big soft plays and anything with a timed entry sell out in school holidays. Parks, beaches, most museums and the libraries never do. Every card says whether you need to book.
  • Train beats car for the coast and the centreMerseyrail stops next to the beach at Crosby, Freshfield and Southport, and under the museums at Liverpool Central. Under 5s travel free and a Saveaway covers the day after 9.30 on weekdays and all day at weekends.
  • How we checkEvery listing is rechecked against the venue's own website every week, and each card shows the date it was last confirmed. If something has changed since, the Tell us link on every page reaches a person who fixes it.

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Prices and hours in this guide come from each venue's own website on the day we checked them, and the cards above update every morning. Always check with the venue before you set off.