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Mum blogger's tips for half term trips on a budget

Liz Saul
BBC News, South East
Liz Saul/BBC A lady with long, straight brown hair, wearing a light blue top, standing by the side of a large stream and in front of a mature tree, partly hanging over the water.Liz Saul/BBC
Natalie Smith who runs the Frugal Mum website enjoys free days out with her children and is sharing her tips with other families

Family days out don't have to cost the earth, according to a Kent blogger.

Natalie Smith, who lives on the coast near Hythe, runs the Frugal Mum website and has written a top 15 of places to visit in the county.

Her list of budget-friendly days out include locations that are either completely free or good value for money.

"You can spend a day and not spend any money," she told BBC Radio Kent.

One of the places she recommends is Brockhill Country Park, Hythe.

"The kids can really roam free," she said. "It's massive - even when it is the school holidays you can find a corner for yourself, there's a stream, places for the kids to climb and roll down hills."

Mrs Smith also includes Kearsney Abbey Gardens in Dover on her list.

"There's a big lake, it's very pretty, loads of open spaces; huge fields to kick a football around and have a picnic," she said.

A third place to enjoy in Kent, according to the Frugal Mum list, is the award-winning Mote Park in Maidstone.

It has 450 acres of grassland and woodland, as well as a 30-acre lake, a river, pedalos and high ropes.

Liz Saul/BBC A large stream in a country park, with a patch of milldew, on one part of the relatively clear water to one side. large trees are on either side of the banks. There's a yellow colour contraption wich aids the churn of the water in the stream.Liz Saul/BBC
The stream at Brockhill Country Park, Hythe

Frugal Mum's Top 15 day trips

  • Brockhill Country Park, Hythe
  • Mote Park, Maidstone
  • Folkestone Three Peaks Challenge
  • West Hythe river walk
  • Kearsney Abbey and Russell Gardens, Dover
  • Toddler's Cove, Canterbury
  • Dymchurch Beach, Romney Marsh
  • Betteshanger Country Park, Deal
  • Lower Leas Coastal Park, Folkestone
  • Viking Bay Beach, Broadstairs
  • Headcorn Aerodrome
  • The Wye Downs, Ashford
  • Walmer Paddling Pool, Deal
  • Bedgebury National Pinetum and Forest, Goudhurst
  • Samphire Hoe, Dover

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