Whether the weather suggests indoor or outdoor activity, Newcastle is a city with amenities providing for the needs of locals and visitors alike. Families will find plenty to occupy their time with a plethora of natural and manmade attractions to choose from. There are numerous open spaces where games and sports can be enjoyed, as well as purpose-built facilities catering to more specific requirements.

Blue Reef Aquarium
Entertainment for all the family is to be found at the Blue Reef Aquarium located just outside of the city in the Tynemouth area. The aquarium is home to a vast selection of sea creatures including sharks, seals, otters and numerous fish and shellfish. To enhance the experience, talks are given and feeding is scheduled for various times of the day. 
Phone: +44 191 258 1031; www.bluereefaquarium.co.uk  

Bowling
An ideal family activity for the evening or for a damp afternoon, 10-pin bowling can be enjoyed by visitors of all ages and absolutely no experience is necessary to do so. Newcastle has a number of bowling centres within the centre and in its environs, with the NAMCO Centre on Whitley Road (phone: +44 191 215 0901), Megabowl at the Gateshead Metro Centre (phone: +44 191 460 0444) and AMF Bowling on Westgate Road (phone: +44 844 826 3025), among the best.

Cinema
Keep the kids happy on a grey day with a trip to one of the city’s movie theatres, where chances are there’ll be showings of at least one Hollywood production geared towards a family audience. The Empire Newcastle-Upon-Tyne (phone: +44 8714 714 714) and Tyneside Cinema (phone: +44 191 232 8289) are the main facilities in the city but there are others located in neighbouring areas.

Fishing
With the city sitting on the banks of the mighty Tyne River, visitors can be sure that there are some excellent angling opportunities on offer. A fishing license is necessary and can be obtained from the Environment Agency (www.environment-agency.gov.uk/subjects/fish/). The city also has a good selection of shops selling tackle and essential fishing paraphernalia.

Golf
Though you can’t always rely on the weather to produce favourable playing conditions, genuine enthusiasts of the game are rarely put off by such things and hence will undoubtedly enjoy a round or two at any of the many golf courses spread across the Tyneside area. To play at private courses you’ll need an invitation from an existing member but at municipal courses such as Parklands Golf Club, Wallsend Golf Club and Westerhope Golf Club, anyone can play provided they pay the required course fees.

Parks
The city is home to a number of parks at which both relaxation and outdoor activities can be pursued. On dry days, you’ll find locations such as Nuns Moor Park, Jesmond Dene Park, Leazes Park and Washington Waterfowl Park, busy with locals walking their dogs, enjoying picnics, playing sports or just taking a leisurely stroll.

Chances to enjoy attractions and activities with history and cultural heritage as their central themes are plentiful on a holiday to Newcastle. The Beamish Open Air Museum is the highlight for many, offering an authentic taste of Tyneside life of yesteryear. For art enthusiasts, there is a good selection of galleries available, with the impressive Laing Art Gallery presenting itself as one of the most impressive.

Beamish Open Air Museum
A mere 30 minutes from the city by car, this fascinating museum offers visitors an insight into life in a northern town in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Set in 300 acres of Tyne and Wear countryside, this fascinating visitor centre focuses on the years 1825 and 1913 in its highly entertaining approach to depicting typical aspects of existence for those residing in northeastern England at the time. 
Phone: +44 191 370 4000; www.beamish.org.uk/Home.aspx  

Bede's World
Details of the life of the famous Benedictine monk from Northumbria known as the Venerable Bede are available to all at this unique museum and visitor centre. The chief attraction is the interactive Age of Bede exhibition, while other highlights include the site of the Anglo-Saxon monastery of St Paul, the herb garden and the Anglo-Saxon demonstration farm known as Gyrwe. 
Phone: +44 191 489 2106; www.bedesworld.co.uk  

Laing Art Gallery
Art enthusiasts and anyone with an appreciation of aesthetics will enjoy a trip to the popular Laing Art Gallery, at which visiting exhibitions complement an excellent selection of exhibits from its permanent collections. The latter is split into categories such as 18th- and 19th-century works and the Barbour Watercolour Gallery, while the former frequently features works of contemporary European artists. 
Phone: +44 191 232 6789; www.twmuseums.org.uk/laing  

Hancock Museum
Located northwest of the Civic Centre, the Hancock Museum is a good choice for anyone with interests in nature or natural history. The museum’s collection is composed of items obtained from the private collection of Marmaduke Tunstall of Wycliffe and includes fossils, minerals, Egyptian mummies and zoological exhibits.

Discovery Museum
This fascinating edutainment centre presents a wealth of information relating to life past and present in Newcastle and Tyneside from perspectives such as technology, science and military and maritime history. Packed with countless interactive displays, the museum offers something interesting for visitors, young and old alike. 
Phone: +44 191 232 6789; www.twmuseums.org.uk/discovery  

Newcastle upon Tyne doesn’t really have anything that could be considered local cuisine and tends to serve the same fare that is typical of the rest of England. For those unfamiliar with it, English or British cuisine is famous for dishes such as fish and chips, Sunday roast, toad in the hole and bubble and squeak. Of these, the Sunday roast is the essential meal to sample with combinations such as roast beef and Yorkshire pudding, roast lamb and mint sauce or roast chicken with stuffing among the favourites.

Finding somewhere to dine in the city is by no means a challenging task, with eateries located across its length. The British are fond of their own interpretation of Indian cuisine, so you can be sure you’ll find plenty of restaurants at which to enjoy a chicken tikka masala, a lamb balti or a beef rogan josh. The city also has a great Chinatown in which a plethora of eateries serve top-notch Asian food. Italian, French, Mexican and Middle Eastern restaurants can also be found in the city.

If you feel the need to pick up a new outfit or some accessories to wear for evening dinner then Newcastle’s Eldon Square Shopping Centre is a good place to start looking. With stores such as John Lewis and Fenwick located there, it’s definitely one of the city’s better retail areas. Nearby is Northumberland Street, the city’s main shopping street and the place where you’ll find popular names such as HMV, Marks & Spencer, Next and H&M.

Outside of the city’s central area, good shopping can be found at the MetroCentre, in nearby Gateshead. This massive covered mall is actually Europe’s largest indoor shopping centre and visitors can easily spend an entire day in there enjoying its retail pleasures as well as the edible delights on offer at its extensive food court.