CHILDREN can take advantage of a range of activities at the V&A Waterfront this winter. The locale is determined not to let rain end play, and a full line-up of activities have been planned to keep children busy.
A Reptile Garden will house some of South Africa’s most fascinating reptiles in Jubilee Hall in the Watershed for the month of June, making for an exciting excursion for parents and children during the upcoming school holidays. From Rock Monsters to Monty the Giant Python and the twin boa constrictors on display, visitors will be able to gaze on reptiles of all shapes and sizes, watch live snake shows, learn a little more about our scaly friends via educational short films on show, read fascinating facts and stats about reptiles at a pop-up Reptile Lab, and meet experienced snake handlers.
Running from 18 June to 18 July access to the Reptile Garden also includes sand art, LEGO tables and a PlayStation terminal. The Reptile Garden is open daily from 10am to 6pm, and tickets are available from www.webtickets.co.za
A skill-building pumptrack consisting of 50 metres of fun is what children of all ages will encounter at a new temporary pumptrack between June 25 and July 17. A pumptrack is a continuous track where the rider uses an up and down ‘pumping’ motion to propel a bicycle/scooter forward instead of pedalling, providing a good tool to learn skills.
Open from 10.30am to 3.30pm daily, helmets, bikes and scooters will be provided free, and the fun is not restricted to children.
High-energy creativity and playful fun will be the order of the day at an Innovation Station, scheduled daily over the holiday period. Parents are invited to bring their little ones to the Centre Court for workshops that focus on encouraging exploration and stimulating children’s imaginations and problem-solving skills as they tumble around in a safe environment.
Overseen by four facilitators, this year’s workshop theme is ‘recycling’ and seeks to instil environmental appreciation. The daily workshops will focus on the processes of designing, prototyping and playing with recyclable materials. It will run at the Centre Court within the Victoria Wharf Shopping Centre from June 28 to July 10 between 11am and 6pm. No bookings required. Note: Depending on demand at the time, play time at the Innovation Station may be limited to one hour per child.
There’ll also be racous roughhousing, basically Rugbytots for little ones where you can encourage your future Springbok with sporting sessions designed to fill a gap in the childhood development sector using rugby-specific skills. Rugbytots hopes to develop children’s physical, psychological, and social attributes, and encourage rugby specific skills.
Two Holiday Clubs will run this winter, with the first scheduled for July 4 to 8 and the second from July 11 to 15. Each Holiday Club will have three classes per day, organised by age group. Sessions have been organised for children aged 2 to 3, 3 to 5, and 5 to 7 years, and will take place on the Croquet Lawn. Pre-booking is essential: www.rugbytots.co.za
The world’s largest floating book fair, Logos Hope, will soon visit Cape Town, bringing with it a wealth of knowledge.
Docked at Jetty 2 at the V&A Waterfront from June 24 to July 11, parents are encouraged to bring their children aboard the vessel to browse the wide book selection and meet volunteer crew, who span 55 different nationalities. More than 5 000 book titles are available for purchase.
l Information: 021 408 7600, info@waterfront.co.za