So the kids are off again and you're no doubt wondering where to take them this half term without spending a small fortune.
Well fear not, because as well as our amazing list of fun packed days out we've already shared with you, we've been on the hunt for events that won't cost you a single penny.
You might be pleasantly surprised by the number of FREE events we've found in and around Greater Manchester this February half term.
Here's what's happening where and when...
Stick Man Trail, Hulme Community Garden Centre
There's a free Stick Man trail for all to enjoy at this hidden gem of a garden centre throughout half term.
Families are welcome to pick up a trail sheet in the shop and get exploring. Once you've completed it you can get a certificate to take home.
Thanks to the support of Stick Man brand owner Magic Light Pictures and Social Farms and Gardens, the trail has been created to encourage urban children to get outdoors and explore the natural world.
Based on the much-loved picture book written by Julia Donaldson and illustrated by Axel Scheffler, the self-guided trail is designed to help children 'go on their own adventure with the character', find out more about the natural world and learn how things grow.
It promises 'an interactive learning experience' through brightly coloured boards featuring Stick Man and other characters from the picture book.
Recommended for children aged around three to eight, it can be done between the centre's opening times of 10.30am to 4.30pm on Sundays, or 10am to 5pm the rest of the week.
Manager Rachel Summerscales says the trail 'takes an hour, allowing time for a play at each stop, but some children take hours'.
Adults can enjoy coffee and cake from the cafe - open Thursday to Sunday - or families are welcome to take their own food and drinks along.
There's lots more to enjoy at the centre too, including a sand pit, tree house and mud kitchen, plus 'lots of other nooks and crannies'.
Weekly Garden Explorers for preschoolers take place every Thursday at 11am and older siblings are welcome in school holidays.
Visit the centre's Facebook page for more details.
GMP Museum open days, Manchester
The Greater Manchester Police Museum is hosting free open days this half term.
The events, from 10.30am to 3.30pm, focus on different units within the police force from the North West Underwater Search and Recovery Unit to the Tactical Dog Unit and the North West Ambulance Service.
They are running on Tuesday, February 19 and Thursday, February 21 . Last admission is 3pm and families are encouraged not to take prams along to give more space.
57A Newton Street, Manchester, M1 1ET.
Bolton Library and Museum, Bolton
Home to Bolton's Egypt exhibition, which opened last year, there's lots for children of all ages to see and do at Bolton Museum.
Families can see the new 'Land and People' gallery is the largest and brightest gallery space there, offering 'a vivid celebration of life in Ancient Egypt'.
Five large glass archways are filled with artefacts relating to the everyday lives of Ancient Egyptian people.
You can walk beneath the arches, with mass displays of objects surrounding you, to an evocative chorus of river sounds, bird calls, voices, music and children playing.
As well as the exhibition itself, the Central Library and Museum building also houses Greater Manchester's only public aquarium, where you can meet exotic fish, creatures and wildlife from all over the world, including flesh eating piranhas from South America.
There’ll be fish feeds in the aquarium at 1pm on Tuesday, February 19 and Thursday, February 21.
The museum is open 9am to 5pm on Saturday and 10am to 4pm on Sunday. To find out more, visit the website.
Free wildlife trail, Notcutts
The Notcutts garden centres in Ashton and Stockport are hosting a free wildlife trail over half term.
From February 16 to 24, children can join the hunt for woodland characters like Harold the Hedgehog and Ruby the Robin.
There’s a sweet treat for every wildlife watcher who can find all the creatures and unscramble the hidden word at the end of the trail.
Both centres will also be holding free sessions where youngsters can meet the garden centres’ resident pets from Monday to Friday, 11am and 3pm throughout half term.
Over in the restaurant, children can also enjoy a free hot meal with any adult main meal from 12 midday throughout February.
For £5 there is a craft activity where little ones can decorate their own bird feeder to take home.
Manchester Art Gallery, Manchester
Free playful activities for all ages are hosted by the gallery with award-winning artist-led workshops for families throughout the school holidays.
The Clore Art Studio is an interactive family space developed by artists, which you can access every day. Borrow an explorer toolbelt to help you look and connect with the collection artworks.
The holiday sessions are suitable for all ages - with two artists, one with an early years specialism and one who develops activities for older children.
From February 20 to 23 there'll be Costume Factory, Family Friendly Art Sessions between 1pm and 3pm. Drop in any time, no need to book.
Science and Industry Museum, Manchester
There are lots of free activities on at the museum over the break, including the chance to see Stephenson’s Rocket, one of the world’s first train engines and marvel at the earliest intercity passenger railway station where Rocket worked.
Rocket Racers workshops are running for kids age seven and over where they can create and build their very own train to travel down the track.
This activity is free, but booking at the front desk is required (limited availability).
Younger ones can collect an Early Years Engineers Power Pack from the front desk and join in a special tour of the Power Hall where under fours can help keep engines in tip top condition.
There's a free family Science Showdown show on twice a day from February 16 to 24, at 11.30am and again at 1.30pm.
Families are invited to join the 'Explainers for explosions, surprising science and some gravity-defying activities'.
There's a Victorian Fairground running outside if you do have money to spend on the likes of the carousel and helter skelter. These are running from 10.30am to 4.30pm between February 16 and 24 and cost £2 a ride.
For more on those and other activities at the museum, visit the website here.
Things to do with the kids
Jurassic Experience, Middleton
If you've got a little dinosaur fan in the family then you won't want to miss this event.
For one day only, Middleton Shopping Centre will be welcoming a 13ft Tyrannosaurus Rex.
Family audiences can enjoy three prehistoric shows featuring an intrepid paleontologist and his assistant as they come face to face with the T-Rex, one of the most well-represented of the large theropods, and watch the hatching of a baby dinosaur.
The shows take place at 11.30am, 1pm and 3pm on Wednesday, February 20.
Children will also get the chance to make and colour their own Dino Snapper at craft workshops during the day.
Parents must stay with their children throughout and some acts are dependent on weather conditions and subject to change.
Games galore, The Printworks
There's some great free fun on offer at The Printworks too.
Parents are invited to challenge the kids to a giant sized board game, including jenga and snakes and ladders, or give them an out-of-this-world Virtual Reality experience with where kids can 'hit the slopes' or go on 'a space pirate adventure'.
The free activities are in the venue's Pump Yard between 12pm and 4pm from February 18 to 22.
There are loads more activities for families to enjoy at The Printworks too, including Treetop Adventure Golf and the escape room Escape Reality. Kids go free at the escape room this half term.
Singing mermaids at intu Trafford Centre
The Trafford Centre's iconic fountains will be welcoming some very special visitors this February half term - in the form of singing mermaids.
Families are being invited to 'enter a wonderful world of magic and fantasy' as the musical 'mermaids' perform hit children's songs including Baby Shark and Somewhere Beyond the Sea.
They'll be appearing at 12pm, 1pm, 2pm and 3pm at the Circe fountain outside Debenhams on lower Regent Crescent on Tuesday, February 19 and again on Thursday, February 21.
Find out more about the event here.
Art workshops at The Whitworth, Manchester
A week of free activities for the whole family is planned at The Whitworth from February 16 to 24.
Drop in to any of the sessions, including the weaving studio, daily between 11am and 3pm, where, inspired by the textile collections and exhibitions, children can explore all things weaving.
A Stitch a Tree Workshop is running on February 19 between 11am and 2pm and is aimed at children aged six to 12 and their families.
Picnic Art Hampers are available at any time filled with art and craft materials for youngsters to enjoy. Find out more on the website here.
Peter Rabbit Activity Trail, The Hive at Moss Bank Park, Bolton
Peter Rabbit and his friends will be hiding in the gardens at the popular Hive at Bolton's Moss Bank Park this half term.
Little ones will be tasked with finding them as part of the free trail which is running from February 19 and 23. It's running from 9.30am to 3pm.
Find out more online. The Wildlife Trust event is free but there's a suggested donation of £1 per person.
The Lookout, The Lowry, Salford
The Lookout is a place where families can play, draw and relax.
Big and little kids can use the space to get inspired and be creative.
The Lookout was renamed in honour of Salford businesswoman and philanthropist, Carol Nash, last year in tribute to her decade-long support for The Lowry.
Drop in and get drawing, design picture frames and make word searches – all inspired by the beautiful Lowry and the Pre-Raphaelites exhibition in the galleries next door.
As well as that, there's a special treat this half term too. Keep a look out for a poster with a special clue, quote the clue at the Tower Coffee Shop and you'll get a free gingerbread cupcake that you can decorate. What more can you want?
The Play House, Great Northern
A new city centre play area featuring a play kitchen, cafe and sand pit has opened in time for half term.
The Play House is in the Ampitheatre outside the Great Northern and offers free play sessions for families and children.
Children can access the bespoke Play House, where they can play at being chef at the made-up café, pretend to cook at the sand kitchen, care for sick toy animals at the animal hospital and enjoy a story at the library.
The Play House also has a small sandpit nearby with plenty of natural materials that can be stacked and moved, allowing kids 'to create their own private den in the middle of Manchester'.
The Great Northern Play House launched on January 30 and is open daily from 10am to 5pm every day. It is aimed at children under five years old and any child must be accompanied by an adult.
Walton Gardens, Warrington
Walton Hall and Gardens in Warrington attracts visitors from far and wide, many of whom visit to see the free Children's Zoo at the site.
Boasting everything from a donkeys, sheep and African Pygmy goats to ducks, guinea pigs, rabbits and a colourful array of birds - including some quite brazen peacocks - it's the park's most popular attraction.
There's a huge children's playground for kids to enjoy and if you do have some spare cash, the park is hosting an ice rink over half term, inside the Old Riding School.
Tickets, from £4, have gone on sale for the hourly sessions, which are running from 10am to 6pm between Monday, February 18 and Friday, February 22.
To find out more about the rink and to book tickets, visit the website here.
Free trips on Northern trains
OK, so it's not completely free, as you still have to pay for yourself, but the kids can travel for free on Northern trains this half term.
The offer, which applies to selected off-peak tickets between February 17 and March 3, is available to customers when booking tickets online or via the Northern app.
The Kids Go Free campaign will also see Northern entertaining families at stations across its network with a troop of face painters and circus performers.
Tickets can be purchased using the Northern website and Northern app – customers should use the promotional code, KIDS at the checkout.
