Summer Spectacular: Week Two

To help keep your holidays super fun, creative and budget friendly, there will be 63 unique activity ideas to unlock. Each week, another seven ideas, plus a puzzle, will be released. This is Week Two. Check out the full schedule here. We hope you find some great ideas to keep you entertained!

This week, we're celebrating Black Country Day, as well as discovering unusual hidden gems, appreciating the many languages spoken across the UK and creating our own kooky fictional characters.

Plus, in case of rainy weather, there's a brand-new puzzle for you to crack. Teresa Trayals is logging the whereabouts of eight artefacts from living museums. Seven are safe and sound, but the eighth is missing! Can you help her track the seven down and reveal which one she still needs to find? Check the answers here when you've solved it.

Here are the seven activities for this week...

We love hunting for hidden gems, whether in our local areas or new places. If you head off the beaten track, you never know what curious feature you might find.

Today, investigate a weird and wonderful hidden gem or curious attraction in your area, like St Dunstan in the East, a Blitz-damaged church turned tranquil garden tucked away in the heart of London, or Alnwick Poison Garden, home to 100 of the deadliest plants.

Need inspiration? Check out these ten quirky hidden gems across the UK.

Sometimes, a digital adventure is great fun - like using the Treasure Trails app, geocaching, following an audio-guide walk, etc. But having a digital detox on your adventure can be just as fun!

Ditch the devices and navigate using just maps and road signs, or try orienteering with a map and a compass if you have them. You could even try a penny walk, where you flip a coin to decide which road or path to take.

Remember to keep safe - make a note of your location as you go, and make sure you have access to a device in case of emergency.

Summer can be a stressful time for kids and parents, and calming jars are a great way to help de-stress after a busy, chaotic day, no matter your age.

Making calming, or calm down, jars is super easy and lots of fun. Even better - most of the items you'll need can be found in your house or at a low cost in a craft shop. Check out these ideas here, then try making your own colourful calming jars to help you relax.

We hope you're not afraid of heights! Today, head to the top floor of the tallest public access building in your area, or find another way to (safely and legally) get a bird's eye view - like a Ferris wheel, city walls or a hill.

How far can you see? Can you spot any landmarks you recognise? Take a deep breath and enjoy the cracking view. 

If you're a fan of the high life, why not search for a penthouse or rooftop restaurant/bar so you can enjoy the view for even longer?

Do you know how many living languages there are in the UK? Thirteen!

There's English, Welsh, Scots, Scottish Gaelic, Ulster Scots, Irish and Cornish, three spoken in traveller communities (Angloromani, Shelta and Beurla Reagaird) and three sign languages (British, Irish and Northern Ireland)! Plus, there are countless other languages spoken here every day.

Today, pick a new language and teach yourself to say hello, please, thank you, and ask for directions. Choose a language spoken in a place you’d like to visit or the language of a community you frequently interact with.

There's no question that some of the best stories out there - whether for kids or adults - have iconic characters. Roald Dahl created some of the wackiest characters, and his children's books are still read decades later. Lewis Carrol had Alice, Agatha Christie had Poirot and Miss Marple. Books like Charlotte's Web and The Wind in the Willows show that animals can be fantastic characters too.  

Your challenge is to create your own fictional character, either for a novel written by an existing author or for your own fictional universe. What's their name? Their history? Are they human? Animal? Alien? What do they have for dinner? What is their biggest dream? What is unusual about them? When you've written up a profile, draw them!

It's Black Country Day - a day to celebrate the industrial centre of England.

Did you know that the Black Country is home to a brilliant living museum where 300 years of history, heritage and culture can be experienced? Today, plan a visit to one of the UK’s brilliant Living History Museums, like the Black Country Living Museum in the Midlands, the Highland Folk Museum in Scotland, or St Fagans in Wales. Or, plan your own exhibition for a (real or imaginary) Living History Museum in your local area.

If you can't get out to one of these fab places in person, you can explore the Black Country Living Museum and seven others in this week's puzzle.

Every Saturday, a new week of fun ideas will be unlocked. This is week two, and one week of ideas is already available - check the main page to see what you've missed!

If you can't wait until Saturday, head to our Hidden Treasure blog to discover even more activity and exploration inspiration, like Holiday Bingo and the 30 Days Outdoors challenge.