Madame Tussauds, Blackpool

The world's 12th Madame Tussauds (0871 282 9200, madametussauds.com) opens in Blackpool on 21 April. Take the kids to see heroes including David Beckham, Cheryl Cole and Ant and Dec. Adults may have to explain who "Blackpool Originals" Barbara Windsor, Benny Hill and Ken Dodd are.
• Book online and go before 8 May for £7.20pp, or before 1 July for £9.60pp

Pleasure Beach, Blackpool

Several characters are making the leap from screens to screams at Nickelodeon Land (0871 222 1234, nick.co.uk/nickelodeonland) opening on 4 May at Blackpool Pleasure Beach. Try SpongeBob's Splash Bash, the Avatar Airbender, or the Rugrats Lost River.
• Wristbands for a family of four £86 online at blackpoolpleasurebeach.com

Camelot Theme Park, Lancashire

The new King Arthur's Birds of Prey Centre at this park near Chorley (01257 453044, camelotthemepark.co.uk) will wow young ornithologists. Eagles, owls, vultures and hawks take to the skies in two displays a day. As well as rides, there are daily jousting displays, and magic shows with Merlin himself.
• Tickets for a family of four £64 online, £70 at the gate

Martin Mere Wetland Centre, Lancashire

Explore this wetland centre (01704 895181, wwt.org.uk/martin-mere), by boat this year. Three people take to a Canadian-style canoe on a self-guided journey around reed beds, woodland and swamp, spotting wildlife.
• Tickets for family of four £26.50. £5 per canoe; groups can pre-book

Legoland Discovery Centre, Manchester

Little wizards and witches will love a new ride, Merlin's Apprentice, at the Legoland Discovery Centre (0871 222 2662, legolanddiscoverycentre.co.uk/manchester) in the Trafford Centre. Each pod goes faster and higher the harder the kids pedal.
• Minimum ride height 90cm. Tickets for a family of four from £30 online

Chester Zoo

Painted Dogs is a new African-themed area at Chester Zoo (01244 380280, chesterzoo.org), with porcupines and a pack of seven African hunting dogs. Later they will be joined by sociable guinea pig-like rock hyraxes.
• Tickets for a family of four are £55, including an optional £5 donation to conservation programmes.

Drayton Manor, Staffordshire

Ben 10: Ultimate Mission is a new roller coaster based on the cartoon show, from 23 April at this park near Tamworth (0844 472 1950, draytonmanor.co.uk). And the fun starts while you're in the queue.
• Ride opens on 23 April. Tickets for a family of four £98

Alton Towers, Staffordshire

As well as all the rides, Alton Towers (0871 222 3330, altontowers.com) has arts and science offerings for children over Easter. The Go!Go!Go! show in the Cloud Cuckoo Land Theatre is a live pop musical, and Mad Science is an interactive range of explosions and experiments – don't miss the water rocket launches on the front lawns.
• Tickets for a family of four from £102

At-Bristol

Children with a scientific bent will like All About Us, a new permanent exhibition about the human body at At-Bristol (0845 345 1235, at-bristol.org.uk). More than 50 exhibits bring biology to life, and there is even a real human brain to examine. Activities in the Live Lab over the holidays include dissection and DNA extraction.
• Tickets for a family of four, £35.50, including voluntary Gift Aid donation

Blue Reef Aquarium, Newquay

The snappy new attraction at Blue Reef (01637 878134, bluereefaquarium.co.uk) is Mini-Crocs, a South American habitat home to two dwarf caimans. Over the holidays, there is a series of predator-themed talks and workshops.
• Tickets for a family of four £31.60

Crealy, Devon and Cornwall

The two Crealy Great Adventure Parks (01395 233200/01841 540276, crealy.co.uk) boast indoor and outdoor rides, and friendly animals. New at the Devon site are meerkats, marmosets and alpacas, plus the Crealy Show Dome, a big top with daily shows. The Cornish site has a new Dizzy Dina ride, and a pony area where everyone wins a rosette.
• Tickets £14.45pp for four or more

Longleat Safari and Adventure Park, Wiltshire

Jungle Kingdom, a new attraction at Longleat (01985 844400, longleat.co.uk) this year, boasts a walk-through meerkat enclosure and miniature monkeys. Visitors can now hand-feed rainbow lorikeets, giraffes and fallow deer. New arrivals include wildebeest, white rhinos, giant anteaters and cape crested porcupines. • Online tickets £23.40 adults, £16.65 children; 10% more at the gate

The London Dungeon

On 28 May, the London Dungeon (0871 423 2240, thedungeons.com) launches Vengeance, a "5D" laser ghost ride. Riders are taken back to a séance in what was said to be the most haunted house in London. And new for Easter is an enhanced version of the Jack the Ripper experience.
• Minimum ride height 1.1m. Tickets from £17.33pp online

Paultons Park, Hampshire

Pre-schoolers will be excited about Peppa Pig World (02380 814442, peppapigworld.co.uk) new at Paultons Family Theme Park in the New Forest. As well as rides and various buildings from the show, there is Daddy Pig's Big Tummy Café and Miss Rabbit's Ice-cream Parlour. The Guardian's three- and five-year-old reviewers gave a big thumbs-up to George's Dinosaur Adventure ride and the Muddy Puddles mini-water park. Dad's advice: bring lots of towels.
• Tickets for a family of four £74 online at paultonspark.co.uk or £80 on the gate; children under a metre tall free

Chessington World of Adventures, Surrey

Chessington (0871 663 4477, chessington.com) is celebrating the 21st birthday of its Vampire rollercoaster until 1 May. The new Twilight Zone is an interactive dark walkthrough with screams around every corner. The first 21 children to arrive in vampire dress each day get in free. Over in the Sea Life centre, Azteca is a new display featuring sharks, rays and parrotfish.
• Tickets for a family of four £88.80 online, £102 at the gate

Adventure Island, Southend

This is Enchantment weekend in Southend's amusement park (01702 443400, adventureisland.co.uk) with Shaolin monks, stilt walkers and more. New rides include a Kiddi Koasta at the end of April, and the terrifying Time Machine roller coaster in summer.
• Wristbands from £7.75 to £23

Thorpe Park, Surrey

New at Thorpe Park (0871 663 1673, thorpepark.com) is Storm Surge, a sky-high spinning ride involving a life raft, a 64ft spiral descent and a line of water cannons. Last one down's a sissy ...
• Minimum ride height 1.1m. Tickets for a family of four £96 online or £105.60 on the gate

W5, Belfast

This Easter at Northern Ireland's award-winning discovery centre (028-9046 7700, w5online.co.uk), kids can try out a new Race the Rainbow egg race. At the Sense exhibition they can see if they've got what it takes to be the next Alex Rider – dodging detectors, cracking a safe – and they can learn about slime or make edible explosions in regular interteractive floorshows.
• Tickets for a family of four £23

Folly Farm, Pembrokeshire

Folly Farm (01834 812731, folly-farm.co.uk) is also a zoo, a funfair, an adventure playground and a classroom. Its new ride, the gentle Big Wheel, is suitable for all, from baby to grandma. Folly Interactive is a new sensory exhibit where visitors can get up close and personal with snakes and birds. But most memorable will probably be the "Whose Poo?" challenge.
• Adults £9, children £8

Scottish Storytelling Centre, Edinburgh

Every child loves a good story, and there's no better place to hear one than the Scottish Storytelling Centre (0131-556 9579, scottishstorytellingcentre.co.uk). Over the holidays, it is hosting events as part of the Science Festival and Puppet Animation Festival. Among other delights, kids can learn why snot is green and meet the Big Bad Wolf.
• Entrance free, book for storytelling sessions, £4; performances from £4.50