Party with the Otters this Whitsun

Lake District visitor attraction Lakes Aquarium is throwing a big Whitsun school holiday party, to celebrate both its twelfth birthday and that of its loveable otter Smudge.

The ‘Smudge’s Holt Party’ event offers fabulous credit crunch value for visitors. A fun schedule of activities and possibly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see Lakes Aquarium’s innovative otter enrichment programme in action should delight all.

Otter interaction sessions and talks take place around the feeding of Asian short-clawed otters Mia and Smudge every day at 10.30am and 3pm. Interaction and talk without feeding takes place at noon.

Birthday girl Smudge will be presented with a special birthday cake, full of her favourite food treats and she and pal Mia might also get a new toy to play with.

A brand new ‘Who Do You Think You Are?’ quiz trail, named after a Spice Girls hit in the year the aquarium opened, will challenge mums, dads, kids and grandparents to solve five clues to their identity during their visit.

Face-painting and craft activities will be available at scheduled times during the school holidays. Younger children can enjoy a mini challenge thanks to new spotter sheets that they can fill in when sighting a particular creature.

With colouring, a close up photo quiz and a chance to see the newly arrived baby marmosets, Lakes Aquarium is promising a load of reasons to visit.

Entrance to Lakes Aquarium costs £8.75 for an adult, £5.75 for a child, £7.25 for seniors and £24.95 for a family of two adults and two children. Under 3s enter for free. Opening hours are 9am to 6pm daily and last admission is at 5pm.

Tickets can be bought online at lakesaquarium.co.uk to save up to 25 per cent on normal admission charges.