--- title: "Weekend Ideas for Single Dads: 10 Ways to Make Your Time With the Children Count" description: "Weekend ideas for single dads: free and low-cost winter plans, how to make your home feel like theirs and what to do on weekends without the children." author: Dr Marina Nani (Editor-in-Chief) date: 2026-11-05T12:00:00.049Z updated: 2026-11-06T17:47:32.067Z canonical: https://richdadmagazine.com/article/weekend-ideas-for-single-dads image: https://cdn.nanimediahouse.com/pexels-29521306.webp categories: Fatherhood, Family & Relationships content_type: Guide region: United Kingdom publication: Rich Dad Magazine schema_type: HowTo howto: --- If you have your children every other weekend, Friday evening to Sunday afternoon is all the time you get before the handover, and the first evening often goes on settling in. The ideas below are built for that rhythm. Some are free, some cost a little, and every one of them works when you are the only adult in charge of one child or three. ## Get the Chores Done Before Friday Do the food shop, the washing and the hoovering before the children arrive. Every hour you spend on errands with them is an hour of the weekend gone. Fill the fridge with two easy dinners and one breakfast they love, and the weekend starts with a meal instead of a supermarket queue. ## Give Them a Corner That Is Theirs Children settle faster in a home where something belongs to them. A drawer with their own pyjamas, a toothbrush that stays, a shelf for the drawing they did last time: each one shows them this is their home too. You do not need a spare room. A box under the bed with their name on it does the same job. ## Plan One Big Thing and Leave the Rest Open [Pick one outing for Saturday](https://richdadmagazine.com/article/outdoor-activities-dads-and-kids) and keep Sunday loose. A packed schedule turns the weekend into a tour, and children who live between two homes often need slow time more than another trip. Let the older ones choose the big outing in turn, so each of them has a weekend that feels like theirs. ## Free Museums and Galleries on a Rainy Saturday Many of the UK's national museums are free to enter, and most run family trails, drop-in craft tables and galleries full of dinosaurs, trains or space rockets that hold a child's attention for a whole morning. Go when the doors open, see two or three rooms properly and leave before anyone is tired. Local museums and libraries often run Saturday clubs as well, so check their websites on Thursday. ## Junior Parkrun on Sunday Morning Junior parkrun is a free, timed 2k run for children aged four to fourteen, held on Sunday mornings in parks across the country. You register once, print the barcode and turn up. You can run alongside younger children, and the weekly routine gives you both something to look forward to, whatever the weather. ## Cook One Meal Together From Scratch Pizza with toppings they choose, pancakes on Sunday morning, a curry where they measure the spices. Cooking gives you an hour side by side, and children talk more when their hands are busy and nobody is staring at them across a table. Let them pick the recipe on Friday and shop for the ingredients with you on Saturday. ## Christmas Lights, Ice Rinks and Winter Walks November and December bring free light switch-ons, [Christmas markets](https://richdadmagazine.com/article/christmas-shopping-with-kids-tips-for-dads) and pop-up ice rinks to most towns and cities. Wrap up, take a flask of hot chocolate and go after dark, which this time of year comes before five o'clock. A torchlit walk through the woods or an evening looking for stars in the nearest dark park costs nothing and feels like an adventure to a seven-year-old. ## Board Games, Den Building and a Film Night at Home [Not every weekend needs a ticket](https://richdadmagazine.com/article/outdoor-adventures-bond-the-swing-that-brings-fathers-and-children-closer). Build a den from sofa cushions and sheets, play a board game they are allowed to win, and end the evening with a film and popcorn. Put your phone in another room. Your children notice where your attention is, and a night in with you fully present beats a day out spent half on your screen. ## Start a Ritual That Belongs to Your Weekends Saturday breakfast at the same café, a comic bought on the way home, a walk to the same pond to feed the ducks. Small rituals give children something steady when their week is split between two homes. Keep yours simple enough to survive a busy week, so it never has to be cancelled. ## Skip the Spending Contest You can fill a short weekend with treats, toys and theme parks, and the children will enjoy every one of them. They remember the time you spend with them far longer than the things you buy. Set a budget for each weekend and keep to it. Where you can, agree the basics with their other parent: bedtimes, screen time and homework are easier for children when both homes follow the same rules. ## Weekends When the Children Are With Their Other Parent A child-free weekend can feel long in an empty house. Plan it as carefully as the others. Book the gym class, see the friends you have not seen for months, or sign up for something new such as climbing, a cooking course or a five-a-side team. Do the big chores so the next weekend with the children starts clear. Saturday evening is often the hardest stretch, so put something in the diary for it. Dads' groups now meet in many towns, with weekly meet-ups and one-to-one support, and an evening with other fathers who live the same routine can change how the whole weekend feels. ## FAQ **Q: What to do on the weekend with your dad?** Choose something you can do side by side. Cooking a meal together, a long walk or bike ride, a visit to a free museum, a board game, a match at a local ground or trying something new such as bowling or climbing all work well. Plans that involve doing something together, rather than watching something, tend to lead to the best conversations. **Q: What do single dads struggle with the most?** Single fathers commonly find it hardest to balance work with childcare, manage money across two homes, stay close to their children when time together is limited, cope with loneliness on the days without them and keep communication with the other parent calm. Family, friends, dads' support groups and organisations for separated parents can help with each of these. **Q: What can I do on weekends alone?** Use the time for things that are harder to fit in with children around. Exercise, see friends, take a class, go on a day trip, read, rest properly and catch up on chores so the following week starts easier. Booking at least one plan in advance stops the weekend from drifting.