WITH the Easter holidays around the corner, mum and dads are bracing themselves for the words every parent dreads — "I'm bored!"

My two need to be entertained and also stimulated, otherwise they lose interest and the cycle begins again.

So a visit to Legoland Discovery Centre and Sea Life Manchester in Barton Square at the intu Trafford Centre on a Saturday was on the cards to hopefully tick both boxes.

As you begin the tour of Legoland, groups of visitors are met by Professor Brick-a-Brack, who outlines the Lego-making process, and enlists the help of some young volunteers to help create some Lego blocks of their own. As well as entertaining the youngsters, we enjoyed some interesting Lego facts and history.

As they tour continued, we hopped on a fairground-type chariot and embarked on the Kingdom Quest laser ride. This was just as much fun for adults and children, as we toured the kingdom blasting ghouls and skeletons and tried to rescue the princess. I'm not sure if it went against our scores, but there were a few incidents of "friendly fire". It was still great fun.

Another highlight was the Ninjago Laser Training Camp, which sees the fit and able ducking, diving and jumping over laser beams in true Mission Impossible style. I enjoyed watching from a safe distance as the kids showed off their flexibility.

Miniland, with its miniature Blackpool landscape, showed how creative you can be with Lego, before we reached the soft play area, cafe and Forest Pursuit driving challenge, which saw the youngsters put their driving skills to the test.

The time flew by, and it was after lunch before we ventured to nearby Sea Life.

Visitors were again split into small groups for a talk on sea turtles, which was very well explained with the use of some excellent special effects which saw us on the beach with them as they hatched and headed for the water.

With the young reptiles safely on their way, we were free to enjoy the rest of the centre at our own pace.

As we ventured from tank to tank, we saw a variety of creatures, including hermit crabs, cownosed rays, big bellied seahorses, jellyfish, clownfish (Nemo), blue spotted stingray, lionfish and starfish.

In the main tank, with a glass tunnel beneath it offering even closer encounters, we were also treated to fantastic views of the main attraction, Ernie, the giant green sea turtle, as well as blacktip reef sharks, and the common octopus.

The children loved staring into every nook and cranny trying to spot sea creatures of every shape and size.

It was late afternoon by the time we managed to prize them away and a good time was had by all.

So if you're looking for something to keep youngsters entertained over Easter, swing by Legoland and Sea Life where there's something for all the family — as well as a bit of retail therapy and plenty of choice for food.

Both have a variety of tickets and packages on offer, including admission to both attractions, as well as annual passes, so it is worth looking online for the option that suits you.

Visit legolanddiscoverycentre.co.uk/manchester and visitsealife.com/manchester for details.