Using the Family Day holiday as intended - to spend time with loved ones - will be easy with a wide variety of fun activities planned throughout the London-area.
Festivities to mark the annual provincial holiday begin at the East Lions Community Centre with a free pancake breakfast from 9 a.m. to noon. The rec centre at 1731 Churchill Ave. will also be offering an open gym session, swimming, family crafts and dancing. There will be balloon twisting from 10 a.m. to noon and a magic show from 10:30 a.m. to noon.
The North London Optimist Community Centre has also planned free activities for Monday including tennis, roller skating, family crafts, volleyball, and 55+ euchre.
At the Carling Heights Optimist Community Centre, there will be free recreational swimming and family pickleball, while the Byron Community Centre is hosting family badminton, open gym sessions, and Zumba.
The South London Community Centre is offering free family open gym, family arts and crafts, Zumba, badminton, fun with food and science workshops. The City of London noted that registration is required for the science workshops.
WestPark Church at 955 Gainsborough Rd. will hold its annual Family Day event from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. It includes face painting, balloon animals, reptiles, gaga ball, and inflatables. There will also be hot dogs, chips, pop, juice and cotton candy and giveaways of a family pass to Canada's Wonderland and a free week at Forest Cliff Day Camp. Cost is $20 per family or $7 per adult who registers in advance or $25 at the door.
Boler Mountain, The Factory, the London Children's Museum and movies threatres will be open.
For hockey fans, the London Knights will be playing the Windsor Spitfires at Budweiser Gardens on Family Day. The puck drops at 2 p.m.
For anyone who would rather spend the day outside, the city's free outdoor skating rinks will be open, weather permitting. The rinks are located in Victoria Park and outside of the Covent Garden Market. Storybook Gardens’ skate trail will be open from 10 a.m. to 5:45 p.m. for 90-minute timeslots. Admission is $4.75 for adults, $3.75 for children ages 17 and under, and free for children under 24 months old. Skate rentals are available for $6.75 per person. Limited quantities and sizes available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Grocery stores, shopping malls, including White Oaks Mall, Masonville Place, and Westmount Shopping Centre, will be closed for the day. As will the LCBO, Beer Stores, and the Labatt Retail Store downtown. London Public Library locations will also not be open.
Banks, schools, and provincial and municipal government offices will not open their doors Monday. There will be no garbage or recycling collection. However, there will be mail delivery and collection, as Family Day is not a holiday for federal employees.
London Transit will be running on a holiday schedule. With the exception of Route 93, the Express Routes will not be operating. In addition, Routes 102, 104 and 106 will also not be running.
Everything returns to normal on Tuesday.