Things to Do for Father’s Day in Stratford 2026: The Ultimate Day Out for Dads

Father’s Day is Sunday, 21 June 2026, and if you’re reading this, you’re probably doing one of two things: planning something brilliant for your dad, or dropping extremely unsubtle hints about what you’d like to do yourself. Either way, we’ve got you.

Stratford is one of the best places in London to spend Father’s Day. Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park has enough going on to fill an entire day – from adrenaline experiences to world-class museums, stadium tours to canalside walks – and all of it is within walking distance of Draughts, where the whole family can sit down together over food, drinks and a board game that Dad will almost certainly insist he’s going to win.

Here’s how to build the perfect Father’s Day in Stratford – whether your dad’s an adrenaline junkie, a culture lover, a sports obsessive, or the kind of person who just wants good food and a laugh with the people he loves.

The Adrenaline Dad: ArcelorMittal Orbit

If your dad is the type who says “I’m up for anything” and actually means it, point him towards the ArcelorMittal Orbit. It’s the UK’s tallest sculpture at 114.5 metres, designed by Anish Kapoor, and it’s right here in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.

The standard Skyline Views ticket gets you access to two observation platforms at 76 and 80 metres, with 360-degree panoramic views stretching up to 20 miles on a clear day. On a June Sunday, you can see the whole of London laid out beneath you – the City, Canary Wharf, the Thames, the stadium, everything.

The Orbit is home to the world’s longest and tallest tunnel slide – 178 metres of enclosed, twisting, helter-skelter-on-steroids descent that drops you from the observation deck to the ground in about 40 seconds. Combined Skyline Views and Slide tickets are £16.50 for adults and £10.50 for children when booked online. It’s the kind of experience that makes Father’s Day genuinely memorable rather than another pair of socks.

And if that’s still not enough, there’s the London Abseil – an 80-metre free-fall abseil down the exterior of the Orbit itself. At £55 per person, it’s not cheap, but it is the UK’s highest free-fall abseil, and the bragging rights alone are worth it. Your dad will be sure to talk about it at every family gathering for the foreseeable future!

The Sports Dad: London Stadium Tour

Some dads don’t need a museum or a slide – they need a stadium. London Stadium is right here in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, and the behind-the-scenes tours are one of the best-kept secrets in the area.

The standard tour is a part-guided, part-multimedia experience through the 62,500-capacity stadium. You’ll visit the players’ tunnel, the home changing room, the dugouts and the press areas – all the places you see on TV but never get to walk through. Tours are £22 for adults and £14 for under-15s. You get a free personalised certificate at the end and photo opportunities throughout.

For something extra special, the Legends Tour pairs you with an actual West Ham legend who guides you around the stadium for 90 minutes, sharing stories from their career and giving you access to exclusive areas. It includes a meet and greet, complimentary drinks and a signed personalised photo. At £45 per adult, it’s a brilliant Father’s Day gift for any football-loving dad – even if he supports someone else. (We won’t judge. Much.)

The tours are available in five languages and are fully accessible throughout. Book ahead through the London Stadium website, especially for Father’s Day weekend – they fill up quickly.

The Culture Dad: V&A East Museum

If your dad’s the sort who’d rather wander around an exhibition than slide down a tower, V&A East Museum is right here in the park, and it’s pretty extraordinary.

The museum opens in April 2026 and is already one of London’s most talked-about cultural spaces. The first major exhibition is The Music is Black: A British Story – a celebration of 125 years of Black music in Britain, spanning jazz, reggae, 2 Tone, drum and bass, trip hop, garage, grime and more. If your dad has any kind of relationship with music, this is a brilliant afternoon.

Beyond the temporary exhibition, V&A East has two free permanent Why We Make galleries featuring over 500 objects from the V&A’s collections – spanning global art, architecture, design, performance and fashion. These galleries alone are worth a visit, and they’re free.

The museum is part of the East Bank cultural quarter, which also includes BBC Music Studios and Sadler’s Wells East. It’s about a five-minute walk from Draughts. Give your dad an afternoon of culture, then bring him to us for a game of 7 Wonders and a cold drink. That’s a Father’s Day he’ll remember.

The Active Dad: Lee Valley VeloPark

Does your dad cycle? Has he ever mentioned the 2012 Olympics more than twice in a conversation? Lee Valley VeloPark is inside the park and offers public sessions on the actual Olympic velodrome track, the outdoor road circuit, mountain bike trails and a BMX track.

Pay and Ride sessions on the road circuit are £7.25 per person, or £23 for a family of four. That’s four people riding the Olympic road circuit for less than the price of a cinema ticket each. You can bring your own bike or hire equipment on site.

For the full experience, book a track cycling taster session on the velodrome itself. Riding the iconic banked track that Chris Hoy, Laura Kenny and Jason Kenny rode in 2012 is one of those experiences that sounds intimidating until you’re actually on the bike and grinning like an idiot. Sessions are available for all abilities and ages.

The VeloPark also runs learn-to-cycle sessions and coaching for juniors, so if you’ve got younger kids who want to ride alongside Dad, there’s something for everyone. After a morning in the saddle, wheel yourselves over to Draughts – we’re about a ten-minute walk away – for lunch and a game.

The Park Dad: Just a Brilliant Walk

Not every dad needs an experience booked in advance with a ticket number and a time slot. Some dads just want to be outside, walking, with their family around them and nothing in particular to rush towards. Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park is perfect for that.

The park has 6km of restored waterways, jogging paths, cycling routes, gardens and green spaces. On a June Sunday, it’s one of the best places in London to simply… be. Walk the canal towpath towards Hackney Wick and watch the houseboats. Find the Great British Garden – a peaceful, wildlife-filled pocket most visitors walk straight past. Discover Mandeville Place, a hidden orchard planted for the 2012 Paralympics. Let the kids run riot in Tumbling Bay Playground while you sit at Timber Lodge with a coffee.

The northern part of the park is always quieter than the south, and in late June, the gardens and wildflower meadows are at their absolute best. It’s the kind of setting where an unhurried family walk turns into one of those afternoons everyone remembers – not because anything particular happened, but because everyone was together and the weather was good and nobody was looking at their phone.

The Board Game Dad: Fathers Day at Draughts

Right, this is the section where we stop being modest.

If your dad’s idea of a good time is sitting around a table with the people he loves, eating proper food, drinking something decent and playing something that makes everyone laugh, Draughts is where you bring him.

We’re at 5 Aquatics Walk, right inside Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, and we’ve got over 1,000 board games in our library. Our staff will find the perfect game for your group in about thirty seconds flat. But if you want to come prepared, here are some games that are perfect for Father’s Day:

7 Wonders Duel is outstanding for a dad who likes head-to-head strategy. It’s a two-player civilisation-building game with three possible ways to win – military, science or points. Takes about 30 minutes, and the back-and-forth tension is brilliant. Perfect for a dad-and-kid showdown.

Crokinole is the game that turns every dad into a ten-year-old. It’s a dexterity game played on a beautiful circular wooden board – flick your disc into the centre, knock your opponent’s disc off the board, shout when you hit a perfect shot. Anyone can play it, everyone gets competitive immediately, and it’s one of those games where the generation gap completely disappears.

Ticket to Ride: Europe is the classic family strategy game. Build train routes across Europe, complete tickets, and block your opponents. The rules take five minutes to learn, and the game plays in about an hour. Perfect for a table of three to five players, and dads who played with trains as kids will love the theme.

Terraforming Mars is for the dad who wants something serious. You’re a corporation turning Mars habitable – raising the temperature, building cities, creating oceans. It’s complex, deeply strategic, and takes about two hours. If your dad’s the sort who reads the instruction manual for fun, this is his game.

Skull is a quick bluffing game that works brilliantly for competitive families. Each player has four cards – three flowers and one skull. Stack them, bluff, challenge. Rounds take five minutes, and the dad who’s best at keeping a straight face will dominate.

Marvel Dice Throne brings the superhero theme if your dad’s a Marvel fan. It’s a competitive dice-battling game where players take on the roles of Marvel characters, each with unique abilities. Fast, fun and thematic.

We serve a full food menu – this is a proper bar, board game kitchen and lounge, not a café with crisps – and the drinks list is solid. Book a table, order food, pick a game, and let Father’s Day happen naturally around the table.

Book your Father’s Day table at draughtslondon.com – 21 June is a Sunday, we’ll be busy, and you don’t want to spend Father’s Day waiting for a table. Book ahead.

Build Your Perfect Father’s Day Itinerary

Here are three ways to structure the day, depending on what kind of dad you’re dealing with:

The Active Morning: VeloPark cycling session at 10am, walk through the park to Draughts for lunch and games from 12.30pm. Total cost: cycling session plus food and games.

The Culture Afternoon: V&A East Museum in the morning (free permanent galleries), lunch at Draughts, then the Orbit Slide in the afternoon. Total cost: Orbit ticket plus food and games.

The Full Day Out: London Stadium Legends Tour at 10am, walk through the park, lunch at Draughts with board games, Orbit Skyline Views at 3pm, canal walk to Hackney Wick for an evening stroll. Total cost: stadium tour, Orbit ticket, food and games – and a dad who’s had one of the best days he can remember.

Practical Tips

• Father’s Day 2026 is Sunday 21 June. It’s not a bank holiday, but it’s a summer Sunday in the park – expect it to be busy.
  
  
• Book Draughts in advance at draughtslondon.com. Father’s Day is one of our busiest Sundays.
  
  
• ArcelorMittal Orbit – book online for cheaper tickets. Slide combo is £16.50 adult / 10.50 pounds child. Abseil is £55.
  
  
• London Stadium tours – book ahead atlondon-stadium.com. Standard tour £22 adult / £13 child. Legends Tour £45.
  
• V&A East Museum – permanent galleries are free. Checkvam.ac.uk/east for temporary exhibition pricing and late opening hours.
  
• Lee Valley VeloPark – Pay and Ride road circuit sessions are £7.25 per person or £23 family. Book atbetter.org.uk.
  
• Getting there – Stratford station is served by the Central, Jubilee and Elizabeth Lines, DLR, National Rail and Greater Anglia. Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park is a five-minute walk from the station.
  
  

Frequently Asked Questions about Things to Do for Father’s Day in Stratford 2026