A day out with family at Manor Farm Park & Woodlands

This August my family and I were lucky enough to be invited for a day down on the farm by Manor Farm Park & Woodlands.

We arrived just as the farm park opened and were greeted by Sue and the team. We were given a map of the park, which was much bigger than I expected, 25 acres in fact, and a schedule of activities for the kids to enjoy throughout the day. Eager children, including my own toddler, Ella, were super excited and raring to get in, especially as they could all see the playground which was looming temptingly in sight.

The first stop therefore was the brilliant Burrows playground. This had enough to do for the older and smaller children alike and was also big enough to entertain many children at once as well as being a safe environment to play in. My little one loved the custom-built wooden tractor and horse trailer; it did however take me a while to prise her out of here and onto our first animal stop of the day, the animal chat room, where we were going to help feed the guinea pigs and rabbits.

Needless to say, this really appealed to all the kids and my daughter threw in lettuce and vegetables with relish as did the others around her. Getting the kids involved is a great idea and definitely helps to hold the interest of a toddler like mine who is very easily distracted! In the same area we also saw Boris the Iguana, snakes and noisy parrots - all much to Ella’s delight.

We then went off to feed the ducks their breakfast and then onto the highlight of Ella’s morning, her first ride on a donkey. Her excitement was infectious as she was taken around the field on the beautiful Popeye. All the donkeys are rescues and are superbly looked after here at the farm. I think I may have started something here though as within half an hour she had mastered the word Donkey and hasn’t stopped saying it since.

With a definite spring in her step we went to see some of the other animals around the farm. There are over 20 types of animals to see from farm animals such as sheep, goats, pigs, donkeys and ponies to the more exotic alpacas, wallabies owls, parrots, reptiles and so on. Once an animal sanctuary back in the day, the farm park opened in the mid-90s and continues to assist in the rescue of animals that are unwanted such as the majority of the stunning owls that you can see and even hold at certain times in the week. This is a great day out and experience for any child, but it is made all the better knowing that all the animals here at Manor Farm Park are looked after so well and loved.

Once I could see that a little pair of legs were tiring I seized my opportunity along with the grandparents and coaxed a little sleep out of our girl. We then proceeded straight to the brand new Antlers Café for a spot of lunch. We ordered three cheeseburgers and chips which we could smell a mile away and they tasted every bit as good as they smelt. Homemade deliciousness! Once batteries had been recharged and a sleepy little girl had woken up, beans on toast were devoured before another stop at the playground; conveniently situated right next to the café and decking area, meaning I could relax for a few moments more with a coffee and let grandpa take charge.

We then went off to explore the indoor play barn complete with an under 4s area, peddle karts, football zone and the amazing pirates ship to name just a few. There is also a café here too so the grownups can also unwind whilst the kids play to their hearts content, and Ella did just that spending well over an hour running around and having fun with the other kids.

There is also an outdoor fort adventure playground complete with a tower, chuckwagon, swings and slides plus a mini football pitch but although we aimed to go there next, we were now nearing 4pm and I could see the absolute exhaustion plastered not only across Ella’s face but also on grandma and grandpa’s, so we decided to head off to the gift shop and then for an ice cream before going home. The gift shop had so many wonderful toys and gifts to buy and all at very reasonable prices as well. We left with arms full of gifts for Christmas and a few to play with in the car on the way home.

To sum up, our day was full of laughter and fun and we really enjoyed ourselves. We would recommend it to anyone - it’s well worth a visit. Organised and clean, the farm park is a safe environment and being so reasonably priced is an affordable day out for all the family. My three sleepy passengers on the way home were definitely a testament to a great day out.

For more information on Manor Farm Park & Woodlands and their many seasonal activities please click here.