While down south this weekend, I popped to Portsmouth for the day with my mum and little boy. We…read morewere staying in Southampton and wanted a beach which was easily accessible by car and which would offer plenty of entertainment for a two year old. Clarence Pier did just that. Just a 30 minute drive from the centre of Southampton, the pier was easy to find and offered lots of convenient parking. There were two separate arcades in addition to other rides and attractions. Food options were plentiful and even included a large fruit stall which was lovely to see at the seaside where all food is usually accompanied by at least 10g of fat! The beach here is quite rocky, which is great for someone like me who doesn't like sand. We happened to arrive on a day during which America's Cup was taking place (international boat race) so the beach was pretty busy. However, we never struggled to find somewhere to sit / play / eat. One of the best things about this pier (for a two year old anyway) is that you can watch the Hovercraft take off and arrive from Isle of Wight. You can also catch the hovercraft from here or take a tour of the coast on one of the optional boat tours.

Clarence pier has the usual assortment of amusments and stalls selling postcards and novelty items…read moreas well as a number of almost identical fast food kiosks. Sometimes you can see people fishing by the pier. There is a crazy golf course which for some reason (probably the big skull) reminds me of the goonies. It is a good course as you can choose one of two routes through it. That means if someone in front looks like they will take an age to complete each hole you can easily choose the other route. There is plenty of car parking nearby - all along the seafront, by the pub and some public car parks by the common. You'll probably still be stuck in the Summer though so your best bet might be to park in Old Portsmouth and walk along the seafront from the direction of Gunwharf. There is also a token based funfair next to the pier.

Excellent. Richard and I put 1 Pound into a slot machine and walked out with 42 Pounds! We only…read morespent a total of 2 Pounds in this arcade and so came out really on top. The cashier happily exchanged the multiple Pound coins from the machine into notes for us. We used to criticise British 'Pokie' machines for being tricky and complicated but this was a lovely surprise. There are the usual 10p and 2p push down machines in this arcade but we didn't touch them this time. Staff could have smiled a bit more.

The amusement arcade is not a pleasant place, not an whole…read moredays fun in one like the advert says. The majority of the arcade machines go wrong when you put your money in them, the coins go missing or get stuck. Sometimes when you win eg £10.00, it might pay you 9 x £1 coins and 1 x 10p piece (so you are out of pocket) I can only imagine some of the staff who fill the machines mis-fill them. When the machines go wrong it is not easy to get help or assistance being the majority of staff spend most of the time standing outside the pier smoking. There is only 1 change desk open, if they are counting up, they close the desk and you have to go back when they have finished counting. The same desk also takes bookings for the crazy golf so you have to wait quite a while to be seen, so if the machine you are playing as gone wrong you have a long wait for assistance. When you finally see someone they say they will send someone along to fix the machine but you end up waiting ages, no apologies when they finally arrive. (Customer service skills are poor and too be honest always have been) Many of the machines reels are out of line so when you win they don't always payout and if you inform the staff they say the reels are out of synch, so you don't get your wiinnings or all the money you have put in them (not a fair system), only 1 winner them! The Monopoly machines top centre game reels are totally out of synch, so when you get the game you have no idea how much you are winning. The Double Decker party game machine very top centre game reels go wrong so the party ends early. The 2p & 10p pushers have hardly any prizes on them, and I have seen employees move items back that are close to the edge so players have to start from scratch which costs them more money (not fair at all). Many of the machines are dirty. I am not too sure if they ever clean them. Unlike some seaside arcades, the pier charges customers £1.75 to withdraw cash, even though you are spending the money in their business. I am surprised the owners let the staff get away with it, from what I see when on the pier it's the owners son doing the majority of the work. Whilst the staff are standing outside smoking they could be repairing machines or assisting customers and filling up empty change machines which are mostly empty on a daily basis. A lesson for the future, remember it's the customers who are are paying your wages, employees seem to forget that.

I visited the pier while staying in The Carlton nearby.. It has a cafe (The Boardwalk Cafe), a bar…read more(Scruffy Jack's), among other amusement things.. Must visit of you are in Sandown...

It is so good my family loves it so much better than before 100% recommend it has so much ridesread more

A fun place for all the family, lots of rides for the kids and adults alike, great little…read morecafeteria. Wildlife and falconery on display. Wonderful open vistas of the countryside, be warned this place is very big so may exhaust you walking round.

She's Peppa Pig, she's Peppa Pig! I am Peppa Pig…read more The reason you're at Paultons Park is because you (your kids) want to see, you (your kids) need to see, the almighty Peppa Pig! Be sure to get in line ASAP to see Peppa and George as the line will get long. Everything here is awesome. You can't not walk into the biggest Peppa Pig toy shop in the world and buy some exclusive Peppa Pig World merchandise. The only issue is that this place is not closer to London.

Very well maintained park, clean, tidy and well looked after…read more Slight lack of 'you are here maps'

Shattered dreams! Absolutely loved this in my childhood. Visited again with my 3 kids over past two…read moreyears. This year July 25th 2022 and it's really, really gone down hill, expensive and tacky. My daughter got stuck on water slide for 20mins. Live performances were pants. The Pirate was quite entertaining. The fairly looked like she wanted to be elsewhere! One member of staff said to me can you believe they've been rehearsing for the past 4 weeks! Place is dirty and falling apart. Two new rides have been added but are basically fairground rides dressed up. My childhood memories are shattered. Not worth the money. And it is expensive.

Blackgang Chine is located in the Isle of Wight in Ventnor. Situated in over 40 acres of cliff top…read moregardens it's a real beauty. this hidden gem is actually the oldest amusement park in the world, opened during the Victorian times, it still holds a very exciting feel for visitors, and has since been updated with modern rides and split into two sections. I went there often as a child and really enjoyed the excitement of the park, great place to bring kids and the whole family. The hungry kitten says: Visit Blackgang while you can, large parts of it have been lost to the cliffs due to erosion over time, is very exciting to look over the cliffs and see remains of old exhibits.

Fishers farm park is a really fun day out loads to do for the the kids and adults including Tractor…read morerides horse riding rock climbing adventure playground amusement rides water games a soft play area and much much more. Took my girlfriend and her daughter and her kids and we had a brilliant time lots of laughs and fun . The day went really quick so much to do a really brilliant day out had so much fun can't wait to do it again 10/10

Fisher's farm park is probably one of the South's best kept secrets. A farm and amusement park…read moreaimed at 2-10 year olds this is a real find. The farm houses a variety of animals including many orphans from neighbouring farms. There are opportunities to get up close with the animals and to feed and pet them. They are all well cared for. In terms of amusements this place beats the theme parks hands down for the under 10s. There are the usual farm rides that you'd expect although some come with twists (such as the ghost train). The barrel bug ride is about the most fun you could possibly have on a farm! More or less all of the activities come in a mini and big variety and so families are well catered for. You can bounce on giant air pillows or trampolines, slide down a helterskelter and bumpy slide, have a death slide, go skating, play golf, get lost in a maze or take a trip on a merry go round amongst others. Eating is no hassle here and food is reasonably priced and good quality. Loos are clean. There's an indoor soft play area and a great new ball shooting range for days that are not so dry! We love it here and the biggest endorsement is the fact that, after just one visit and despite living an hour away, we bought a season ticket!

Excellent value for money and a great family outing. Life guards were attentive and interactive,…read morewhich really made the experience great! In short - fun for the whole family!