Definitely not just another play barn!…read more Spread over two stories of an old department store this is a fantastic place to bring the kids. Areas to suit babies, under threes, under fives and upwards! A huge play frame to let the kids loose on and upstairs they can speed around the racetrack on electric go-karts (this costs extra), play air hockey, table football, table tennis or even play on the Wii A great place to eat with hot and cold menus, all freshly prepared in their kitchens. They do kids parties and have four themed rooms (Pirates, Princess, Pitstop and Undersea) for them to eat in before they're let loose on the equipment. A nice family run business, not just another franchised playbarn run by grumpy teenagers!

I cannot rave enough about Finkley Down Farm. I don't even have kids I can use as an excuse - I…read moresimply come here to relax and spend some time with the animals. The atmosphere is relaxed and peaceful and the abundance of cute greedy animals desperate for you to feed them is nothing short of delightful. Their animals range from goats and sheep to chickens to cows right over to the more unusual llamas and highland cows. Even if you're not into getting close to the animals or feeding them the buckets of food available at the ticket office, just watching them mooch around is still fun and relaxing. The llama took somewhat of a disliking to me (was it something I said?) and stormed at me, looking like it could easily clear the fence and gain its freedom. I wasn't going to hang around to find out. One look at my pathetic retreating hide running off into the distance was enough to reduce its anger to mere disdain, and instead he decided to spit all over me. In some sort of random heroic act, the pig sharing its pen flung itself at the llama as if to take the blow for me, and rather than reflect on the llama soaking I'd been given, I instead watched this pig take one for the team. Right in the eye, no less. From hereonin, I shall name this pig SuperPig. If you do have kids you can pretend are the reason for visiting, there's plenty to keep them occupied. Other than the animals you can feed, there are talks and handling sessions with some of the smaller or baby pets throughout the day. There's also a nice adventure playground and a couple of trampolines to wear them out on too. There's a small gift shop and a place to buy some food, as well as a picnic area if you're sensible enough to bring your own food. I love this place and can't wait to go back when it reopens for the season next year.

A lovely little petting farm for a day out with the family. Entrance fee is very reasonable. Farm…read moreisn't huge by anyone's standards but just about big enough for an afternoons walking about without it being too much for the little/older ones. Lots to see and many activities laid on for the children. Arm them with a bucket of food from the entrance first though or you will find yourself running back for some! On site cafe sells everything from fish & chips to ice cream or just a cuppa. Toilets well sign posted and clean. Lots of basins and hand gel dotted around for after you have touched the animals. Nice staff who are kid friendly. Congratulations to the farm for keeping the gift shop prices low, lots of souvenirs on sale for under £2.

Diggerland was great fun for my whole family. Even my Nan got to drive a JCB 3Cx as well as my…read morelittle girl who is only 8.

I was dropped as a baby or at least that's my excuse and I'm sticking too it. They also slapped my…read moremother instead of winding me when I was born but I try not to talk about that. So it's useful that I have the mental age of a child at times and so Diggerland is like my dream day out when I'm feeling in said state. Bring on the diggers. What a great attraction this is for children and the tagged along parents. Size really does matter here so let's rejoice in that. So what can you expect...well blatantly diggers silly. It's hardly going to be a bun fight (though that'd be fun too). What's more you actually get to ride in these bad boys. Come on now what's not to love. The kids (and us "grown ups") can have a go on dumper trucks, mini diggers and get this; a giant digger. All supervised co course but it's motoring madness gone wild. You'll also learn about the world of the digger and you can grab a quick burger and drink at the Dig Inn. So poop, poop for a day of motorised action that won't get you arrested on one of those videos the internet has so many of these days (I needed the money).

Animal farm can be a great place to visit rain or shine. lots of lovely animals to pet and feed…read more The farm has barns with rabbits,ferrets and all other fluffy things. In the 20+ acres you have all the reg farm animals to feed. Theres a couple of rides , bouncy castle and toy tractors to skoot around on. All this could be done in drizzly weather with wellys on but if its really bad theres a massive indoor play area. they have a small area for babys and toddlers thats well padded and keeps them entertained for ages. The older kids have lots to climb and the tallest slides i have ever seen. my heart was in my mouth watching the kids come down it , but they thought it was wicked. The farms very easy to find as burnham-on -sea isnt a big place to get lost in. well worth a visit :)

This is a brilliant place to take your kids to. My little girl is 2 1/2 now and we have been taking…read moreher there for over a year now and she loves it. You pay an entry price and then most of the things are free. It has a bouncy castle, trampaline,'cuddle club' where you can cuddle ginea pigs and rabbits, outdoor slides, swing boats, climbing frame, ride on tractors etc and a large indoor play area with ball pits, lots of slides and places to climb around. Also it has paddocks with animals in (such as cows, lamas etc.) which you can feed and indoor barns with pigs and horses in. It is a great day out and you can stay for hours without your kids geting bored.

We visited this place a couple of years ago. It was OK; the best thing was the dedication and…read moreexpertise of the staff there, as they really had a passion for butterflies. However there wasn't really enough to do to keep our two young kids entertained for very long -- they much preferred the maze next door! If you're into butterflies it would definitely be a place to go, and as a place to go on a wet day it's not too bad -- but overall I'm afraid it only gets three stars from us (and it would have only been two had it not been for the staff).

£100 to park!!! Keep your parking ticket as proof that…read moreyou've paid otherwise you'll pay the price. Lots of evidence of other visitors getting scammed out of £100 on the zoo's Facebook page and on google

This is a brilliant place to take young children. It can get…read morevery busy during school holidays but in term time it is realy good for pre school children. There is a cafe serving sandwiches and hot meals. You can book the whole center for birthday parties this can be expensive though, and they have special themed days (christmas and halloween) you have to book well in advance for these.

This is a welcome addition to Clydach Vale. Its something we've been needing for a long time. Its…read moreexcellent there, its around 3.50 for under 5's and 4.50 for over 5's and under 1s go free, you get a two hour session. They have a really good (and safe) climbing play area with slides and balls and they have an under 5s area with a smaller climbing frame slide and ball pool. They also offer a wide selection of food and drink. Its a really good couple of hours out for the children. You can also book childrens partys there and they now do theme nights. Christmas time the children can see Father Christmas which my son is really looking forward to this year!!

We've been waiting for this place to open for years. We first saw plans at Clifton (Bristol) Zoo…read moreages ago when I'm pretty sure it was described as a safari park. I don't think they'd quite call it that at the moment but it does have that kind of feel to the place. It's a wide open place with a great feel of freedom - despite it being right next to the M5. The animals certainly have a lot more room than at the zoo and if you're somebody who is put off by the 'caged' feel of a zoo this may be for you. It's certainly a work in progress with more animals added each time I've been. I went at the weekend and they've added a brilliant wolves enclosure since I last went. While the animals are great our children love the barefoot trail where you walk... barefooted (how did you guess) across many different materials such as shredded tyres, pebbles and even glass - don't worry it's safe even for our two year old. There's a tap at the end where you can wash your feet but our tip is to take a towel. You'll be the envy of everyone there if you do. There's an indoor play fort, well it's in an open barn so you're dry but not in a stuffy, smelly room like some soft play areas can be. There's quite a few places to have a picnic such as in the fun fort, in a teepee or by the trampolines. Often we'd buy food at these places but it's just so expensive in the cafe that I can't bring myself to part with the money. Over £4 for a very average looking sandwich that wouldn't fill me. Really that's the only shame about the place, the entrance is affordable, the annual ticket is great value for money. It's friendly, it doesn't feel too big. I'd certainly recommend it if you have children.

What were me and my family of 3 really supposed to do here everywhere we went was closed and we…read moreonly saw a few if any animals. Would definitely recommend saving the £40.00! For something better.

This is a delightful steam railway in the Forest of Dean, which has preserved one of the once-many…read morelines built to serve the Forest's erstwhile coal-mining and quarrying industries. The line is centred on the former colliery site at Norchard, just north of Lydney, where a small museum, shop and museum have been established. (This also has the largest car-park). The line itself has been reopened between Lydney Junction (adjacent to the BR station) and the village of Parkend, in the centre of the Forest. The line between Lydney and Parkend follows a lovely, thickly wooded valley, with streams and waterfalls. The whole enterprise is run by volunteers. As well as steam locomotives, there is a large collection of vintage diesels at Lydney Junction, undergoing or awaiting restoration. Some services may be run by preserved diesel railcars - contact the line for details. As well as the regular tourist service, the line hosts various special events, with 'Thomas the Tank Engine' days and 'Santa Specials' at Christmas for children. Some trains have light refreshments and 'Supper Specials' are also run. Access for wheelchairs onto the stations and trains is available at Norchard and Parkend, and the railway makes an effort to be as accessible as possible (NB: car park surfaces can be uneven). If you harbour dormant fantasies about driving a steam engine, they offer one-day railway experience packages. These are also available to groups - how about this for a company Away-day with a difference!

We visited this during a wet camping holiday this summer. Before I get onto talking of the train…read morejourney itself, I must mention the small museum at the start of the rail journey. This contains a collection of railway momentoes, signs, luggage trolleys, photos etc but the thing that really struck my kids was the working telephone exchange. You have a row of bakelite phones connected together and, when you dial each one, you can watch the exchange doing its 'tick tick tick tick clunk' thing as it connects the two handsets. That kept the kids quite amused for a good while. The trains run according to a timetable and there's interest on the journey as they run through a couple of the towns in the forest of Dean, holding up local traffic. The trains look well looked after and are staffed by amenable looking old and young enthusiasts. They ran a raffle when we were on our ride, the prize being a ride in the cab with the driver on the return journey. Shame we didn't get it. Staff were happy enough to answer questions and I was amused to find that the type of diesel train we were in was already 30 years old when I used to ride in them to and from school in the 1980's.

What a fantastic day out. This place offers a lot for family's…read more Great value for £8 per adult and £5 for children over two, under twos are free ! The grounds are fantastic lots of open space for the children to wonder and explore and also paths that follow through the trees and gardens. There's a big adventure playground full of lots to explore, zip wire, slide climbing frame etc. There were also blow up slides and a paddling pool. There was a separate area with Wendy houses, trampolines and a climbing frame for the smaller children which was in a really nice relaxing area. You can get up close with pigs, rabbits, guinea pigs and chickens in Pet's Corner. There is 66 acres of beautiful gardens and woodland walks, the views across the River Severn and Wales and spectacular ! There's also a cafe and shop. The cafe is really nice I had a caramel latte with a cheese and chutney sandwich came to £5.50 wich Is good value. Plenty of parking available. Overall a fantastic day out which was really enjoyed by all.

Old Down Country Park is not your typical stately home. It is a farm/zoo/park/house. Great for the…read morewhole family too. They have large lawn areas for picnics, a café for those who didn't pre-prepare food, and lots and ltos of animals. Expect to find your typical farm animals. Goats? Check. Pigs? Check. Sheep? Check. Ponies? Check. Wallabies????check!!! Entry is only a fiver and you can spend the whole day there (weather permitting) walking along the Victorian walls and cooing at all the cute animals.

This is a perfect place to take young family members who like to run around and make noise!…read more I recently took a young niece here, and she absolutely loved it - an added bonus was that she was so tired out by the end of it her mum said she slept like a log! I remember going to something like this when I was really young too, it offers a ideal mix between being able to see and touch animals like rabbits and pigs, to an adventure playground with those big slides that probably aren't so big when your a grown up but are huge when your little that you sort of drop off almost vertically, with your bum hardly touching the slide! There's also a nature trail. The park is great in nice weather, not so good in the rain but there are still inside things to do. It is also quite reasonable priced - £7.00 adult and £6.50 child, check their website for special offers.

This is a large, leafy recreational area covering 50 acres just outside Bristol with an animal…read morefarm, riverside walks, playgrounds and picnic areas. With stacks to entertain children, it's also a pleasant space for adults, and even when it's sunny and busy there seems to be plenty of space for everyone. For kids, the play arena has trampolines, slides, rope climbing structures and go karts, plus mini golf and the Strawberry Line miniature train. The six or so shire horses kept at the park are a big attraction, and there are lots of smaller animals to see, and even handle (under supervision). The park has falconry displays at the weekends (and during school holidays), plus a nature trail along the river (with a junior assault course running parallel to it). Adults cost £7.50, children (and OAPs) £7, and little ones under 2 go free. The park's open every day from April - end of October, then the indoor play barn is open on weekends and school holidays.