My salsa friend Hilary and I headed out to Beepy's nightclub located at the Lakeside Leisure Centre…read morein Frimley on Friday for a salsa party organised by Renato of Salsa Esperiensa Heavy traffic on the M3 and A31 meant that we used my trusty sat nav to navigate us there on the back roads of Surrey. The Lakeside complex is huge with the leisure centre as well as hotel and large darts venue where they hold big dart tournaments Renato teaches salsa here regularly here every Monday but this party was a one off event with guest teachers for the bachata tango and advanced salsa classes as well as a performance by Laith Sami and the Diablo dance company There was a big dance floor but with great music all night, it was always full of whirling, twirling couples. Although the hall felt cold when we entered, it heated up fast with the dancing The classes were fun and we learned a lot of new moves in both classes. Though we didn't get home til 1.30am, it was a great night of dancing

PEEP offer early education support and services to groups and individuals around Oxford, from…read morebabies to rising-5s. Your Health Visitor should be able to put you in touch with a PEEP activity group, or you might receive contact from a home visitor after your baby is born. Take them up on it. We had a wonderful experience with PEEP, from the first visit bringing sing-a-long tape (now CD), nursery rhyme book and a picture book designed for newborn babies' vision, to the last group session we attended when my son was not quite four. Parents can study parenting and achieve a certificate through the groups and workbooks, and receive encouragement and support to (re)take GCSEs; children get a good grounding in learning through play, singing and music, and just plain making friends. PEEP also attend local fetes and fairs to provide a good distraction for under-fives. The PEEP shop (play centre) at Cowley Centre needs a separate review, but details can be found from the main centre here.

Toad Hall Adventure play is open 7 days a week and offers soft play facilities for children from…read morebabies through to juniors. There's a good under 3s section with a ball pit and 2-stage climbing frame (soft). There are some sit-on soft toys and some blocks. The floor is a bit suspect and there's a bit of an old smell to the area - nothing terrible but you do notice it. The play equipment appears safe but could be in better condition. The main soft play is a triple height affair with climbing, balls, slides and chutes. It's safe and in better condition than the toddler area. At weekends and after school this place can get packed but, during the day it's not too bad. A cafe facility is available serving teas, coffees, soft drinks and snacks. The prices are reasonable. Tables are kept away from the soft play being behind a low wall. They are OK but there's not a good view of the play area meaning that it's hard to have a coffee and take care of your child. For many parents this just seems to mean that they don't watch their child and so you do have to be careful that your child doesn't get set upon by unrully kids. It's not a particularly comfortable place but it's a good local option for a rainy day. Car parking is available.

What a delightfully fun day at this cute farm. Everyone was so happy to be out and about on this…read moresunny day. The atmosphere was super family oriented, kid friendly and very educational. There was a cute stand for food and hot drinks on this slightly chilly day. CARAMEL DOUGHNUT Fluffy doughnut with a delicious caramel glaze. It wasn't too sweet and it would be so easy to eat two of these without even blinking! FONDANT DOUGHNUT Fluffy doughnut with a sweet fondant glaze. This was tasty, but a little too sweet for me. My coffee helped wash this down for me. JAM DOUGHNUT Fluffy doughnut with a sweet and slightly tart jam filling. DELICIOUS. A perfect, classic jam filled doughnut. Could eat myself sick from these. Scrumptious! After having these delicious doughnuts, we walked around and fed the animals. This farm is so big on cleanliness and educating everyone about being friendly to all walks of earth. Absolutely loved learning more about farm animals, feeding them and seeing how well they are cared for. A great way to introduce children to learning so much about respecting animals and the environment!

What was meant to be a joyful experience started terribly when we were initially refused entry!!…read moreWhen staff were unable to scan our ticket we were informed shortly after that the ticket had been redeemed the day before at 2pm. This was utter madness to us as we live an hour away and the ticket was clearly dated with the date of our visit. I was informed that some visitors redeem their tickets earlier than their specified date that they choose when booking which seems odd to me if a venue needs to cap visitor numbers! We were made to feel that we were lying and we felt helpless with having to nothing to prove our innocence. It was made clear that we were not going to be allowed entry as they had no explanation for the mishap. My friend and her daughter were in great distress as a result. I ended up paying another £60 to avoid delaying our visit any further and risk missing activities for the day. The manager agreed to complete their investigation whilst we carry on with our day. We were later given a refund and gift card. Despite this, I would still like to share our experience incase this happens to someone else. I suspect their booking system is faulty. Odds farm WAS a special venue to me as I visited when I was young but this experience has tainted my view of the farm, as a result I will never return!

Great atmosphere with tons of food/drink options! We had the daikiwi and some chocolate gelato…read more Very cute set up/decorations. Perfect date night location! Right when you walk in there's a coat check. After that you can check in upstairs to reserve a tee time (we only had to wait roughly 30 minutes). While waiting there are plenty of fun drinks at the bar or several food options. There are about 4 different small shops within Swingers that provide different foods such a pizza or gelato.

I would most definitely NOT recommend Swingers. We pre-booked this as a big group as part of my hen…read moredo and were really looking forward to planing Crazy golf but from the moment we arrived things just got worse and worse. Upon arriving one of us had tripped on the ramp directly outside the door as this was not clearly taped and made apparent to everyone that there was a trip hazard straight outside the door, as this happened the security man in the door picked on our friend and decided to make it apparent that she was not going to be allowed to participate and that a manager had to assess if she was fit enough to play.. To which we stated not only did she trip in the ramp but she is unsteady on her feet on a normal day due to her disability, however they did not take that into account and still persisted to accuse her of being intoxicated and unfit to play.. We were then eventually allowed to go inside to order our drinks to which our friend who was picked on at the door was not allowed any alcohol to which we still explained her disability to which they persisted that she was not allowed and Alcohol, shortly after this they said she was unable to play all together and that they would refund her, however we still did not find this very fair given the circumstances the manager still persisted to single my disabled friend out and make the situation worse, and the manager did not give any sympathy to the fact they had made my friend cry over this whole situation.. We then got some drinks at the bar, which were disgusting, might I add that I ordered a gin and lemonade, however I would say this was just a bland drink of ice, more than anything else.. I find it very frustrating that not only did they accuse my friend of being intoxicated, they are more than happy to serve you alcohol at the bar as much as you want, yet they then say if your too intoxicated you are unable to play yet they are happy to pour out as many drinks possible... We spoke to the security and manager on multiple occasions to explained the situation however they couldn't of cared any less and where completely unreasonable given the situation.. Before leaving a few people decided to use the toilets before going elsewhere to which we were greeted by a few women who were so pissed they could hardly go to the toilet themselves, let alone play crazy golf, however they were given entry and were allowed to play crazy golf as well as keep getting drinks at the bar.. Based on this experience I would not recommend as they are very unreasonable and unfair to customers, even more so discriminating people who are disabled, highly disappointed and a waste of time, will definitely not return.

I was really sad that I came here on my last day in London and not my first!!! I prob would've gone…read morea few more times, but alas such is life. This place is really cool with so many rooms and climbing routes. There were plenty of top rope, lead, auto belays, and boulders. There is climbing indoor and outdoors, really the playground of my dreams. There's even a cafe and food here, honestly I would never leave this place. And the best part is it's so affordable even for the one time visitor. The con is it's some what far from Central London and that deterred me from going the first time. For any climber visiting London, this is a must!!!

I mean... it's a castle. One with its innards ripped out and replaced by variegated cell walls…read moredotted with multi-coloured hand- and footholds. Does it -get- much cooler than this for a rock climbing gym? The three floors of top roping, lead climbing, and bouldering merely comprise a fraction of what this mega-centre has to offer. They now have a more traditional gym space, walls of lockers (remember to bring a pound coin to use them), a kit shop, and a cute little café on the top floor. On top of offering an awe-inspiring venue, the staff I've encountered have been absolutely lovely. Even when they spot something going less-than-right, they come by to gently offer words of wisdom rather than scathing criticism. Plus, as manual as the check-in process here is*, the front desk employees keep things moving right along. I thought that climbing was going to be one of those things that I might have to give up for good after I moved away from NoVA and my beloved Sportrock Gym there, but I've discovered a whole new level of climbing gym brilliance at the Castle. --- * My former climbing gym had a swipe card system which automated the check-in process completely. Whilst it's not a hassle, it would reduce the work required of the front desk staff here nominally.

We visited Windsor yesterday and my husband felt it would be nice to do a river trip in the…read moreafternoon. The choice was a 40 minute trip or a 2 hour trip. As there was not much difference in price he opted to book us on the 2 hour trip. Below decks there's a bar/tearoom and toilets. Most people opted to sit on the top deck. This has plastic seating in the first 5 rows and the back rows have padded seats. Although it was a sunny day, it was cold whilst we were sailing - had I known we were going to do a river trip I wouldn't have worn a sun dress as I got quite cold! It was a pleasant trip. Commentary was via a pre-recorded cd talking about the sights and history to be seen along the bankside and it's quite fascinating to see all the lovely houses on the waters' edge. We asked for tea and cakes which was brought to us by the Captain's 'mate' a pleasant young lady with hair dyed green! It was an enjoyable trip aside from the fact that I'd taken my 5 year old granddaughter for whom the trip was just too long. She enjoyed going through the Bray Lock gates but at that age they don't understand the incredible engineering and history behind it. I would definitely recommend a river cruise if you want a relaxing afternoon but do take a blanket or some warm clothes!

Quite a pleasant cruise. Commentary is recorded and a bit too detailed for most people. Seats are…read moreplastic, so don't expect comfort. On the whole satisfactory.

Oxford Ice Rink Oxpens Road Outdoor skating may be the cool…read morething to do (couldn't resist the pun) but for real ice and a big space, go to the Oxford Ice rink. The surroundings are rather grotty and can't compare with Somerset House or possibly Oxford or Warwick castles (I've not been to the two latter but I imagine they are scenic) but it is bigger and size does (whatever men say) count. There is enough room to get up a bit of speed or just to get up a bit of confidence. It can get very busy at week ends and during school holidays. The disco music can be too loud for anybody except teenagers. Check with the rink before you go if you don't want to find yourself in the middle of an ice disco. During the week the early evening sessions are much quieter. It is run by the council so it isn't that expensive and you can get a discount card if you are a regualar visitor - you may also get special deals if you have a "Slice" card for the council run sports centres. Non-skaters can pay a pound to accompany their children.

Good old Oxford ice rink. It's a typical ice rink in that it's a bit run-down, a bit dirty and…read morerather ugly from the outside, but hey, you don't go there for the aesthetics. The rink is a fair old size and they run lots of great events such as ice dancing lessons, family discos and ice hockey training. Various teams train regularly there, although often late at night, and it's home to Oxford Alternative Ice Hockey (essentially ice hockey for amateurs, but great fun according to my friend who does it regularly). Entry is pretty cheap, although as others have mentioned, it's best to walk there if you want to avoid the parking charges. There are vending machines and lockers, and the staff are friendly and enthusiastic.

A friendly, local outdoor lawn bowling club. Open through the summer from 1st May to end of…read moreSeptember. Six of the finest bowling rinks in Berkshire, set within Newbury's Victoria Park. A members club, open to the public upon request and during summer open days where members of the public can try the sport for themselves. Monday nights are 'club nights' when any member of the public interested in playing bowls can try the sport, with equipment provided free-of-charge on the night (remember to wear flat shoes) the club also has a very reasonably priced bar.

I'm sure you and your kids will have a great time here but behind the scenes things aren't quite so…read morefun. The management have a bad habit of not paying their staff !!! My daughter is still owed over £200. In her attempts of getting the money that she worked for she has met only lies. The owner once told me that her husband was in hospital with a brain tumor when in fact he was sitting in their cafe at the time !!! They owe ex employees £1000s.

very poor set up over priced and out of date food on offer. no mangers on site to talk to and…read morenever has phone on or does not answer if she knows there a problem.i worked there in december 2010 and witnessed not one but 7-8 people complane to staff about there problems but they were just fobed off.very dirty as was cup ect were reused and rubbish left from the partys days before, this is not the place where i would take my children, as i said i work there through dec 2010 im not from oxford i live 100 miles away NOT INPRESTED