Most of our holiday in Cornwall this Spring seemed to revolve around the animal attractions, of which there are many. Small and perhaps not on the top of everyone's list of 'must see-s' is Dairyland Farm World. I have to say though, this was probably my favourite place we visited the whole week.

Dairyland Farm World, as the name suggests is a farm with it's main attraction being it's cows. It's very easy to get to from Newquay, where we were staying. It's a short bus ride from the bus station, of which the buses are regular and on time (not like where I live!). The bus will cost around £2.70 and they also run here from St. Austell and Truro. If travelling by car, it's located on the A3058 and clearly signposted from the A30, A3075 and A392. The cows are in the surrounding fields on either side of Dairyland, so if you see cows your nearly there!!

The farm is open everyday from April to October and the childrens play area called 'The Bull Pen' is open throughout the Winter aswell. I thought prices were reasonable, in comparison to some of the other attractions we'd visited over the week. Entry prices are £7.95 per adult and children are free. Senior Citizens get in for £6.20. The best thing about this is you can get a seven day pass for these prices which allow you unlimited access for the next seven days, just let them know at the till when you pay. It's a good idea if the weather's not so good or you're short on time you can come back and see the bits you missed another day, or just come back for seconds! During the Winter, it's £5.25 for kids to get in to use 'The Bull Pen' but their parents get in free!

So what do you get for your entry fee? Well we visited early May and if you like cute baby farm animals this is the time to go as there's lots going on. I think the main 'Hay' barn was the biggest draw for most of the visitors. We spent hours in here as this is where all the calves were. All the animals are tame and very friendly, most of the little cows came over and let you pet them and are very happy to pose for photos! Also in the main barn is Hilda, a gorgeous big old piggy who you can buy food to feed, donkeys and baby goats.

At certain times of the day there will be events such as feeding times around the park and a tannoy goes out to let visitors know what's going on. I think this is a great idea. So many times I've been to zoos etc and looked at the feeding times and think 'I must not forget to go and see that' more more often than not, do. Anyway, a tannoy went out a little later on when we were looking around some of the rest of the park that said go to the Hay Barn if you would like to feed a baby goat. We rushed back there straight away and I don't think I've ever heard so many 'awwws!' The staff were great, encouraging the kids to pass the bottles around so everyone got a go to feed the goats, (I'm not sure that the goats liked this system so much and they had to keep following the bottle around) they even noticed that some of the bigger people like me wanted a turn. I do often feel that places like this do make it all about the kids and it was good that the staff here understood that everyone wanted to interact with the animals, not just the ones under three foot tall!! So yes, I fed the cutest little baby goat and it made my day!

Outside of the main barn there are many other animals to see, such as Merlin the 3 day old lamb who was skipping about and making the cutest little baas! The girl who was working there told me how she went to pick him up to bring him to the park as his mother rejected him. She said he now follows her everywhere and picked him up so that we could have a hold. There's also ducks, chickens and peacocks who just wander around free, small animals such as rabbits, chinchillas and guinea pigs and and aviary. There are also Rhea, Llamas and Deer.

In additon to the animals, the 'Bull Pen' as I mentioned before, is a huge play area for the kids, with assault course, ball pool and all sorts, though we were too big to go in there! Likewise with the pony rides, but the stables are open for you to pet the ponies and see them up close even if you're too big to ride them!

Dairyland has over 120 cows that it milks daily and visitors can see them being milked and get a talk while this is being done. We visited first thing in the morning however and, as the place isn't very big, got round by lunchtime so we didn't stay for this. Milking takes place between 3.45pm and 5pm so if you want to see this I suggest you arrange to arrive late morning-afternoon. What we did see, however, is the Old Creamery. This has all the history of the dairy farm, with exhibits of old farm equipment. This I found very interesting, and it was beautifully done all oldy woldy.

To see all Dairyland has to offer, you can take a 'Hayride', a tour round the farm and it's land on the back of a tractor. Again these don't start until the afternoon, so we took to exploring on foot. There are two routes to Dairyland's Nature trail, a short route which takes around 25 mins and a long route which takes around 40 mins. It's well worth doing a you get some gorgeous views of the neighbouring countryside and some lovely lakes with swans and ducks to wander around.

There's the usual tacky gift shop selling all sorts of cow related products and food wise, there's really only one place to get food here, their restuarant, Clarabelle's Kitchen. It's not too badly priced and there's a good selection of food available from cakes and sandwiches to salads and home cooked hot meals. We, as I mentioned arrived early and ordered cooked breakfasts which were huge and delicious!

Overall, I liked Dairyland, the atmosphere of the place was brilliant, the staff seem to care about their jobs, their animals and visitors alike and make you feel very welcome. The prices are good and the seven day pass is a great idea. I like the fact although it's be made into, from what I can see, a successful attraction for Cornwall it's still predominantly a farm and it hasn't gone down the route of selling out at every corner. I'd definately go back again and I reccommend it as somewhere to put on the top of your 'must see-s' next time you're in Cornwall.