A Project not to be missed (Eden Project (Cornwall))

Member Name: Surfbabe13

Product:	Eden Project (Cornwall)
Date:	05/06/09 (36 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Something for everyone

Disadvantages: Steep in places, not always accesisble for disabled people

Having now visited the Eden Project twice I thought I would write a review. We first visited 6 years ago and then again two weeks ago.

You approach the Eden Project from quite high up and follow the road down to the first car park that has spaces. Parking is free as is the bus that runs regulary between the car parks and the main visitor centre. The furthest car park is about 1km away from the centre and it is quite easy to walk it as it is all downhill - coming back is a different matter and the bus is a must. as the Project is build in a disused China Clay Pit it is steep!

On arrival at the visitor centre, you pass the outside of the shop which is very long, and have lots of things to read if you want tobefore you arrive at the visitor entrance. To the left hand side is a desk for pre-booked groups and people paying with vouchers (unfortunatley Tesco Deals is not accepted here!). To the right are door ways into 10 (I think I counted correctly) ticket desks. We went on Bank Holiday Monday and only had one person in front of us waiting to pay - it does help to walk right down the room as there were big queues at the first few desks and hardly anyone further down - so needless to say we were paid and in before the people that came through the doors before us.

The ticket clerks - for want of a better description were efficient and polite and didn;t press the point of Gift Aiding our entrance donation - which we did and got free passes for the year !. You are given a sticker (I think they use a different colour each day) to wear to show you should be there.

Before you actually go outside take a moment to look at the displays in this room - well actually it is more like an upmarket hanger! There is also a coffee shop if you need sustenance before embarking on your trip around the flora and fauna of the world.

At this point you are still only half way down the old china clay pit and so the view from the platform as you exit the entrance shows you the whole layout of the project. Now your descent begins!

You can follow one of several paths or take the land train. We opted to walk and took the most circuitous (I think that is a word!) route possible. It did mean that we saw all their was on show - including an area that was given over to Cornwall - Hedges and borders, farming and agriculture were all given space. Their is a lot about sustainable farming and using alternative forms of commodities such as rubber for tyres. A display on mining also was interesting.

There is a fantastic allotment display comparing an English Allotment with things grown abroad - we were pleased to note that our vegetable garden was on a par growth wise with the Eden project's.

Scattered through the gardens adn walks are sculptures adn models, some made from recycled materials, some not. One of the most interesting was WEEE Man outside the Education Centre. It was made entirely of old electrical equipment, representing the amount of stuff that is dispoed on by one person in their lifetime.

Now to the BioDomes - there are two Domes - one Tropical and one Temperate and they are connected by a huge area that house the resturants, loo's etc.

The Tropical Dome is very humid and it is advisable to make sure you have a bottle of water to sip at with you, although there are water fountains dotted around. This is the only part of the Project that has an area that is not accessible to wheelchair users as part of it is quite steep and there are 65 steps to descend. All around the Dome, everything is well signed with interesting facts about each area. The Cocoa area is espically interesting although no free chocolate I'm afraid. A lot of people tended to be walking stright though and were making the normal touristy comments without actaully reading anything at all. There were also lots of comments about the heat - duh - its a tropical dome!

The Temperate Dome is obviously entirely different, but is just as interesting. There are Mediterannean, Calafornian, African Areas to name but a few and the Dome does not seem so over whelmed with planting - possible because the plants are obviously not so large!. There is an interesting area about Olive Groves and it is interesting to see the citrus fruits - i didn;t actaully realise that there is a fruit called a citronella - it is about 20 times the sixe of a normal lemon !

Now to the resturant -- It is light and airy, with an outside seating area and is split into two parts. One half is given over to foods using locally grown and sourced foods and the other sells pizza, pasties and pasta all with chips!

We opted for the locally grown food and had wonderful jacket potatoes with various fillings and home grown salads. Most of the hot drinks are Fair Trade and are no dearer than ordinary teas, coffees and choclate elsewhere. There is also a good selection of cold drinks on offer.

The toilets were clean and plentiful and no queuing when we were there.

Back outside their are a number of activites for younger children, as well as a wood carving display - these change weekly or monthly depending on the season. We didn't spend much time in this area this time, although the pavement art outside was a hit with our 17yr old, although a lack of chalk was an obstacle!

There is an outside theatre area, which was been used to skateboarding displays and street dancing displays when we were there. In the summer it is used as a concert venue as well and in the winter - ice skating.

Since we visited 6 years ago there is now a new eduaction centre which was really interesting. There is a display of paintings by the artist in residence charting the course of the evolution of the project and whilst these are for sale they range from about £1,000 up to £22,000. They are really good though !

One wasl is entirely made of old fridge doors and you can make your own magentic poetry to go on them, although there was a shortage of A's the day we were there.

By the time you have been through all of this there is only the flower garden left which is wonderful and it is then either a long windy walk, road train or walk up the stpes to get back to the Visitor centre and the Buses.

We took the steps and crossed the bridge which gave another stunning view of the area.

You have no option but to go through the shop on the way out and this was the only bug bear, as the checkouts are not plentiful and the queues were long!

All in all a good day out.

Costs - £16 adults, £5 children under 18 (thats a first !!)

Summary: A great day out for all the family at a fairly reasonable price