Starting to see everything in minature! (Babbacome Model Village)

Member Name: kingfisher111

Product:	Babbacome Model Village
Date:	23/08/09 (149 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: lots to see and lots of lovely little buildings

Disadvantages: expensive

As we have been visiting my family in South Devon we have been taking in some of the local attractions. One of these is the delightful Babbacombe Model Village which is on the outskirts of Torquay. As my daughters both love playing with their dolls houses I had a sneaky suspicion that an entire village filled with miniature buildings would go down a treat with them and I was right! They absolutely loved their visit to the model village.

The village has been a part of Babbacombe since 1963 and has been continually added to and updated over the years. It is set into the side of a steep incline which means that as you walk around there is a lot of steps and slopes to climb up and down. This makes it quite difficult for people with mobility problems. I took my mum who has leg problems and she found the slopes quite difficult but was relieved to discover that there are quite a few benches and seats spread around the site that she could make use of. Although on the website it states that there is wheelchair access, I think it would be quite difficult for wheelchair users to get around.

Once in the village there is a one way route to take to ensure that you see all of the models. I also think that it is definitely worth buying a guide so that you appreciate all that there is to see. On your way round you will see so many different buildings and activity and these are all listed in the guide. These include a farm, Stonehenge, 'Wombley' stadium, a beach including a nudist section (my girls thought this was very cheeky!), a cinema, a fire station, a church and so on. I'm not sure how many different buildings there are but there were definitely quite a few. In and around all of the buildings were lots of miniature folk engaged in all sorts of activities and according to the guide the population of the village is about 13,000.

Although many of the buildings have been there quite a while there were some nice modern touches. For example, the cinema was showing the latest Harry Potter film and there is the construction site for the 2012 Olympics which is actually due to be finished in that year. Maybe I will have to go back then to take a look at how it all turns out! There is also quite a lot of humour in the exhibits too such as the cheeky nudists on the beach and at the wedding in front of the church the bride is carrying the groom!

There is also a 'Where's Wally?' challenge which is a lot of fun for children and adults alike. Scattered around the different buildings, there are some Wally figures and the challenge is to spot them just like in the books. There is also a Letterland character treasure hunt for children. The twenty six letters of the alphabet are all in different places and the children are given a sheet of clues to help them find them. This was a bit advanced for my two daughters so they didn't bother with this and anyway, it wasn't necessary as they were just happy to wander about and look at everything.

There are a number of railways running about the site and this seems to be a big feature to see all the trains connecting the different area. There is also a large train layout in a separate building which would be a must for all enthusiasts. There was another building which had lots of little models that were meant to light up and move when you pressed a button. Unfortunately this was a bit hit and miss as some worked and some didn't.

I thought that the entire village was laid out beautiful. Particularly impressive were all the shrubs and dwarf conifers that make the site looking so green and lush. Apparently there are over 400 varieties. There is so much to take in and it's definitely worth taking your time as there are so many little details to take in. In fact it was a little bit wasted on my two daughters who do not have the patience to stop and look at anything for long!

There is also a 4D theatre (£1.50 per person) and a birds of prey exhibition which we did not see during our visit.

There is a nice little cafe on the site with reasonable prices for teas, coffees, cold drinks and snacks. It is unfortunate with two small children in tow that this backs on to the gift shop which you have to go through in order to leave.

We visited the village during the day but if you go in the evening you can see lots of the buildings illuminated which I'm sure would have been lovely. Once you have paid your entrance fee for the day, you can come back later if you want provided you have had your hand stamped in the gift shop. We did toy with the idea of returning in the evening, but as I would have wanted to bring the girls back with their dad and not their Nan we would have paid extra for him which would have worked out quite expensive.

This brings me to my one complaint about the model village which is how much it costs to get in! The admission prices are:

Adult£8.25
Senior/Concession £7.25
Child (3 to 14 yrs) £5.95

We bought a family ticket to save a bit of money and that cost £25.95. This might not sound too pricey to you, but you are unlikely to spend much more than an hour wandering around the site and that is about the same amount of money that it costs to spend a whole day at Slimbridge Wetland Centre and much more than a whole day at Kew Gardens! (see my other reviews). I do appreciate that we could have returned in the evening which would have made it better value. It is interesting to read in the guide how the admission money is spent and as there are some very skilled craftsmen to pay who continually update the site I won't begrudge the money too much. It doesn't help however, that the village does not have its own car parking so added to the price you end up paying over £2 to park! (Oh dear - I think I'm beginning to sound like Scrooge!)

Apart from the prices though, the model village is definitely worth a visit if you are in the Torquay area.

Summary: Fun to visit for a couple of hours!