ENJOY A GREAT DAY OUT AT ROBIN HILL (Robin Hill Countryside Adventure Park)

Member Name: junkboxjules

Product:	Robin Hill Countryside Adventure Park
Date:	19/05/02 (110 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Loads to see and do, Cheap day out, Set in beautiful countryside

Disadvantages: You have to pay extra to go on the toboggan run, Steep in places

If you have read my opinions on Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park and Blackgang Chine then you will already know that my family and I are great lovers of the beautiful Isle of Wight. There is so much to see and do on the Island including Robin Hill which is the subject of this opinion.

Robin Hill is a country park which is located near Arreton towards the centre of the Island. Don't worry if you don't have a car as public transport on the Island is very good and there are frequent busses to Robin Hill particularly during the high season, the bus stop is conveniently situated just outside the entrance. If you are coming by car you will be pleased to know that parking at Robin Hill is free.

The park is open from the end of March through until early November this year. Opening times are from 10am - 6pm during the peak summer holiday period and from 10am - 5pm off peak.

Admission to the park is as follows:-

Adults and children over 1.1M £5.50
Children under 1.1M £4.00
Senior Citizens £5.00
Disabled £3.00
Children under 3 are admitted Free

Like Blackgang Chine, their sister park, Robin Hill run a very good offer that allows you to return to the park within 4 days for only £1 per person.

**MAIN ATTRACTIONS**

There are three many attractions at Robin Hill and these are as follows

**TOBOGGAN RUN**

This is my favourite ride. The toboggan run costs £1 per person per ride. Each toboggan seats 1 adult and 1 child or if preferred the toboggans can be ridden alone providing the height restriction is met. The toboggan ride is mechanically operated and each toboggan has a steering wheel and brake which are operated by the rider. There are instructions along the way to advise you when to brake and when not to brake. The toboggan track is 400M long and the total ride takes about 2/3 minutes. It is great fun but gets very busy, especially during the peak season - if you arri
ve at 10am when the park opens it is advisable to go straight to this ride as it tends to be quieter earlier on. Another snag is that the kids will probably want to keep going back on and it can get expensive if there are a lot of you.

**THE TIME MACHINE**

The time machine is a cinema with a motion platform, it is similar to the simulator rides that you often find in fun fairs. I have not been into the time machine but my husband did, he was taken on a virtual ride on a roller coaster, it must be effective as he came out looking rather green around the gills.

**COLLUSUS**

Again I haven't been on this ride as I am a bit of a chicken when it comes to these sorts of rides. The Collusus is a large boat ride, you sit down on the boat and it swings backwards and forwards.

**OTHER ATTRACTIONS**

The park expands over 88 acres of beautiful countryside. As you enter the country park there are signposts to advise you where the main attractions are and there are arrows that you can follow to walk around the park, if you prefer you can find your own way around.

As you follow the signs around the park you will come across the following areas.

The first area you arrive at is a play area which houses lots of pretend buildings for the children to play in, there is a little sweet shop where they can stand behind the counter and pretend to serve sweets, a school and some houses which you can walk into, the children can climb the stairs in the houses and wave to you from the bedroom windows.

A bit further along there is the countryside centre, this is an educational centre and there is a lot of useful information about various countryside matters and wild animals in here.

As you step the countryside centre there are some ducks and other small birds to look at.

The next attraction is the rabbit warren this is a large dome like hill, a bit like the hill on Teletubbies, with l
ots of tunnels running underneath it - the kids, and adults, can have lots of fun down on their hands and knees crawling through the tunnels and going into and coming out of different entrances. Beware though - the children generally come out of here looking pretty grubby.

If you follow the footpath and walk down the hill you will arrive at the forest sculptures, these are slides etc which have all been sculpted out of wood and shaped into animals, eg there is a snail slide. They are beautiful to look at and the children love them.

Just along from the forest sculptures there is the lake area, here you will always find some hungry ducks and geese looking for scraps of food.

The footpath then continues into the woodland walk, the woodland walk is very interesting and if you are lucky you may spot a red squirrel or two. There are plenty of things to see and do throughout the woodland walk, such as cars and tractors carved out of wood which the children can sit in, there are also some chimes hanging down from the trees which the children can play tunes on. Dotted about along the way there are information signs about the various birds and wildlife that you may be lucky enough to spot along the way.

As you reach the end of the woodland walk you again meet up with the lake, there is a bridge that runs over the lake and if you look into the water from the bridge you can normally spot hundreds of fish popping their heads out of the water, especially if you entice them with fish food, which you can buy at the entrance, or bread.

Once you have passed the lake you come to a large grassy area, here you can play football, have a picnic or just sit and relax. Also found in this area there is a death slide, a water game where you have to hit the water bumps quickly as they pop up or they squirt water at you, snake slides set in the hill and the toboggan run. There is a cafe in this area which sells hot and cold drinks and snacks and
ice creams. There are also toilets in this area.

As you head back up the hill from here you will come across squirrel tower, this is a large tower which is like an assault course, you have to climb up ropes to get to the top. I have had a go at it and it is certainly not as easy as the children make it look.

The last area you come to is towards the top of the hill, here you will find another play area with rope bridges and plenty of other things to climb up and over.

**EATING AND DRINKING**

There are two cafes where you can buy hot and cold food, hot and cold drinks, sweets and ice creams. However, if you prefer you can take a picnic, there are plenty of grassy areas and picnic benches along the way.

**SUMMARY**

Robin Hill is a great value day out for all the family. Like Blackgang Chine you do not need to visit with children to have a good time. You can spend as long as you like here - if you wish to take the whole park at a leisurely pace then you could easily spend a full day there. If however you prefer to skip some of it or whizz round then you could fit it into half a day. Don't forget if you don't feel you have had long enough you can always return within 4 days for only £1 per person. The park is not on one flat level and there are parts of the park which are uphill, bearing this is mind young children or the elderly may find it hard work at times - I know I did and I'm only 34!

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