Perfect for under 5's (Sundown Adventureland)

Member Name: dthpsb

Product:	Sundown Adventureland
Date:	01/09/09 (198 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Reasonably priced, so much to see and do

Disadvantages: None - my three boys loved it

I have three young boys aged 5, 3 and 1, and with the start of the big summer holidays was looking for somewhere to take them for a day trip. I looked online for the perfect place to entertain them and came accross Sundown Adventureland. It was relatively close to where we live and I had heard good things about it before as I think it's somewhere nursey schools go for a day trip. Looking reasonably priced we decided to give it a go.

Sundown Adventureland is located in Rampton, near Retford, Nottinghamshire. It is six miles from the A1 Markham Moor and is also signposted three miles from Dunham on the A57. It is about 40 miles from where we live and we had no difficulties finding it but we did use satnav.

Sundown describes itself as a themepark designed uniquely for the under 10's, which is exactly what it is. I think when you have young children it is hard to find theme parks that are appropriate and many are aimed specifically at older children.

The prices do not reflect usual theme park prices and the admission fee is very reasonable. Under 2's are free and everyone over 2 pays £8.50. So it cost us £34 for the five of us which I thought was great and as the day went on we realised it was worth every penny.

There are four rides that are suitable for all members of the family:-
Tractor ride
Rocky mountain railroad
Robin Hood ride
Boozy barrell boat ride
The boys really enjoyed these rides and even our 1 year old went on them. You can go on them as many times as you like and don't have to wait that long. Four rides might not seem much for a theme park but there is so much else to do.

Storybook village, the mouse's tale and santa's winterwonderland are all places for the children to explore. There is sundown's market square, a musical pet shop and an animated farm, all are settings with fun things to do and discover.

The part which my boys enjoyed the most was Crash Landings, which is new for 2009. This is a jungle themed indoor play area and it is one of the biggest soft play area's I have seen.
When the main park is closed you can still go to Crash Landings paying £6.50 for kids and £2 for adults.
You could spend hours just in this part and my boys did not want to leave.

There is also another, slightly smaller soft play area, called The Indoor Rodeo Corral Play Area. We also spent some time in here and this was empty compared to the bigger one, I suppose being new it was much more popular.

Outdoors there are several parks, one as you enter which is specifically for the under 5's and others for older children, again they were so big with so many things to do. There is even a large outdoor sand play area, I didn't know this was here as I would have taken buckets and spades. This was called Captain Sandy's Playcove.

If you are looking to buy food there are several fast food cafes selling the usual burgers, chips, chicken nuggets etc... but as I find this is usually overpriced and not very tasty we took a picnic. There are many picnic areas for you to eat.

There are also shops where you can buy drinks and ice creams. There is a gift shop but we didn't find time to visit this.

It was open 10am to 6pm, these times vary slightly depending on the season and it is open all year round, with special christmas festivities starting in november.
We got there just after 10 and stayed until 5.30, for just £34 I think that is good value for money. There was so much to see and do and the children simply loved it. I have never found somewhere that is so appropiate for children under 5 and we will definetely be returning again.
It you live within a suitable distance and you have young children then you really must give it a try, a fun day for all.

Summary: A perfect day out if you have young children