Theme Parks / Zoos National
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The Ark Open Farm (County Down)
by broxi3781 Living in northern Ireland has it perks. When it comes to natural scenery we have some real beauty spots with The Giants Causeway, Glenarariff Forest Park and so many other beautiful locations it would take me all day to list them. But we do not have as many museums, zoos or other attractions for children, and what we have tends to be ... small. My sons loved the Heads Of Ayr Farm Park in Scotland, but Northern Ireland does not have anything on this scale. This is more basic, and for the most part, it is just a farm. There are not a lot of other attractions. If you are going just to see the animals, you may well enjoy this farm more than some of the larger parks. If, however, you are looking for rides, slides and other attractions, you may find this very disappointing. We have visited the Ark Open Farm three times. On all three occasions we went mid week, when the schools were on. This means we were not able to try the pony rides or pedal go- carts, as these are only open during the peak operating days. It also means we could have a very quiet and leisurely experience, with the place almost to ourselves. On one occasion there was a very large nursery group, but the Lorraine, one of the owners who also seems to do the majority of the work made a real effort to make sure we were not lost in the crowd. She offered a separate petting and feeding session with the animals and we actually saw very little of the group as they were taken to a separate area for lunch and crafts I believe as well. Most of the time when we go there are very few other guests. Admission costs £5 for adults, £4.20 for children over 3, disabled or pensioners. Special needs children are £4.00 and children under 3 are not charged. Families are offered a special deal of £18.30 for 2 adults and up to 4 children, which would be a very good deal if you have a large family. Animal feed is extra, and I can not remember the exact price, but I'm sure the fee was nominal - I believe 50 pence a bag. I believe pony and go cart rides are extra as well, but these have not been open on our visits so I am not certain. Considering the amount of activities available, and the fact that you will be hard pressed to spend more than a few hours here, I do find this a bit expensive, but I always moan about prices and I very rarely pay full price for anything. Two for one vouchers are available online at Heritage Ireland, you just print them up, bringing this down to less than £10 for a family of 4. We have also visited this park using Tesco vouchers, but of course you can not combine the two. So - what can you do here? The main attraction here is the animals. There are a couple of barns with a variety of animals - most of which you can stroke and feed. These include the goats, horses, donkeys, sheep, pigs, rabbits, chickens, ducks, reindeer and chipmunks. The woman who runs the place brings different animals out for feeding, and there are always lambs and kids to be bottle fed and rabbits to cuddle. The rabbits are very docile and apparently quite used to this, and the woman does watch carefully and make sure animals are handled properly, but once she realises the child is gentle she gives you some space. The lambs and kids that are used for this are meant to have been abandoned by their mothers, but I do have some concerns about this. I did work and hang out on farms for awhile as teen, and while it does happen, it is rare for mothers to abandon their young. One can't help but worry that the animals are deliberately taken from the parents to provide the star attraction to visitors, but this is my opinion only and I may be completely wrong. The owner does honestly seem to have genuine concern for her animals, and I found her lovely person. I do know they work with other local farmers as well, so it is possible that the young animals come from a very large pool of farms. They did have puppies on our last visit, which they were finding homes for at the request of another farmer who owned the mother dog. There is a large statue of a cow in the barn, which has a working rubber udder filled with water. This lets the children try their hand at milking, and while it doesn't look quite as interesting as trying teh real think - it also saves you kicked in the head when you get it wrong, or pooped on, so I suppose this is more insurance friendly not to mention being more fair to the animals. Speaking of poop - the owner here is constantly reminding guests to wash their hands. I expect this may because a different farm park in Northern Ireland had a serious e coli outbreak years ago. E coli is a fairly natural companion of poop. I can't imagine how we didn't get it as children. I can remember spending entire days at a farm without hand washing, eating my lunch on horseback and even a few manure fights. I can only assume we developed resistance, but today's children are not accustomed to farm animals and have grown up with anti bacterial everything. E coli can be deadly - and there is nothing a farm owner can do to eliminate it. So if you visit this or any other farm park - hand washing is your responsibility. This place is covered with alcohol gel dispensers, sinks with soap and towels and of course the loos, but they really can not force anyone to use them. In addition to the animals, there is a lovely outdoor play park which my boys always enjoy. I expect this might get over crowded when the schools are out though. There are a number of picnic tables here, which look like they are scrubbed on a regular basis. I'm funny about laying food directly on anything in a public place. But as children do jump up and climb over tables, and these children might very well have been in the barn before this, I would very strongly recommend that you bring something to lay your food on. There is also a play barn, but this is sadly a very empty, dusty barn with a small playhouse and a number of broken up ride on toys that could actually present a safety hazard. The only thing worth visiting this for is the number of nests in the rafters with baby birds and parents flying back and forth. Further down there is a duck pond, which looks lovely from a distance and my husband and sons visit each time, but it I simply to far for me to walk and involves a hill as well. Most of this park is disabled friendly, but they really can not avoid things like hills. There are also aviaries with a number of different types of domestic farm fowl, and a barn with an owl. The farm park is kept very clean, and the toilets are kept spotless, even with large crowds. The woman who runs the place always seems to be cleaning when she isn't showing guests around. The animals are all kept very clean as well, and this honestly is as clean as you can get for a farm. We did not visit the cafe - in fact it was closed on our last visit, and I believe it only opens for the more busy days. We did peek in the windows and looks very pleasant and clean. I understand the food is basically home cooking type meals, soups , chips, and of course an Ulster Fry. I asked about vegetarian and vegan options, and the fellow really was sure - I do not think they have any specialist vegetarian options, but he did mention that everything is home cooked and they are more than happy to make something that isn't on the menu - assuming they have the ingredients. I still suspect it may be slim pickings for vegans but if you can ring in advance they seem quite accommodating and may be able to arrange something. The fact that they are willing to try speaks volumes in custom service. I would really suggest ringing before a visit if you plan to eat at the cafe anyway - to make sure it is open. I prefer picnics anyway though. There is also a small farm shop which I know sells fresh eggs and may have some other farm produce, but seems mostly to consist of the typical souvenirs like plastic farm animals and colouring books. There is usually a large collie type or two laying about as well, and I remember on one occasion we were greeted with a friendly bark. The dogs are not aggressive but this could be a problem if someone has a fear of dogs. Overall, this place isn't perfect, but it is nice. The play barn is a bit of a disgrace and I planned to knock a star off for this, but in all honesty, everything else is very well kept and these people seem to be working so hard to make this work. I do have concerns over the lambs, but I really have no evidene that these are not abandoned animals. I do feel the general standard of care here is better than most for the animals. We do keep going back, and my children enjoy it. They both feel the place should get 5 stars, and I really don't want to give this place anything lower. The Ark Open Farm is located just outside Newtownards on the Bangor Rd. This is directly across the road from The Somme Heritage Centre, and if you happen to be up there anyway - I really do recommend dropping in. There is a charge for the tour, but the museum section is free, and there is a lovely new cafe with very reasonable prices if you are looking for a quick meal. I would strongly suggest checking their website before visiting and making sure you have up to date opening hours, but currently they are: Monday to Saturday 10am - 6pm, Sunday 1pm - 6pm (October - March 5pm). Read the complete review |
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London Zoo
by MsTricia So last week wednesday was my daughter's 3rd birthday (gosh, where did the time go?) and so I decided from a while ago that her treat was to go to the zoo. She loves animals, especially pointing them out to me everywhere we go so I knew this would be an ideal birthday treat for her! ***Where Is The Zoo?*** London ... Zoo is located in Camden in North West London. Being money cautious we didn't drive to the zoo as it would mean we would have to go through congestion charge (I don't even know how much this costs anymore, can't be more than a tenner right?!) and also pay a whopping £14.50 for parking in their car park! There was a large group of us, so this would mean travelling in 3 cars and so as only 2 of us adults were driver, this was a no-no so we hopped on the tube. Exiting Camden tube station, literally cross the road, and walk straight past a small road of shops and restaurants, until there is a big sign to direct to go right at a large set of traffic lights. We followed the signs and walked for what seemed like forever! I would say for us it was a good 20 minute walk to the actual entrance of the zoo, which when you have 6 excitable kids all wanting to see the gorillas and asking "are we there yet?" this is a long duration of walking from the tube station to the zoo! Nevertheless, getting there is easy enough and is clearly signposted so you won't get lost. ***Entrance Fee** Altogether we had 5 adults and 6 kids. Under 3's are free entry (my daughter just turned 3 that day so I was going to be cheeky and get her in, not paying for her!) and so we had 3 kids under free (a 1 year old, a 2 year old and my daughter who was 2 years and 365 days old lol!) that we did not pay for and 3 kids over 3 (aged 5,6 and 11) who each cost £15.45. Personally I think under 5 year olds should be free, but nevertheless I could not quarrel as I know the zoo needs a good income to maintain it as it does not receive any government help/funding (at least that's what an employee at the zoo told me anyway!) Adults entry into the zoo cost £20.90. Looking to try and save a few pennies, only groups of 10 paying people apply for 20% ticket prices. As we did not have 10 paying people, the only deal I could salvage was 10% off 2 paying adults and 2 kids. This saved us about 7 quid, but at time of writing this review, this deal was only available online. Nonetheless, we bought all our tickets online and these are the prices without the option of a donation to the zoo: Adults =£20.09 Senior = £19.09 Student = £19.09 Child = £15.45 Disabled Child =£15.45 Disabled Adult = £19.09 Under 3 = £0.00 If buying a disabled child's ticket the carer enters for free and so if buying tickets online, still click on the adult ticket and enter promotional code 1001 to get the fee deducted for the paying adult. It should be remembered, just because you don't pay for under 3's you still need to book them a ticket and print off (if buying tickets before hand) as if you don't you'll still have to line up when you reach the zoo! ***At The Zoo*** When we finally reached we were happy to be in the fast track line as we already had our tickets so we had a nice speedy entrance. Hoorah we made it! First stop...where are the toilets?? ~Facilities Toilets were quite a nightmare. With a 2 year old and a 3 year old with the bladder the size of a rice grain and the heat meaning they were drinking quite a lot we found we needed toilet trips quite often. The only toilets we came across were when we first entered, they were about a 2 minute walk into the zoo past the gorillas. We initially ended up in the mens as it was a lot closer and the kids were bursting but after a lot of turning the zoo map upside down, sideways, trying to figure out where we were and then where the loo's were we eventually found it! The next set of toilets we found was about 3 hours into zoo time and near where the giraffe's were caged. Which of course smelt just lovely lol. So about 4 times between these 2 toilet visits my daughter just used a travel potty. One of the occasions was even to do a poo....how lovely. Was starting to think she would have been at home in the zoo! Anyway, now the toilet routine had been completed it was time to start enjoying the zoo! Our first adventure was the reptile house!! ~ Reptiles The reptile house was a lot of fun for all the kids as there were a range of snakes, lizards, komodo dragons and frogs etc. At the time we actually got here it was about 1.30pm and so sadly all the snakes were sleeping and a lot of the reptiles were snoozing in the deepest darkest corners of their habitat so was more a game of trying to find where the animals were more than anything! There were some swimming turtles that my daughter enjoyed watching and with all the large lizards and chameleons she would shout "mummy it's a dinosaur!" haha! It was too cute but a really fun interactive experience. ~ Gorilla Kingdom Next up was the gorillas and monkeys. To get in, you had to go through a door made out of thick sheets of plastic and pass through some cute colourful birds flying around. In the gorilla kingdom there were also a variety of monkeys all flying around, fighting each other and leaping from tree to tree which all the kids found to be so amusing! The gorillas were a big attraction for all the kids, there were 3 in total, not doing much, simply sitting swinging on a tyre or on a tree trunk being very relaxed. There are clear signs not to bang on the glass as this makes the gorilla's aggressive and all the people and kids included were good sports and simply viewed the gorillas. Photographs were allowed just no flash photography as this too may agitate the animals. They were beautiful creatures to look at, especially as I don't remember seeing a gorilla before and I was genuinely amazed at how similar to humans they actually are. ~ Deadly Birds Live Roll onto 2.30pm and about an hour into our zoo trip we were tired and hungry haha! We sat on some benches and being organised mummy I had brought drinks, crisps, chocolate, sandwiches, chicken everything so we all stopped for the kids to have a munch. Timing as it would be, on the grassy area next to us it was time for the Bird show! There was a demonstration of eagles as they flew around the crowd but always to a trained member of the zoo team. The kids were excited and amazed at the skill of the bird and I was interested to listen to the design, why it is called a bald eagle (I'm not telling you here you have to go to the zoo and find out for yourself!) and how they hunt for food. There was also another bird that looked like a deranged chicken when it ran but could jump about 10 feet high, a pity I cannot remember the name of it now! But still, this show was really good! ~ Big Cats This was one of the kids favourite things to see, and mine too if I'm honest! Boringly enough the lions were asleep, but the tigers were awake so was amazing to see them move around with such poise and finesse. I had both before when I went to a safari aged about 10 years old (long time ago now haha!) so was amazing to see them again. Of course they are caged quite far away, but could still get a good enough visual to see them and the children had great fun imitating a tiger roaaaarr!!! ~ Into Africa On the map it seemed situated on the opposite side of the road but we actually found this segment in the main area of the zoo. There were hunting dogs, who were rabidly eating at a fresh carcass of an animal (eeew! but guess that's the circle of life!) which the kids seemed very interested to watch lol. The animal I had wanted to see all day was the giraffe and here they were! Tall and elegant they were a beauty to watch and so amazing to see in real life! There was a bridge to stand on for a close up view of the giraffes, but as their space was so large sadly they did not come close enough to be touched (even though I am sure they would not want this!) but I was happy to stand and stare at them for a good 10 minutes. The zebras were next to them and all seemed disinterested, as they were all well hidden amongst some trees so I could not get a good enough picture which was disappointing but my daughter still took pride in showing me these animals as I reminded her that yes I could see them too! ~ Petting the Donkey Leaving the African segment we passed back where the deadly bird show was earlier and there was a small event where you could pet the donkey. Of course instigated by me, the kids were all eager to do this and so off we went. The donkey was extremely well behaved and the kids loved stroking the donkey. The zoo keeper holding him on a lead reminded us to only stroke his head and neck or side, and to steer clear of the back end as the donkey often kicked his legs up or stood on feet without realising so we kept this in mind and the donkey (and kids too!) was good as gold. My daughter didn't want to let him go! But as other kids had to have a turn we reluctantly left him alone haha. ~ Aquarium This was right back by the front entrance of the zoo and the main game in here was....can you find nemo?? There were loads of sea creatures like jelly fish, piranhas, crabs, big fish and small fish. They were all very colourful and the kids loved finding nemo and dorie, however once this was achieved they all quickly lost interest in the fish and was a swift exit after that lol. ~ Bouncy Castle Since spotting it about 3 hours earlier, all the big kids wanted to do was go on the bouncy castle. Who comes to the zoo just for this? So after holding them off for some time (and the main reason they wanted to leave the aquarium so quickly!) this was the next main event. Costing £1.50 for 5 minutes (yes cinco minutos!) 4 of the kids trotted off, and the 2 littlest ones stayed behind giving us adults a few minutes of peace and quiet. Phew! ~ Penguins The penguins were a bit boring as we had missed the morning show of diving with the penguins. There were probably about 40 penguins pretty much standing around doing nothing, and I felt quite sorry for them as they didn't seem to have much to do! Maybe I could get them a part time job at sainsburys, they seemed like they needed a hobby lol. So we literally popped in here for about 30 seconds and as the day was getting on we decided to leave them alone. ~ Butterfly Paradise To see the butterflies meant going into a pod like building which was very hot and humid like a tropical climate. In here was an array of plants and trees which were to imitate these butterflies natural habitat and they were beautifully fluttering all over the place. Anyone with a phobia of insects will probably hate this as they literally are flying around on their own whim but I loved seeing all the different patterns and designs on their wings and watching their movement. ~ BUGS So it's now 5pm the kids are a bit restless, so me and my cousin only took 3 of the kids to the Bug house. In here there was a range of different bugs and creatures which seemed the zoo wanted to display but had run out of ideas where to put them lol! There were ants, bees, tarantulas (ahh!), grasshoppers, crickets, a rat (which was HUGE!) a mouse, some jellyfish and even a sponge (like spongebob square pants hehe!). I would definitely think this building was more suited to older kids as my daughter who is 3 wasn't understanding too much but was interested enough to see what all the different animals were. There was a little playground where the other kids who didn't come to see the Bugs were playing, which had a slide, climbing frame etc to keep the kids entertained which was fun. Leaving the zoo was close from here, but they are crafty to make us have to walk through the gift shop to leave! Souvenirs in here were very expensive, but had things like cups, plates, t-shirts, keyrings and stuffed animals. Lucky for us, the kids were worn out and tired and had no interest in none of these things and were all ready to go home! ***Other Features*** There were a few animals we didn't get to see sadly, like Reindeer, Otters, Lemurs, Meerkats, Fruit Bats and the Peacocks as these were across the road, and as we got to the zoo quite late we ran out of time. Food and drink at the zoo, a 500ml bottle of ribena or coke cost £1.85 (yikes!) so we did not buy any food here. The most was treating the kids each to an ice cream which was quite small and itself was £1.50 but not too bad. There is an Oasis Restaurant for people wanting to eat in for lunch but food is obviously around £5 per person. Dotted around the place were hot dog stands with chips and burgers so food is accessible but looking to keep costs down we did not take advantage of this. London Zoo also has an app for those tech savvy people who can buy tickets online and use this as a tool to navigate around the zoo and keep up to date with goings on. For example there is a new Tiger Territory opening in 2013 and the reptile house was under temporary construction at the time we visited. The following info is from the website.... Opening Times 21 July - 2 September: 10.00 - 18.00 3 September - 27 October: 10.00 -17.30 ZSL London Zoo is open every day of the year except Christmas Day. Last admission is one hour before advertised closing time. Children under 16 will not be admitted without an adult. Address ZSL London Zoo Regent's Park London NW1 4RY UK Tel: 020 7722 3333 Fax: 020 7586 5743 ***Overall*** To sum up we had a lovely day at London Zoo and I would definitely recommend it! It is very user friendly, as it caters for disabled there were ramps everywhere so us with 2 pushchairs could easily navigate about and enter all the different buildings. Staff were friendly and knowledgeable whenever we asked questions which was a big plus. My only gripe is that there are only 4 toilets in the whole zoo and they are situated quite far apart, which meant we were constantly crouched in a bush with the little ones and a travel potty! Nonetheless I would definitely recommend this zoo, even for the price we paid as we had a fantastic day out and my daughter thoroughly enjoyed her birthday! Read the complete review |
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York Maze (York)
by brads1989 We went to York Maze on 01/08/2012, they had warned on their website that the maze hadn't grown to its full potential this year and in some places it was only knee high so we weren't expecting it to be that good. However we'd never been to one of these mazes before so didn't have anything to compare it to in the first place. We payed ... £9.95 to get in and our little girl(2 1/2 years old) got in free. I can honestly say this was one of the best value and most fun days out we've had in a long while. We arrived at 11am expecting to only be ther for a few hours but before long it was 5pm and we were still having fun, we only left because we had otherr plans that evening. Inside you have the maze itself, which they run a competition if you find all the answers throughout the maze you get put into a prize draw to win tickets to there bonfire night show. It took us approximately 30mins to do the maze but like I said the corn hadn't grown full size so we could see over it in some places. Then they have inflatable slides, and obstacle course. They have a ride in which you sit on the back of a big tractor and are supposed to scare the scarecrows away(warning you will get wet on the ride), mini golf, field of illusions, pig races and so much more. Our little girl had so much fun and so did we. The food wasn't too Bradley priced(about £6 for burger and chips)but if you wanted to make it cheaper they have plenty of picnic tables so you can bring your own food. I will definatly be visiting again and would reccomend it to anyone with children who want a good value day out. Read the complete review |
Theme Park / Zoo National |
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Theme Park / Zoo National / Wildlife Park with over 140 deer and nine different species and plenty of falconry to keep you entertained and bewildered. |
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8 reviews Address: Planet Ice & Aqua Splash Leisureworld / Theme Park / Zoo National / Hemel Hempstead / HP2 4JW / Hertfordshire / Enlgand - What to expect - indoor water park featuring Space bowl, super flume, tyre ride, drag race, multi slide, falling rapids and lazy river. |
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1 review Address: Eastern Esplanade / Theme Park / Zoo National / Southend-on-sea / Essex / SS1 2ER |
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2 reviews Address: Woodsetts Road / Theme Park / Zoo National / North Anston Near Sheffield / S25 4EQ / England - Come visit our winged and non-winged friends. There are special events going on througout the year that your kids wont want to miss. |
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2 reviews Address: Coursers Road / Theme Park / Zoo National / London Colney / St Albans / Hertfordshire / AL4 0PF - Plenty of animals to see and acres of fun for the entire family. |
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1 review Address: Park Hall / Theme Park / Zoo National / Oswestry / Shropshire SY11 4AS / - The 130 acre farm with its tastefully restored Victorian farm buildings promises hours of farming fun and energetic activities. |
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4 reviews Address: Red Road / Theme Park / Zoo National / Berrow / Burnham-on-Sea / Somerset TA8 2RW / England - An all year farm park. The key attractions apart from the animals are the all-weather play barn, the nature trails and the land train. |
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2 reviews Address: Hampstead Norreys / Theme Park / Zoo National / Berkshire / RG18 0TN / England - A tropical paradise with exotic plants, animals and free flying birds. |
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9 reviews Address: Begelly / Theme Park / Zoo National / Kilgetty / Pembrokeshire / SA68 0XA / Wales - Spend a fun day out on the farm with the family. Meet the farm friends, enjoy the rides and take in all the zoo animals. Lots to do and see. |
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5 reviews Address: The Tupgill Park Estate / Theme Park / Zoo National / Coverham / Middleham / Leyburn / North Yorkshire / DL8 4TJ / England - The Forbidden Corner is a unique labyrinth of tunnels, chambers, follies and surprises created in a four acre garden in the heart of the Yorkshire Dales. |
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