Great eco-friendly fun! (Greenwood Forest Park (Gwynedd))

Member Name: emmakate06

Product:	Greenwood Forest Park (Gwynedd)
Date:	06/07/09 (66 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Reasonably priced, eco-friendly

Disadvantages: Boat ride quite overgrown

Greenwood Forest is located in North Wales close to Caernarfon. It is easy to get to and is clearly signposted from Caernarfon and Llanberis.

I have visited Greenwood Forest Park several times as I have a caravan nearby and so I tend to take my children to this attraction a couple of times a year. The entry prices vary throughout the year dependent on whether its low, mid or peak season and an up to date list of these dates and there corresponding prices is available on their website or they are clearly displayed at the entrance. I last visited in mid season and it cost me £8.10 per adult and £6.85 per child. My two children who are under 3 were allowed entry free of charge.

There is plenty of parking spaces and there is an overflow car park situated across the road for busier days. There are numerous coach parking spaces and even room for people to bring their tourer caravans, which is a great idea if you have to leave your site at 10am but still want to have a day out before returning home. Obviously these spaces are less likely to be vacant later in the day so if your planning on coming with your caravan then its probably best to get there when it opens.

It is a short walk from the car park to the entrance and there are two pay kiosks. Payment can be accepted using cash or card. If you collect Tesco Clubcard tokens, then you can also exchange these for an entry pass on the Tesco website. From the 14th March to the 5th September, the park opens daily at 10am. Some of the attractions on the park however, such as the dragon rollercoaster do not open until 11am.

The park itself is very eco friendly and the owners have tried to use natural products where possible to create their attractions. Their Green Dragon Coaster is actually people powered and is great fun too. I would say however, that this ride is not suitable for those with walking difficulties as there is a lot of walking involved to get to the actual ride. Firstly you need to climb numerous stairs where you are then loaded into a lift which then takes you back to the bottom of the hill. At the same time as the lift lowering, the rollercoaster raises up on the opposite system so kind of like a pulley system. Once you disembark the lift, you then need to climb up the hill again to get to the top where you then board the rollercoaster. If anything though, this just adds to the enjoyment of the ride whilst keeping you fit at the same time.

There is also a fantastic large adventure playground on the site as well as a smaller one for the younger children. There are toboggan type sledges and a large inflatable bouncer. There are also numerous animals throughout the park for viewing. My least favourite attraction is the boat ride. This seems to have lacked maintenance over the years as I did used to enjoy it. The aim of it is that you get in a large rowing boat and pull your way along the water using ropes which are hung overhead. You are also provided with a paddle to help you get round the corners and on your way. When I last visited here in May, I found alot of the vegetation to be very overgrown and a huge influx of flies. Now obviously this is there natural habitat, but when you cant see an inch in front of your face because of the number of flies swarming in front of you, I dont quite see the fun side of it. In addition I left the ride covered in numerous bites, not a good look!

There latest attraction is the barefoot trail, taking you back to when people walked over numerous textures barefooted. Whilst on the trail you walk through sand, bark, mud, water, sticks and numerous other flooring. My stepson enjoyed it, but did get very dirty. They do provide foot washing facilities though with cold water and paper towels. There is also storage for your shoes.

The toilets throughout the park are always clean and tidy and there is also a restaurant and shop which are both reasonably priced for a tourist attraction. My family and I usually take advantage of the numerous picnic benches throughout the park instead though and take a picnic instead of spending money in the restaurant. The kids love this just as much.

Overall it is a great place to visit, with plenty to see and do.

Summary: Enjoyable day out.