I first fell in love with Basildon Park whilst watching Mr Bingley gaze longingly after Jane Bennet from the house’s balcony in the 2005 film of Pride and Prejudice.
Twelve years later, I’ve fallen in love with it all over again.
The House and Grounds The house is surrounded by formal gardens and 400 acres of parkland and woods where you can build dens, have a picnic, fly kites or even look for the remains of Nissen huts used during the Second World War for tank training. The Walks There are various signposted walks around the parkland. These routes are marked on the Basildon Park Map, which is on the National Trust’s website. Natural Play Areas Along the routes are natural play areas to enjoy with stumps, logs and dens. Special Activities Basildon Park runs activities for various age ranges throughout the year, which are listed on their the Basildon Park website. I was really impressed by the amount of thought and effort that had been put into making visits exciting. The Ball Runs
During our visit there were two activity trails on. The first led you to ball runs hidden throughout the woods as well as a game where you knock over skittles with a ball on a string. It was fantastic fun and we used the ball runs over and over again. Art Boxes The second was a trail of Art Boxes hidden around the grounds that were full of art equipment you can use to create pictures for entry into an exhibition in September. It was a wonderful, original idea and we had a brilliant time experimenting. The Paths There are various footpaths around the grounds – some are surfaced, some gravel and some earth and grass. We did not have any access problems and used an all-terrain buggy. To reach the house from the car park, we walked for about 10 minutes through a small wooded area with a gravel path and up the driveway. There was a gentle flight of stairs on the way into the woods but I was able to bump the buggy up. We did not go inside the house.
Visit the Basildon Park website
Further Information
Nearest Town: Pangbourne Adult Cost Range: £15 to £19.99 Opens: Daily. Where to Eat: There is a cafe and you can bring a picnic. How Long We Spent There: A full day. Parking: There is a good sized car park. Wildlife You Might See: Cattle, butterflies, bees, insects and birds. Information Written: July 2017
County: Berkshire
Nearest Postcode: RG8 9NR
Child Cost Range: £5 to £9.99
Free if: Under 5 or with National Trust membership
Facilities: Snacks, ice cream, toilets and accessible toilets.
Buggies: Buggy friendly.
Cost of Parking: Free with entry or with National Trust membership
Ratings
Our visit to Basildon Park in Pangbourne is summarised below and you can add your own rating under ‘User Rating’ or in the ‘Add Comment’ section below.
Before taking part in any activities or visiting any places listed, you should make appropriate checks to ensure high quality provision, a safe environment is provided and to check all these details are up to date before you visit and/or take part. We accept no liability (to the fullest extent permitted by law) for the quality of the activities provided or places listed or for the accuracy of any information given.
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