Southwater Country Park 

At the heart of the park is a lake with a beach and swimming area. 

Please note that the beach operates a booking system during the summer holidays – please see their website for details.

 

 

Activities

It has an orienteering course and the map is available to buy from the Southwater Country Park Visitor Centre.

There is also a water sports centre where you can kayak, canoe, sail and paddle board.

 

 

Dinosaur Island 

Dinosaur Island Adventure Play Area is a dinosaur-themed adventure play area, where adventure awaits…just follow the footprints!

 

 

 

This is jam-packed with equipment, including swings, slides, things to climb, aerial walkways and a zip wire.

 

Nearest Town: Horsham, near Crawley
County: West Sussex
Nearest Postcode: RH13 9UN

Opens: Daily
Cost: Free

Where to Eat: At the cafe or bring a picnic.
Facilities: None

How Long We Spent There: 3 hours
Buggies: Buggy friendly

Parking: Good sized car park.
Cost of Parking: From Various depending on when you visit – please see their website for full details.

Wildlife You Might See: Ducks, swans, geese, lizards, butterflies and dragonflies.

Information Written: January 2017
Information Checked: October 2020

 

Juniper Adventure Play Trail

This is the Queen Elizabeth Country Park Adventure Play area and has:

• a wooden multi-play with a tunnel slide, cargo net, ladder and bridge
• two log cabin climbing frames
• an obstacle course with ropes, logs, bridges, and cargo nets
• a zip wire and
• picnic tables.

 

From the Visitor Centre, the play trail is either a 5 minute drive or a 15 minute walk uphill.

 

 

 

 

The Assault Course

Suitable for those over 1.4m tall only, the assault course is hidden in the woods to the right of the adventure play trail and has 12 obstacles and a 250m run.

 

 

 

Dog Activity Course

Near to the Juniper Adventure Play Trail is the Forts and Fleets Dog Activity Course.

It is 200 metres long and has 8 obstacles designed for dogs. 

 

 

 

Butser Hill

Queen Elizabeth Country Park is at the bottom of Butser Hill National Nature Reserve.

 

 

 

Butser Hill is is one of the highest points in Hampshire with beautiful views towards the Isle of Wight and the South Downs. It is also an ideal spot for kite flying.

 

 

 

The Dragon of Butser Hill

There is a Hampshire County Council Story Trail called “The Dragon of Butser Hill” that tells you a story about knights, damsels, giants and dragons as it winds around the hilltop.

 

 

 

Other Activities

There are lots of other activities at Queen Elizabeth Country Park, including walking, cycling and mountain biking trails, picnic and BBQ areas, orienteering trails and nature areas.

 

 

It has a Visitor Centre, shop, cafe and a kiosk.

 

 

 

 

There is even a brick pizza oven you can hire!

 

 

 

 

 

Little Squirrels

The country park runs Little Squirrels, a nature club for the under 5s during term time, which offers hands on nature play sessions.

 

Nearest Town: Horndean, Near Petersfield
County: Hampshire
Nearest Postcode: PO8 0QE

Opens: Daily
Cost: Free

Where to Eat: Eat at the cafe, hire a barbecue or pizza oven, bring a picnic.
Facilities: Cafe offering snacks and ice cream, a kiosk at the adventure play trail, shop, toilets and accessible toilets, picnic areas. 

How Long We Spent There: 4 hours
Buggies: Buggy friendly.

Parking: There are several different car parks to choose from. 
Cost of Parking: From £2 per hour.

Wildlife You Might See: Insects, butterflies, ducks, geese and birds.

Information Written: July 2016
Information Checked: February 2023

 

The Story Trail

The story trail is called “Time Trouble at Royal Victoria Country Park” and is one of Hampshire CC’s Story Trails*.

The trail starts at the chapel, goes along the seafront, into the woods and ends at the Royal Victoria Country Park Play Area.

 

Along the way you have to answer questions and enter numbers into Professor Nutrino’s Great Agent Device for Gaining Extraordinary Time (‘GADGET’) so be sure to bring a pen!

 

 

 

The Adventure Play Area

The Royal Victoria Country Park Play Area is a well-equipped play area with a large wooden castle, slides and a jeep. 

 

 

 

 

Netley Hospital

Royal Victoria Country Park itself stands on the site of Netley Hospital, a vast Victorian military hospital that was the world’s longest building. All that remains today is the central chapel section. 

 

 

 

The Beach

The park overlooks Southampton Water and has a shingle beach where we found lots of tiny shells and a couple of crabs.

 

 

 

 

Other Things to Try

Royal Victoria Country Park has seafront walks as well as a permanent orienteering course and a miniature railway

They also have regular family events.

 

 

 

*Hampshire CC’s Story Trails

This is one of Hampshire County Council’s Story Trails.

These are walks with interactive stories to read along the way, which are told by a cute character called the Story Snail.

Each Story Trail is about one mile long and divided into numbered sections. Numbered markers prompt you to read the sections of the story along the trail.

 

 

Find a Story Pack

To follow the Story Trail you need a free pack that you can either borrow from a specified place (with a Hampshire Library card and a £20 returnable deposit) or download a copy of a story trail from the internet in written or audio form.

Each pack has a map to follow and the trail itself is marked with arrows and/or pictures of the Story Snail. 

Nearest Town: Netley, near Southampton
County: Hampshire
Nearest Postcode: SO31 5GA

Opens: Daily
Cost: Free

Where to Eat: Cafe or bring a picnic.
Facilities: Cafe, snacks, ice creams, picnic area, toilets and accessible toilets.

How Long We Spent There: 3 hours
Buggies: Buggy friendly

Parking: There are several good sized, pay and display car parks around the park.
Cost of Parking: From £1.80 per hour to a maximum of £4 per day.

Wildlife You Might See: Deer, ducks, seabirds and sea creatures.

Information Written: May 2017

 

The Emma Sallis Adventure Playground 

The shady Emma Sallis Adventure Playground has equipment for children under 12 years old that includes a wooden castle with a climbing wall, nets, a slide and easy to climb stairs, 

 

 

 

a multiplay with rope bridges, wobbly bridges, nets, a tunnel, easy to climb stairs and a slide, swings, a wooden train, springers and a balance course.

 

 

Film Locations 

Black Park is located near to Pinewood Studios so it’s no surprise that the park has been used as the location for many films, including Harry Potter, James Bond, Stardust and Captain America.

 

 

 

When we visited they were filming a secret jungle film, which meant some parts of the park were closed.

 

 

 

Go Ape

Go Ape at Black Park offers tree top rope courses, bike hire, Forest Segway and a Nets Adventure. 

 

 

 

The Paths

There are several marked paths and trails to explore, including a habitat trail and an orienteering course.

The Black Park website has full details of the trails and walks.

 

 

Orienteering

There are twenty posts hidden around Black Park – how many can you find?  

You can download a copy of the orienteering course before you go or pick one up from the visitors’ centre. 

 

 

The Cafes

There is a lakeside cafe called the Black Park Cafe and a kiosk that sell snacks, drinks and ice creams. It also has picnic tables. 

 

Nearest Town: Wexham
County: Buckinghamshire
Nearest Postcode: SL3 6DS

Opens: Daily
Cost: Free

Where to Eat: Bring a picnic or eat at one of the cafes. 
Facilities: Cafes, snacks, ice cream, picnic area, toilets, accessible toilets. 

How Long We Spent There: 3 hours
Buggies: Buggy friendly. 

Parking: There is a car with lots of spaces.
Cost of Parking: From £2.80 for two hours.

Wildlife You Might See: Insects and lots of birds, including ducks, swans, coots, moorhens and grass snakes.

Information Written: May 2022

 

The Play Area

The playground has equipment suitable for children up to the age of 12 years, including:

• swings
• toddler swings
• a multiplay for smaller children with a slide, cargo net, fireman’s pole, ladders and easy to climb stairs
• a multiplay for older children with a slide, fireman’s poles, a climbing walls
• a rope climbing frame
• a wooden climbing frame with cargo nets and ropes
• a balance course
• a spinning cup
• a basket swing
• a musical instrument 
• picnic tables.

 

The Cafe and Visitor Centre

Next to the play area is the  Lightwater Country Park Cafe, which has some information boards about the Country Park.  

 

 

The Pond

A short walk from the adventure play area are three ponds with ducks and other birds to feed. 

 

 

 

 

Walking Trails

There are a few marked trails around the park. One takes you up High Curley Hill, which has a view point. 

We tried the Nature Trail, which has numbered markers that point out features of interest like a pond and different types of trees. 

 

Nearest Town: Lightwater
County: Surrey
Nearest Postcode: GU18 5RG

Opens: Daily
Cost: Free

Where to Eat: Eat at the cafe or bring a picnic.
Facilities: Cafe offering snacks and ice cream, toilets and accessible toilets, picnic area. 

How Long We Spent There: 3 hours
Buggies: Buggy-friendly.

Parking: There are several different car parks to choose from. 
Cost of Parking: Free.

Wildlife you might see: Insects, butterflies, ducks, geese and birds.

Information Written: August 2020

 

The River Hamble Adventure Play Area

Barnfield has a wooden play area with a nautical theme and two ships to sail, capture, climb the rigging and walk the plank.

 

 

 

It has play equipment including:

• a long rope swing
• a musical wall
• a larger ship with a wobbly bridge, nets, ladders and a chutes and pulleys system, 
• a smaller ship with a slide and a climbing wall
• a crow’s nest with a ladder.

 

It looks like they are putting in more equipment too.  

 

 

River Hamble Country Park

River Hamble Country Park has trails, a story trail, Manor Farm, access to the River Hamble and a pontoon you can go crabbing from. 

 

 

 

You might also be able to spot the remains of Henry V’s flag ship, the Grace Dieu.

In 1439 she was struck by lightning, caught fire and burned to the water level.

 

 

The ship’s size is marked out next to the adventure play area. The mast of the ship would have been the same length!

 

 

 

 

The Trails

Waymarked trails criss-cross the country park, passing through woods, along the River Hamble and to a pontoon.

 

 

 

The path from the adventure play area leads you into the woods and along the River Hamble. 

 

 

 

 

The River Hamble

There are a couple of places along the path to the pontoon where you can access the river.

 

 

 

 

You can also go crabbing.

 

 

Nearest Town: Bursledon
County: Hampshire
Nearest Postcode: SO31 1BH

Opens: Daily
Cost: Free but there is an entry fee for Manor Farm.

Where to Eat: At one of the cafes, rent a barbecue or bring a picnic.
Facilities: Ice creams, picnic areas, cafe, snacks, toilets and accessible toilets.

How Long We Spent There: 4 hours
Buggies: Buggy friendly

Parking: Several car parks. The ticket machines take cash but you can buy a car park ticket with a card at the Manor Farm Visitor Centre.
Cost of Parking: From £2.50 for the first hour but capped at £7.

Wildlife You Might See: Butterflies, birds, deer and maybe the odd fairy or two if you follow the story trail!

Information Written: June 2017
Information Checked: April 2023

 

Aldenham Country Park Farm

On the farm, a route leads you past the farm animals, including cows and pigs

 

 

 

 

goats and donkeys

 

 

 

 

 

ducks and peacocks.  

 

 

 

 

 

It also has tractor rides

 

 

 

 

 

and an area where you can pay a little extra and meet some smaller animals, like rabbits, guinea pigs and giant snails. 

 

 

 

 

Winnie the Pooh

When we visited, Winnie the Pooh was there to meet, cuddle and wave at the guests.

 

 

 

 

100 Aker Wood

After our visit to the farm, we walked through the Country Park to 100 Aker Wood and explored the magical places where Winnie the Pooh and his friends have their adventures.  

 

 

 

We discovered places like Winnie the Pooh’s house

 

 

 

 

 

Wol’s tree

 

 

 

 

 

and the bees.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Aldenham Country Park

Aldenham Country Park itself has an orienteering course and cycle trails 

 

 

 

 

mini golf and trampolines

 

 

 

 

 

a lake and nature trails. 

 

 

 

The Adventure Play Area

This exciting Aldenham Country Park Adventure Play Area has wooden play equipment, including a zip wire, sand play areas

 

 

 

a water play area complete with a water pump

 

 

 

 

and accessible equipment.

 

 

 

 

At the time of writing, you have to book to use the play area and there was a charge of £3.

There are sessions exclusively for children with special needs. 

Nearest Town: Elstree, near Watford
County: Hertfordshire
Nearest Postcode: WD6 3BA

Opens: Daily

Adult Cost Range: Various starting at £4.50. Please see their website for details. 
Child Cost Range: Various starting at £4.50. Please see their website for details. 
Free If: You are only visiting the Country Park (and not the farm or play area).

Where to Eat: Eat at the cafe, hire a barbecue or bring a picnic.
Facilities: Cafe offering snacks and ice cream, toilets and accessible toilets, picnic areas. 

How Long We Spent There: 2 hours at the farm and the rest of the day in the Country Park.
Buggies: Buggy friendly.

Parking: There is a large car park. 
Cost of Parking: From £4.50 per day.

Wildlife You Might See: Birds, insects and farm animals – cows, pigs, chickens, ducks, sheep, rabbits, guinea pigs – maybe even Winnie the Pooh!

Information Written: July 2022

 

Staunton Country Park Farm

This is an ornamental farm with all the farm animals you would expect to find, including pigs

 

 

 

 

goats

 

 

 

 

 

and ducks.

 

 

 

 

 

The Glasshouse

It also has a large greenhouse full of tropical plants and an indoor pond, which from May to November is covered by giant Amazon water lilies. 

 

 

 

Staunton Country Park

The farm is built in Staunton Country Park, which is an open area with trails, orienteering and BBQ areas.

 

 

 

Everything on the farm is set close together so if you have some energy left after your visit then you can explore the trails criss-crossing Staunton Country Park.

 

 

 

The Play Areas

The Staunton Country Park Play Areas include George’s Play Barn, an indoor play area with slides, nets, bridges and tunnels and a small soft play area for children under 4. 

 

 

Outside there is a wooden play area with equipment like swings, slides, a ship and a tractor. 

 

Nearest Town: Havant, near Portsmouth
County: Hampshire
Nearest Postcode: PO9 5HB

Adult Cost Range: £5 to £9.99
Child Cost Range: £5 to £9.99
Free if: Under 3 years.

Opens: Daily

Where to Eat: Cafe and picnic area. 
Facilities: Cafe, shop, toilets and accessible toilets.

How Long We Spent There: 2 hours
Buggies: Buggy friendly

Parking: There is good sized car park.
Cost of Parking: From £2 per hour.

Wildlife You Might See: Goats, cows, donkeys, ponies, chickens, rabbits, sheep, pigs and alpacas. 

Information Written: September 2018

 

The Play Trail

The Play Trail is a route that guides you through the woods to 9 hidden play areas and the Tree Top Trail.

 

 

 

 

You can explore a Giant Wood Ants’ Nest

 

 

 

 

wander the Enchanted Woods

 

 

 

 

 

make music at the House of Baba Yaga

 

 

 

 

crawl through the Snake Pit

 

 

 

 

 

brave the Bewlidernest

 

 

 

 

 

fly through the Hawk House

 

 

 

 

 

soar along the Tree Top Trail

 

 

 

 

 

sneak past the Spiders

 

 

 

 

 

pick your way through the infested waters of Crocodile Crossing

 

 

 

 

and scramble up Timber.

 

 

 

 

 

The Paths

The Play Trail is about a mile long and took us about 2 hours to complete with a lot of stopping and playing.

The paths are clearly marked and I did not have any problems pushing an all-terrain buggy.

 

 

 

The Miniature Railway

The Moors Valley Railway rumbles through the park (with seasonal opening hours). This is a miniature railway that connects Lakeside and Kingsmere stations.

 

 

 

 

Everything Else!

There are other marked trails to try – fitness trails, walking trails, cycling trails, audio trails and even a Hawk Walk, which is a walk through the forest with free flying hawks (this needs to be booked in advance)!

 

 

 

Also on offer is Go Ape Tree Top and Segway Adventures,

 

 

 

 

an orienteering course, a golf course with Footgolf and a family activity area with pitch and putt and equipment hire. 

 

 

 

 

Where to Eat?

There is a cafe and two picnic areas – one next to the lake and railway and another between the Visitor Centre and the forest.

The latter has life-size sculptures of the Gruffalo and the Gruffalo’s child.

 

The Play Areas

The fantastic play areas are divided into the Adventure Area, for older children, and the Castle and Sandworks area, for younger children.

 

The Adventure Area

The Adventure Area has:

• a large slide with a climbing wall
• a climbing wall
• a climbing boulder
• a zip wire
• a basket swing
• a large rope climbing frame
• a huge wooden fortress with a long tube slide, tunnels and rope bridges
• rope swings.

 

The Castle and Sandworks

The Castle and Sandworks has equipment including:

• a multi-play with a slide and easy to climb steps
• another slide
• a large multi-play shaped like a house with a slide, fireman’s pole, climbing wall and ropes to climb on
• toddler swings made of ropes
• a wooden train
• mechanical diggers you can operate
• wooden animals
• an obstacle course
• springers
• spinners
• sand construction areas with buckets, chutes and pulleys.

Nearest Town: Ringwood
County: Hampshire
Nearest Postcode: BH24 2ET

Opens: Daily
Cost: Free

Where to Eat: Bring a picnic or eat in the Visitor Centre cafe.
Facilities: Toilets, accessible toilets, ice creams, snacks, cafe, picnic areas.

How Long We Spent There: 4 hours
Buggies: Buggy friendly. Note that this is not wide enough for a buggy but there is a path that allows you to skip past it.

Parking: Large car park but it is very busy at peak times.
Cost of Parking: Various charges, from £2 per hour.  Please see their website for full details.

Wildlife You Might See: Ducks, swans, birds and insects.

Information Written: April 2017
Information Checked: October 2022

 

The Play Areas

We found two play areas inside the farm grounds. The first is a farm themed play area with:

• two wooden tractors
• a combine harvester
• drivable mini tractors
• logs to walk along
• bouncy hopper toys
• a sand play table. 

 

The second play area was next to the entrance barn and had a play house and small balance course.

 

 

The Animals

We saw plenty of farm animals including cows and calves, pigs and piglets and hens and chicks.

There were also donkeys, geese and ducks as well as a very cool wooly pig (see the main picture – that is not a sheep!).

 

 

 

Close Encounters

The farm is set up to allow close encounters with the animals. You can feed the chickens, hold the chicks and help the farmer to milk a cow.

Unfortunately, avian flu prevented many of the birds roaming free when we visited.

 

 

The Cafe

There is a small cafe next to the car park (before you pay the farm’s entry charge) that serves drinks and food.

When we visited it was very busy and we could not find a table inside. There were picnic benches under cover outside but they were covered in bird poo and felt unhygienic.

 

River Hamble Country Park

The farm is located in the River Hamble Country Park, which has open areas, river walks, crabbing, ship wrecks

 

 

 

and adventure play areas!

 

 

 

 

 

Manor Farm Fairy Folk Story Trail

You can also try one of Hampshire County Council’s Story Trails, which is called “Manor Farm Fairy Folk“.

These are walks with interactive stories to read along the way, which are told by a cute character called the Story Snail.

 

 

Each Story Trail is about one mile long and divided into numbered sections. Numbered markers prompt you to read the sections of the story along the trail.

 

 

 

 

Find a Story Pack

To follow the Story Trail you need a free pack that you can either borrow from a specified place (with a Hampshire Library card and a £20 returnable deposit) or download a copy of a story trail from the internet in written or audio form.

Each pack has a map to follow and the trail itself is marked with arrows and/or pictures of the Story Snail.

Nearest Town: Bursledon, Southampton
County: Hampshire
Nearest Postcode: SO31 1BH

Opens: Daily

Adult Cost Range: £5 to £9.99
Child Cost Range: £5 to £9.99
Free if: Under 3 years

Where to Eat: Bring a picnic or buy food from the cafe.
Facilities: Cafe, toilets, accessible toilets, picnic area, snacks, ice creams.

How Long We Spent There: 3 hours
Buggies: Buggy friendly

Parking: Car park by the farm.
Cost of Parking: From £1.80 per hour. 

Wildlife You Might See: Pigs, sheep, chickens, ducks, geese, donkeys, cows, goats, and rabbits.

Information Written: December 2016