We went for a day out at Conkers while in the Midlands visiting family. We planned it in advance and used Tesco Vouchers to pay for it so it was a very cheap day out, I think we only spent £2 on a cup of tea! When we arrived we ate our picnic in a room provided near to the cafe. It had an interactive floor with butterflies on so this kept the children entertained while we ate etc. My husband then took the older two to a 4D Halloween themed Sonic the Hedgehog cinema experience which they enjoyed. It wasn’t suitable for the little one so we went to catch the train. When we got off, we headed to the Auditorium as a Halloween show was about to start but he was scared of the ghost and monster themed props so asked to leave which was a shame!

When the others joined us we went for a play in one of the main playgrounds which was nice and they enjoyed. Following this, my husband and the boys went to play in the soft play while my daughter and I went to explore some of the outdoor areas such as the Wobbly Bridges, had a look around a lake, and we looked for the Treetop Walk but couldn’t find it. It was lovely to be out in nature, that was my favourite part of the day. There were some boards around which explained about various wildlife in the area and about mining which had taken place here. In the centre with the soft play (which had another cafe) there was information about the National Forest, it explained how new forestry has been created in an area were land was exhausted and degraded by mineral-working.

We rode the train back all together and had a look where you could do a barefoot walk on timber, bark, coal, pebbles, clay and through the mud. We didn’t do it ourselves as we weren’t really prepared with towels but we saw others doing it and it looked interesting! We went for a further play in a different playground. It had a splash pad element which would be even better in the summer. We ran out of time but went for a quick go on the labyrinth before we left. I think there were a few areas that we didn’t manage to get around. You can definitely spend a full day here. There was a treasure hunt with a prize of a lolly out of a lucky dip cauldron which the kids were pleased with.

I would recommend this as a nice day out in nature with plenty of outdoor play at a relatively cheap cost of under £30 for a family of four and free if you can use Tesco Vouchers. I felt we didn’t quite get the best out of the day due to getting there later than planed but there are other things you can take part in there such as craft activities, Hi and Lo Ropes courses, pedalos, canoes, archery and go karting (extra cost for these activities).