Folly Farm
Reviewed by Lee-Anne McCarthy
A week or so ago, while in our local museum, I picked up a leaflet for Folly Farm. It was brightly coloured and massively appealing to all age groups. Our 6 year old, with a love of reading, revelled in reading this leaflet from cover to cover on numerous occasions. Between this leaflet and checking out the informative website what we didn’t know about Folly Farm wasn’t worth knowing.
The McCarthy Clan prayed hard that weekend that Derek the Weatherman was far from right and that snow wouldn’t appear in Wales. As when it snows where we are it really snows seeing us completely unable to leave the area for days on end. This has probably been about the only time in our lives we’ve prayed for the white stuff to stay away so we were able to visit Folly Farm in Pembrokeshire, West Wales. To say we were excited about our trip is a massive understatement. With our merry clan; myself, my husband and our children of 8, 6 and 11 months twice over, we’d been up and getting ready to go since the crack of dawn. The journey to Folly Farm was littered with brown signs indicating exactly where we were going. This made for an excellent game for the kids too. If we didn’t get lost on the way then even the most directionally challenged family would find their way no problem.
We arrived at the park at opening time and the children were like a shaken can of pop they were so excited to get in and see the animals. The car park was massive and we had no problem in finding a space. I do imagine this would be a slightly more significant challenge in the height of the summer. The members of staff who greeted us at the cash desks were so friendly and welcoming it was a lovely start to our day. As visitors we were provided with a clear map of the park and also child safely wrist bands upon which you could write your name and telephone number so in the unlikely event that you were to misplace a child you could easily be found. Immediately our 8 year old was drawn to the information boards in the entrance informing guests of the events of the day in the park. In 10 minutes she’d planned a full and varied itinerary for the day. The park had themed their holiday week around Pancake Day. It provided the older children in our party with a focus for their day. We spent much of the morning completing the pancake trail. Clues were dotted around the whole park and the children had to answer questions about what fillings different animals would like in their pancakes. This was great fun and really educational without the children even realising it. I now officially know that a Lemur would have fruit in his pancakes. There was also a token search where if the children were to find a token they could use it to redeem a small prize in the gift shop later. Both loved the bag of sweets they left with after finding a token each.
There were activities on site both indoors and outdoors this was particularly appealing considering the wonderful Welsh rain we often encounter. Farmer Glyn’s Jolly Barn was your classic farmyard experience. The children got to meet goats, pigs and horses. Throughout the day in a number of different areas of the park there were timetabled meet and greets with different animals including giant bunnies and even snakes. There was also the opportunity for the children to try their hand at milking a goat. This wasn’t the most successful venture and I will definitely continue to get my milk from the local supermarket if my children’s efforts are anything to go by. Folly farm doesn’t just provide an insight into the usual farm animals but also has much more exotic animals like giraffes, zebras, snakes, camels and monkeys. We had a fantastic time getting up close and personal with giraffes on a bridge over the giraffe enclosure. It really was the closest I’ve ever been to such an enormous and exotic animal. The park has really considered the welfare of their animals with the size and upkeep of its enclosures but also the interest and enjoyment of their guests too. Soon they will also be housing penguins. This means we will be making a very definite return.
In an age of vintage Chic I felt very much at home in the indoor vintage fairground. The Wurlitzer organ played some very traditional tunes that made you feel like you were back in time at the fairground. The rides within this part of the park are an additional cost. Tokens cost 50p each and many of the smaller rides were 1 token other slightly bigger were 2. Although this was an additional cost it wasn’t one that would break the bank and in reality there is such a wealth of things to do in this park that this part is easily avoidable for those on a tight budget. The vintage fairground also boasted its own theatre and on our visit there was a lovely magic show. Even our two 11 month old busy bees were completely engrossed in the show from the moment it started. The entertainer held the children and adults attention the entire time. Even if most Dads were quivering in fear at the thought of being dragged up on stage for a bit of audience participation. Also within the vintage fair there were giant indoor play areas with slides, monkey bars, netting all the things necessary to keep all cheeky moneys amused young and old.
There were a number of outdoor play areas that were well equipped for all ages; from the diggers in the sand, pedal and ride on tractors for little boys and girls to the diggers lifting boulders for the big boys (dads). There was a lovely play park that would be a delightful place to picnic on a sunny afternoon however with the freezing weather this was one we gave a miss this time.
Throughout the day there were many staff on hand to help answer any of our many wildlife questions or even just to point us in the right direction to the facilities and attractions we were looking for.
There are a wide variety of places to eat on site from the coffee shop to restaurant. We ate in the Ploughman’s Restaurant as a little treat to ourselves and to save the man hours of mine for cooking a dinner later that night. We paid just over £31 for 3 adult meals and two children’s ones plus drinks. Although for some this may be a little expensive I think the cost was most definitely cheaper than many parks we’ve eaten in the past. The food was very tasty and was highly rated by us all. Again for those who’d like to keep the costs of their day down there were plenty of areas in which people to eat their own picnic both indoors and out.
Toilet and baby change facilities were available throughout the park and were conveniently dotted in numerous places allowing for quick toilet dashes mid activity. My only area of concern was the parent change and feed facility in the Vintage fair. This was a room that had space for those who’d like privacy to feed their baby and space to change a dirty nappy or in my case two. However for myself with a double buggy, despite being one of the narrowest on the market, I was unable to fit through the standard size door on the facility this did therefore mean I had to change my boys in rotation. This is a very small complaint that is maybe an area for improvement rather than complaint. Our final call of the day was to the gift shop. It was well stocked with a wealth of toys, souvenirs etc. Again the park has clearly considered its clientele in the current economic climate and there are a large number of gifts and tit bits that can be bought for pocket prices.
The park costs £9.75 for adults and £8.75 for children. All infants aged two and under go free. The value for money is superb. The McCarthy Clan had a fantastic day out and we enjoyed the experience so much the plan for Folly Farm expedition 2 is already in the pipeline. We give this park a superb 5/5.
Rating: 5/5 
For more information visit www.folly-farm.co.uk
