Farmer Palmers

We visited Farmer Palmer's in Poole, Dorset for the first time on a chilly, rainy day.
It's not as big as other attractions we have been to (no rides) but that was perfect, as we were 3 adults (grandparents and a Mummy) with two 3 year olds and a 15 month old.  Jamie, the toddler, had a fantastic time because it was all so close together and we didn't have to keep putting him in the pushchair to walk miles to the next attraction.

I can see from an adult's perspective the family ticket might seem quite steep given how small the place is but it is the compactness of the place that makes the small children love it so much, I think.

We all loved seeing the animals.  They held guinea pigs,

       
fed the  lambs with a bottle (well Mummy did, they were so greedy).

Jamie  loved the cute piglets

and Emmie and Chloe really enjoyed grooming the pony.

The indoor play areas, especially the hay barn with real bales and slides were great fun.

Jamie's favourite was the Tractor area.

They also enjoyed meeting Farmer Palmer and watching the milking demo with his cow, Patricia.

The surrounding area is beautiful but, unfortunately, the weather was not kind to us. After a short stroll we returned to their favourite attraction  - the new Little Farmer's Fun Barn.  A timber farmyard in a barn.  They loved exploring the tunnels, climbing and sliding and the wooden wendy farmhouse.

The Hen House restaurant had a good selection of sandwiches and hot food, reasonably priced.

I am so glad that places like this exist, with hay to build a den, roll in, get covered in and mess about with.  This place is every child's dream come true and not an iPad in sight.  A place where children can express themselves, enjoy the great outdoors (when the sun shines) and simply enjoy learning about animals and the world around them.

We spent four hours here and the children were exhausted after all the farmyard fun.