Wow! It’s not often I’m blown away by a place but Into the Wild absolutely blew me away- what a hidden gem!
It’s such an usual space, it’s quite difficult to describe exactly what it is and it’s safe to say their social media and website give a snippet of what it’s like but when I actually turned up I was amazed at the sheer size of the place and how amazing it really was.
The trickiest part of all, is that Into the Wild… no surprise is really in the Wild. It’s very much in the middle of nowhere and there is no onsite car park, it’s only reachable on foot and even that is quite a walk! There’s a number of different options available which show how to get there or where you can park on their website- I followed a “pram friendly” route- though be aware even the pram friendly route was quite muddy and bumpy in parts, though I did manage it with one in a pram and a 3 year old walking on my own.
There is a wonderful tipi in the centre of Into the Wild with a café that serves everything from coffee’s, to children’s juices and even beer and wine as well as an amazing wood fired pizza oven- I can vouch for the fact they were delicious!
Dog walkers, families and anyone is welcome to use the tipi, the café and the pizza oven but if you come with your children and you’d like access to the amazing play area and craft area then you’ll need to pay and book in advance.
The play park is incredible, it’s a cross between a park and a forest school type setting with lots of amazing equipment. There’s more traditional equipment like a climbing frame, slide, and baby swings, as well as some outdoor favourites like the famous Step 2 roller coaster and some play tractors and cars.
My personal favourite was an incredible traditional fairground ride which had two traditional swing boats with ropes to pull on them- not only were they unique but they were so much fun and our little girls spent ages on these! At the back of the playground there is a more rustic forest school type setting with a mix of more natural equipment, with everything from a hanging spaceship, rope and tyre swings and an obstacle course and zip wire! There’s a real mix here with some of the equipment accessible for toddlers and others fun for even grownups!
We spent all morning in the play park and then enjoyed a pizza lunch, though I have to admit that it isn’t all sunshine and rainbows as we did have an incident where the pizza ended up all over the floor! Oops!
We then spent an hour in the afternoon in the craft centre, there’s an amazing outdoor easel and a safari tent that has a sensory space with lights and bean bags as well as some toys such as magnetic tiles, books and some crafts and drawing! I’d really recommend a trip down to see it and explore for yourself!
Access to both children’s area’s are just £1.24 for under 1’s, £6.13 for 1-4 year olds and £7.21 for 5 and over with a maximum age of 12. Accompanying adults are free of charge (November 2024). Access to the play area is unlimited to the day or your visit so you can stay as long as you would like any time between 8 and 6pm- making it one of the longest opening areas I know of and great for early risers and also extremely good value particularly in comparison to soft play where you are usually limited to set times.
Love an outdoor adventures? Check out these Cheshire forest schools and outdoor play classes
