Folly Farm is a great day out for Sussex families who are holidaying in WalesFolly Farm is a great day out for Sussex families who are holidaying in Wales
Folly Farm is a great day out for Sussex families who are holidaying in Wales

I visited an amazing adventure park and zoo that's perfect for Sussex families on holiday in Wales

​You know me, I LOVE a good family day out. There is nothing better than spending the day with my little tribe and having a fun adventure or experience.

​And so I have another recommendation for you. This one might not be as easy to get to, but if you ever take a holiday to Wales then visiting this place is almost a must.

We travel to south Wales multiple times a year, and so we’ve been to Folly Farm, just outside of Tenby, many times.

But it was still a real treat to be invited to visit this adventure park and zoo once again, as it’s always changing and upgrading.

Sussex families might recognise Folly Farm as being similar to Drusillas, with its huge number of animals, play areas and rides.

Folly Farm has hundreds of animals in outside enclosures, from a majestic pride of lions, to camels, rhinos, penguins, red pandas, sloths, giraffes and so many more.

Despite visiting on a very rainy day this time and being worried none of the animals would be outside, we found the lions right at the edge of their enclosure. It was incredible to see them interacting and to be so close to such incredible creatures.

And while our last visit was only two years ago, it was great to see even more new enclosures had been built, including the new Patas Plains primate enclosure.

There is also the Jolly Barn, which used to be the farm’s dairy barn but is now home to a host of sheep, goats, alpacas, ponies, horses, rabbits, guinea pigs and other animals you can pet.

My children spent such a happy hour watching the animals, particularly the baby pygmy goats hopping around.

Staff also sometimes bring animals out of their pens for children to see and ask questions about. We got to meet a very cute sheep with her keeper.

And the farm animals don’t end there. You can also take a short land-train ride across the road to the rare breed paddocks. It also includes the piggery, where there are pigs and piglets galore.

When the rain finally let up for a bit in the afternoon, we snuck in a ride on the huge Ferris wheel – the Pembrokeshire Wheel – and a couple of the other outside rides.

Last time we visited, you paid for the rides by buying tokens to use in varying quantities for each ride. This time, a ride wristband had been introduced as an optional extra.

For £12 each, or £40 for a family of four, guests can ride the rides all day, as many times as they like.

This was so much more convenient than having to keep buying tokens and much better value, too.

I haven’t even talked about the indoor fairground yet, which is absolutely brilliant.

It features vintage fairground rides, meaning most of the attractions are unlike anything you will have tried out before.

We loved the Caterpillar, which features two-person carriages, all linked up in a circle. They go round and round until they reach top speed, when a cover comes over the top of the entire thing, plunging the riders into darkness.

I couldn’t get enough of the sense of old-fashioned family fun the whole place conjured up. And it’s just lovely to see rides that are up to 100 years old still in operation.

We went on all sorts of different rides, and we still didn’t have time to do everything we wanted. You could easily spend the whole day in here and your kids would be very happy indeed!

Behind the funfair is also a huge indoor play area called Carousel Woods, featuring big slides, climbing nets and rope walks, as well as soft play for younger children.

The only down side to Folly Farm is that there’s just not enough time to fit it all in!

For more information about Folly Farm, and to book tickets, visit the website www.folly-farm.co.uk

But it was still a real treat to be invited to visit this adventure park and zoo once again, as it’s always changing and upgrading.

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