Earlier in August I decided to take the girls to Gullivers Kingdom (Matlock Bath) with my two little girls (aged 3 and 6).
We were all very excited as we had never been and people had told us how perfect it was for children under 12 years old.
I haven’t got a very long review for here as it is not a suitable place to go on your own with two little ones. It is geared for families of two or four. With most rides needing an adult sat next to a small child. With me having two small children it was really difficult and I sadly had to say no to a lot of rides that they wanted to go on.
We had been to Peppa Pig World in April and had loved it. It was so child friendly that after hearing reviews of Gullivers being child friendly, I thought it was going to be a great place for me to take the girls to whilst my husband was at work.
What I discovered was, it wasn’t anything like Peppa Pig World and the rides are more geared towards children aged 7 and above. And you definitely need more than one adult with you if you have more than one child under 7.
I bumped into a man in the go kart area (again the go karts are self driven and my 6 year olds feet couldn’t reach the peddles), the man had a 2 year old daughter with him and he said he was just hanging about in that area as there was hardly anything for his two year old to go on.
It was that moment that filled me with some slight relief – I wasn’t the only person feeling this way.
All of that aside, we made the most of our day.
The girls loved the (very run down) Cowboy village. They explored the Church, Saloon, Jail, Bank and other mini village buildings.
They liked the horse and cart too.
They enjoyed pressing the buttons in a room which sang Old MacDonald to them, where the farmyard animals moved.
They liked a safari bus ride which the three of us were able to go on. Which took us up into the air and swung us around in a clockwise and then anti clockwise manner. It wasn’t very fast and was perfect for little ones.
Next we went on the safari style cars which we stood in a 30 minute queue for. It did two laps and the girls enjoyed pretending to drive it.
Next the girls had a dance at this stand. You press a button and all of the figures in the bandstand play a tune.
By now it was lunchtime so we headed to the next food vendor that we came by, the Fish and Chip shop. It had the most beautiful view overlooking Abraham Heights. The food was reasonably priced but the chicken pieces Jemima chose needed a bit longer in the fryer as a couple were a little undercooked. Matilda chose fish which she said was very nice.
After food we checked out more rides in that section but they needed an adult each next to them, so we had to leave them.
Instead they played on the playground, theres quite a few dotted around the theme park which pretty much saved the day from being a total waste.
Next we went on the carousel. This was the only ride the girls were allowed to go on, on their own. Matilda sat on a horse and Jemima sat in a carriage.
Next was the pirate ship, the girls loved this. Alhough at some points Jemima looked absolutely terrified.
At this point we were at the lowest point of the park (gradient wise) and popped into the building which housed a food place, a shop and the cable seats to get back up to the top of the park (it is a steep gradient).
The Punch and Judy show was just starting, so we headed to watch that.
It was great and the girls giggled along to it.
We then headed to get the cable seats but discovered we couldn’t use them. They are for two people and a child couldnt use one alone (understandably). So we embarked on a long walk back up to the top. Quite difficult for Matilda who has hypermobility where walking hurts her. So we took it slowly for her.
At the top, we went into the JCB area.
There was plenty for the two of them to do in this section. Ride ons, a ball pit and diggers. They happily played as I researched what else was nearby that we could go and do, as Gullivers just wasnt filling our day.
On our way out we met The Ugly Dolls and the girls had a hug.
We then jumped on the ride behind as our last thing to do at Gullivers.
We made the most of our day and I made sure the girls enjoyed it. But in terms of how much tickets are to get in and what is available for younger children and parents who go on their own with more than one young child, it really wasn’t worth the money for us.
The park is quite run down and not to the standard of others that we have been to.
The only plus side in my eyes are the beautiful views and the setting that the park is in.
Have you been before? What did you think?
If you would like to book tickets, you can find Gullivers here: https://www.gulliversfun.co.uk/