It was only one week ago that I wrote an update on our 2019 travel and days out bucket list to say we hadn’t yet done anything, though we had planned a couple of holidays at the end of the year.  Well, now we have ticked something off!

We have actually ticked Ben’s ONLY item off the bucket list!  It was all I could get out of him when I was writing the original blog post.  Here’s the original 2019 family travel bucket list if you want to have a peek.

Here’s what Ben wanted to do in 2019:

‘Visit Wookey Hole – Ben sees an advert on the motorway for Wookey Hole on the way back from work every day and it was on Salvage Hunters so he wants to visit!’

So now we have.  We had a rare day with no plans on Sunday and I really fancied a little road trip and family day out.  I felt like we needed it.  Most weekends are spent visiting family and friends and if they’re not, then Ben usually has a bunch of DIY related stuff to do.  He did have Bella’s bed to finish as he built her a custom loft bed a couple of weeks ago, but it can wait.

We hadn’t had a family day out since the Christmas break so we really needed one!

Kids go free to Wookey Hole

The weather was looking a bit iffy on Sunday and most likely raining, so my original plan for a cheap family day out at the beach or outdoor park was out.  Instead I thought of our bucket list and Wookey Hole seemed like the perfect place as there is a lot going on indoors for the children.

The only off-putting thing was the price!

£19 per adult and £15 per child.  Woah!

We scoured the internet for a voucher but couldn’t find anything, but I used to be a member of Kids Pass so we checked it out and voila!  Kids go free!

Ben signed up to Kids Pass for £1 for 30 days and we were able to save a whopping £30 as both the kids were able to go free if we paid for two full-price adults.

Sorted!

Check out Kids Pass by clicking here!

Wookey Hole review

From Gloucestershire it’s only a 1 hour 20 minute drive, so not too bad at all.  Perfect for a day out.  They do have a hotel at the resort and accommodation nearby, so you can stay if you’re coming from afar.

I have only been as a child and my mum tells me I was eight years old!  So that was 25 years ago!  I couldn’t remember it at all, so it was like a new experience for all of us.

The Caves

The bit we really wanted to see the most was the caves.  Well, at least me and Ben.  Bella finds caves quite scary and just wants to get out of them!

The caves really are amazing, but we were a bit disappointed that it’s a guided tour.  With young children and so many others with young children, we couldn’t hear or concentrate on what the tour guide was saying.  I’m sure if we were on our own, kid-free, then we would have found it really interesting.

They make cheese in the caves!

We’d have preferred to explore the caves in our own time and at our own pace.  We were able to do this at Clearwell Caves and I think we’ll definitely return there because that’s more appealing to us.

At one point we stopped to take photos and then were at the back which meant we were rushed through one part of the caves which looked amazing – a part where there is red all down the side of the caves.  We kind of got hurried through, probably before the tour behind us caught up!

I really wanted to spend more time inside the caves and taking it all in.

There were around 30 people on the tour at the same time and so this definitely affected our experience.  Perhaps if you go and the group is smaller then you’ll get to see more.

Dinosaurs and fairy garden

The fairy garden is pretty small and more just something to look at when walking through.  The dinosaurs however were pretty cool – loads of big dinos that any little dinosaur lover will enjoy looking at.  The sculptures had moving parts and there was lots of roaring.  There was also a King Kong which was amazing.

This part is between the caves and the theatre, so it’s more just an area to walk through to get to the next bit.  It’s definitely great for the kids to look at though!

4D theatre

Unfortunately we didn’t get to see this so I can’t review this part.  We arrived there at 12.30pm and it said next show at 1pm.  We could see people were being let in by a member of staff.  As it was a bit early and the kids were hungry I said let’s just eat some snacks before we go in, so we stood around the corner and had some snacks for around 5-10 minutes.  We walked back to the door and everyone was gone and the door was closed!  Doh!  I think we missed the opportunity, but as the kids were hungry we decided to go and find somewhere to sit down out of the rain to eat.

Picnic & soft play

To save more money, we took our own food.  We found seats indoors next to the soft play and ate our picnic.  Then the kids played in the soft play which looked a lot of fun!  It was two soft plays joined by a big chute which the kids loved!  After so long in the car and probably being a bit too young (3 & 6) to appreciate the caves, they really enjoyed letting off some steam in the play areas!

As it was raining outside it’s always great to have somewhere indoors to entertain the children!

The circus

This was definitely the best part of the day.  It was a young circus of children who practice circus skills there three nights a week.  They were so talented and the show was very entertaining.  There was juggling, high ribbons, balancing acts, unicycles, sawing boxes, hooping and more.  We were all so impressed by all the children’s skills and felt very inspired.  I want to go to circus school!  How fun!

Mirror maze

Aside from the circus, I think everyone really enjoyed the magic mirrors and mostly the mirror maze!  It’s a maze of mirrors positioned in such a way that you don’t realise which way to go!  It was so funny I think we walked through it five times!

The penny arcade and gift shop

We didn’t have a go on any arcade games, but I loved looking at all the old traditional wooden machines.  It was more of a museum!

The kids, of course, loved the gift shop and got a couple of small toys!

Mini golf

Finally, we played mini golf before we came home!  It was a bit busy, even though it was still drizzling at this point, so just Bella and Ben played.  We cut our game short though as Bella slipped over on a wooden bridge which was slippy in the rain, so then she just wanted to go home!

Would we return?

We did have a nice day out at Wookey Hole and even though it was raining there was plenty to do indoors.  I think it’s worth a visit, but I don’t think we’ll return any time soon now we’ve seen it.

Although, I did see a sign for a ride on a boat through the caves which would probably be worth a return visit!

So overall, we wouldn’t return soon, but perhaps in around five or more years when the kids are much older and we’d look into arranging the boat trip to make it extra special.

Don’t forget to save on your family days out with Kids Pass!

More great blog posts:

Brean Down Fort + coastal walk

8 free days out with kids in Gloucestershire

Get discounts on family attractions and travel with Kids Pass

How to pack light for a family road trip

What is the Coopers Hill Cheese Rolling in Gloucestershire?

How to save money on family travel

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