Sunday 16 July 2017

Our family day out at Oakwood Theme Park and Giveaway

Oakwood Theme Park is engraved in my childhood memory. We had many school trips there and I always loved it, so when we were asked if we would like to visit with the girls, I jumped at the chance to show them something I enjoyed as a child. Both hubby and I haven't visited since we were teenagers so we were intrigued to see how it has changed.


Oakwood theme park is located in South Wales and is easily accessible by Car. We enjoyed the scenic drive which took us 1 hour 45 minutes from Cardiff. The parking is free (a bonus as other theme parks sometimes charge) and it is close to the theme park entrance which is always handy when you have children and strollers. 

You can enter the park via a short train ride. I used to love this as a child. They run every 15 minutes but we had literally just missed a train departure so we took the very short walk to the park instead which took a couple of minutes. 

We headed straight to the circus section of the park which is aimed at preschool age children so perfect for our girls. At that point it was lovely and sunny so they enjoyed the park area and the swings.




We then decided to sit on the grass and enjoy our picnic that we had brought with us for lunch. There are plenty of areas for you to sit down and eat your own food or alternatively there are restaurants and food outlets to purchase food from the park.

Next up we headed over to the Neverland area. This is quite a recent opening so we were looking forward to seeing this. Peter Pan is one of Eva's favourite films and one of my favourite books so we were hoping this section would do it justice. 


You enter into Neverland through the London area. There are a few things to see and do here. We enjoyed the London Cab ride and we loved the journey through the home of the Darlings. Eva thought it was amazing spotting Peter Pan's shadow and Ophelia found the whole house fascinating. She was mesmerised by the lights. 



Next up we ventured into 'Hook's House of Havoc' which is a giant soft play area. This was ideal for hubby and I to get a little rest whilst the girls ran riots.



The next ride we went on was a small log flume in skull rock. It's fairly safe to say we got quite wet.  Our last adventure in Neverland saw Eva and Ophelia running around 'The Lost Boys Adventure' area which was a themed outdoor play area. 




 JM Barrie's book is really brought to life in here and represents the essence of the story. I adored having the music from 'Hook' being piped around the park. It really added to the atmosphere. This section is themed very well and captures the essence of what theme parks are all about. It takes you back to your childhood and allows you to embrace it.

We then headed towards the 'Bobsleigh' which was one of hubby's favourite rides here when he was younger. Eva thought it was fantastic and went on it twice. Apparently she preferred riding with daddy as he was much faster than I was.



Hubby and I then decided to ride 'Megafobia' which is a wooden roller coaster that we both loved as teens. Knowing that the ride was quite old we wondered whether it would still be as exciting as it was back when we first rode on it. 



Luckily, it was as good as we remembered. It's fast and rickety and still has that wonderful wooden shaky sound which puts the fear inside you. It's a definite adrenaline pumper and in our opinion is still the UK's best wooden roller coaster by far.

Last up we visited 'Dahland' which will be opening fully at some point this year. As the name suggests it is themed around Roald Dahl. There is a rollercoaster based upon James and the Giant Peach and a walkthrough attraction based on Aunt Sponge and Aunt Spike's house, opening soon. This was a lovely section of the park with lots of flowers and nice decorations around.




Overall, we had a lovely day. The kids particularly enjoyed it. There was plenty there for them to do but hubby and I felt like the park could do with a few more 'thrill rides'. Our favourite section of the park was Neverland which is perfectly themed. The newness of this area and Dahland made some of the other areas look a bit tired and in need of a facelift.

It was quiet whilst we went so we managed to go on all of the children's rides that we wanted to go on. It will probably be busier during the half term so maybe the fast pass service would be needed then.

Hubby and I didn't get to ride all of the older 'thrill rides' that are there as we found it a bit of a task whilst waiting for one person to queue up per ride. I'd like to see them offer a parent swap service where one parent can queue for a 'thrill ride' and then the other can go to the front of the queue once they have rode. This is much easier when you are visiting parks with young children. 

I think the park is reasonably priced for what is there and if you book in advance then you can get some great discounts. If we lived closer then I would consider an annual pass as the kids really did have a great time. You can get more information here about them, Annual Passes.

If you want a better view of our day then make sure you watch our video on youtube.




I'm very excited to announce that I am giving away a family pass to Oakwood which includes 2 adult and 2 children's tickets. You can enter via rafflecopter below.


SaveSave a Rafflecopter giveaway


Terms & Conditions:
  • Closing date is 00:00 am UK time on Wednesday 26th July
  • No cash alternative to the prize stated
  • This competition is open to the UK and Ireland only
  • Entrants must log in and follow the directions given via the Rafflecopter widget
  • All entries will be verified
  • One winner will be chosen at random using Rafflecopter
  • The winner will be notified within 5 days of the closing date. The winner must respond within 7 days of receiving the email to claim their prize
  • The brand will dispatch the prize directly to the winner
  • The competition is not affiliated with Twitter, Facebook, Instagram or Youtube
*Thank you to Oakwood for providing us with a family pass in exchange of our honest opinions* 
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57 comments

  1. That place looks and sounds fabulous. I didnt realise it was aimed at all age groups. Its the ideal place for a growing family

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  2. Sounds like a great day out esp with the summer hols coming up.My kids are 6 and 11 so a perfect day out by the sounds of it!

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  3. This Park sounds and looks like so much fun! Thanks for the thorough review giving us another idea for the list for a family day out. Appreciate it. Love South Wales too, such a fantastic part of the country. Kate www.fivelittlestars.com

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  4. Oh wow the last time I was at Oakwood I was a teenager and I loved it (rollercoaster fan right here). This looks like such a fun place to take the whole family, we might try and go this summer

    Laura x

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  5. Looks like fun to be had by all :)

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  6. This is the first time ive heard about this theme park! kissed out it looks like alot of fun! im sure my daughter would love to visit Dahland

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  7. Looking forward to the james and giant peach rollercoaster

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  8. We would like the Roald Dahl section as my little boy is currently enjoying his books

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  9. dahland looks amazing


    angela b

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  10. sounds brilliant, id never heard of this theme park before!! Planning lots of visits and day trips with our 6 kiddies this summer, i think my girls would most love the circus section so we would head there first :)

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  11. We loved it when we went last year, they thought the train into the park was amazing.

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  12. It sounds brilliant. I'd love to see the Peter Pan section. We've never been but I'm very tempted when we visit Bluestone in October

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    1. That'd be a good time to go as it's right next door

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  13. Megafobia looks awesome! I love how old and rickety it looks and it is lovely of you to offer a giveaway as well xx

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  14. I have never heard about this park but I totally want to check it out now! Lovely pics of your family

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  15. I saw your vlog on this looks like such a lovely day out lovely to see it all together in a blog post too. x

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  16. It looks and sounds like great fun!!

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  17. do they still have the rapids?

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  18. I've never heard of this place before. Wow at the wooden roller coaster. It sounds like a lovely day out

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  19. We usually visit once a year, Pickle loved Neverland and Dahland sounds pretty fab! Kaz x

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  20. This looks like a fab place to visit. We are planning on going to Wales next year so this will be on the list of places to go! Love the idea of entering on a train

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  21. I haven't been to Oakwood Park for years and would love to go on Megafobia again. My eldest son has been on a school trip and is nagging to go back. It's only an hour away so we really should make the effort.

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  22. My children would love Dahland, the eldest two have read all his books, he's a big favourite in our house. It looks like a fab day out!

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  23. I haven't heard of Oakwood before, but it look so like so much fun!

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  24. I had not herd of Oakwood theme park before, it looks lovely here. I will go check them out now with the Summer holidays coming up :)

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  25. I've never heard of Oakwood before but it later old a little gem! Will be sure to look it up if we're ever in the area x

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  26. It looks like a great family day out. I love visiting places I visited as a child with my own children xx

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  27. Looks like you all had a fun time. I would be interested in riding the Megafobia too.

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  28. Wow, look at that wooden rollercoaster!! I bet it is a bone shaker! I've never heard of Oakwood, but it looks and sounds like a good old fashioned theme park!

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  29. James and the giant peach rollercoaster sounds like lots of fun

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  30. We love neverland
    Great mix for both kids

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  31. The wooden roller coaster looks amazing perfect me and and my son

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  32. As a not so mini Norris, I've always wanted to go to Oakwood, its always been on my wishlist. The ride that sticks out the most to me has got to be Vertigo!

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  33. Log flume in skull rock. Would love to take my two boy :) thankyou for the chance,

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  34. aw this looks really fun. I like how it is divided up into different areas x

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  35. Ive been here once when i was growing up i remember going on the log flume and thinking it was so tall. My sons will enjoy it too

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  36. Rhiannon Hodge24 July 2017 at 11:53

    Megafobia - Ah the teenage memories of Oakwood visits with friends

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  37. id love megaphobia!! looks awesome x

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  38. We are visiting Pembrokeshire in August, so would love to win this. I would like to have a go on Megafobia.

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  39. I've never been here!! That wooden rollercoaster looks amazing

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  40. Dahland would be great as my kids (and I) love Roald Dahl books 😍

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  41. I have been visiting the area for years and have never been here.. my daughter lives in wales so the rest of the family about 20 of us descend on kilgetty to visit a couple of times a year .. with a couple of tickets free it will be a great discount for the group x

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  42. We went last year and loved the Peter Pan section

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  43. i'd love to be going on the snake river falls

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  44. james and giant peach rollercoaster

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  45. We would like the Roald Dahl section - leanne w

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  46. I'd love to try the James and the Giant Peach Roller coaster :)

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