SUNDOWN ADVENTURELAND - DAYS OUT WITH KIDS

Where do I start with Sundown? It's undoubtedly our favourite place to visit with the boys, and has been that way for almost four years now. I could shout and scream from the rooftops about it all day, every day, but instead I save that for my Instagram stories when I visit. If you've never heard of Sundown Adventureland, it's a theme park specifically targeted at the under 10's, situated between Retford and Lincoln in the East Midlands. A stark contrast to most other theme parks I know which usually have a small area for the little riders in your group, and generally focus on adults and teens for the rest of the park. Sundown is a toddlers dream, and as an owner of two small children, it's my dream too because they're both completely in their element when we visit. Just last week we weighed up the options of what to do for the day on Patricks birthday, it was a no brainer, and off we went to Sundown.



I truly don't know where to begin with this review, there is SO much to do that even though I record an insane amount on my stories during our visits, there are still so many areas that I don't cover. Sundown has it all and I guess that's why we love it so much. If your child isn't into rides there is plenty to do around them, from shows to watch to ginormous soft play facilities, not to mention the sand parks, climbing frames and interactive zones throughout the park. Every visit we take to Sundown ensures two sleeping children in the car ride home as they've exhausted their little legs exploring all day long.

Our favourite ride, or should I say the boys favourite, is the tractor ride. All rides are monorail based so safe for all ages (bar a couple of new additional rides that have been built in the last year) We've visited with Patrick as a newborn and he's still got to enjoy the likes of the rocky railroad from the comfort of a baby carrier - it's fantastic because it means you all get to join in, no adults sat waiting with the pushchair whilst the other takes the child on, it's a real family theme park. As I mentioned there has been some new additions to Sundown lately, with the Wild Ostrich Safari ride being brought in last year and then due to open at the end of the month is their brand new Monkey Mayhem Driving School - think go cart style. Both of these are aimed at slightly older children but the height restrictions are very generous and Patrick who has just turned two is now old enough to ride with an adult. In terms of queues, we've visited all year long from December at peak Christmas time right through to the heart of summer when the park has been rife with school trips and never once have we had to wait longer than a couple of minutes for a go on a ride. I don't quite know how the keep the flow so smooth throughout the park, I guess it's magic, but it's one I'm super impressed with as nothing would be worse than queuing, especially on a hot day, with tired toddlers.

On a personal level at Sundown, I adore Lollipoppet castle. I guess it's very novel to me as it's a giant pastel coloured castle with a maze of rooms inside, each room smelling of it's own entirely different scent. My personal favourites are the liquorice and the polo mint sections. The courtyard of the castle as well as each of the rooms is scattered with sensory items, levers to pull or buttons to push, all which cause an effect. As you can imagine this is just heaven for curious little hands, there isn't any opportunity for boredom there.

The theme of interaction is prevalent throughout the park, each time we visit we learn something new. This time we noticed that a bar of soap in Shotgun City set off a chorus of music and bubbles, the excitement on Noahs face when he noticed was a complete picture. In Shotgun City you also have the wild west sing along, a show that's performed by mechanic figures and incredibly sweet, it's one of Noahs highlights and he always asks if we can watch it. Times vary but when we've visited it's usually shown at 11:30, 2:30 and 3:30, so you have three chances not to miss it. It's never crowded and lasts around 15 minutes, a good opportunity to rest those legs if your little's are anything like mine.

When the weather isn't on your side Sundown Adventureland has so many places to stow away indoors, their Crash Landings cafe hosts a giant play area, I can't recall ever seeing one so big as it has easily over five floors. There is a separate part for babies and for older children the seating area is just opposite so you can watch them as they explore. We tend to grab a bite to eat in here, the food is always incredibly fresh and really good value, never totalling more than £18 or so for the four of us with drinks. On the opposite side of the park is the Rodeo Corral indoor area, again with a huge play centre and lots of space to sit and eat should you wish to do so. You're really not limited at sundown and picnic benches are to be found all around, as well as huge grass areas where we tend to settle if we opt for a picnic.

The last few bits that can't go without a mention are the Christmas rides, there are two at Sundown and the Santas Sleigh Ride is open all year around, were as the Night Before Christmas Ride (which includes a visit to Santa at the end) is only open during the Christmas season. We love riding both, I was really impressed with the latter when we visited during December, Noah was in complete awe as the ride really built up to visiting Santa as it finished, his grotto had every finishing touch you could imagine and I found myself even questioning if perhaps the big guy was real after all?

The final area that we can't get enough of is Toy Town, I'll admit we veered away from it previously as it seemed to have a bit of a wasp problem. Though I can clearly see this is well under control and we're back to enjoying it as much as we did before. Each house is styled to replicate something, a post office, a car garage, the fire station and the dentist are just a few, with something to do, touch or see in each of them. Our personal favourite is the fire station as nothing is more exciting to two little boys that riding on a fire engine.

I could go on and on about this place. There are still so many areas I haven't covered; story book village, the angry birds park, the market square, the jolly pirates boat ride, and the sandy play cove. We're snapping up annual passes on our next visit as bar the entry costs, Sundown could effectively be free whilst you're inside the park, on the warmer days we take a picnic and enjoy snacking on the grass. Unlike so many other theme parks we've visited, it isn't littered with vending machines or arcade games, so you're not going to waste a fortune by your little ones being lured in. I would and do recommend this place to anyone, it's by far the best day out and both of my boys adore it.

*We were given tickets in exchange for our review, but as always this is entirely honest and our own opinion. We'll be visiting sundown for years to come, just as we have in the four years prior - it really is quite magical.