Disclaimer: We received complimentary tickets for Blenheim Palace Adventure Playground to review free of charge, but words and pictures are mine.
We last went to Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire in the summer to review the Paddington Lo-Commotion Experience which was notable because, despite being the middle of July, we had absolutely torrential weather to deal with.
The February half term can be hit and miss. Sometimes (like last Wednesday) the weather is shocking and then on other days, you see a hint of spring peeking through. We took our assorted children (aged 4, 7, 8 and 10) to Blenheim Palace to see what they thought of the new adventure playground, and this time we were very lucky to hit a beautifully sunny day.
Blenheim Palace Adventure Playground review
The Adventure Playground in the Walled Garden at Blenheim Palace was a brand new addition for 2023, costing a massive £3.6million to design and build. Formerly referred to as ‘The Lost Garden’, it’s aimed at children aged 2-12, and was designed to be inclusive and accessible for all ages and abilities.
There are several sections to the Adventure Playground area at Blenheim Palace which you can see on the map below.
When you arrive, the first thing you see is a large and impressive golden ball fountain at the start of the water play area – the ‘Winding River’ – which stretches along the park. Although the weather was nice for February when we went, my kids agreed that it still wasn’t splash around weather; there were however toddlers playing in the ‘water ‘river’ where there are stepping stones and bridges, fountains and jets of water.
I imagine this area will be extremely popular come the summer time.
To the left as you arrive is the vegetable patch which is great for youngsters. With carrot buildings and big sunflowers to climb on, this is a good spot for those that enjoy sensory play and to create music.
For very young children, there is the Boathouse Toddler Play section which is sectioned off from the rest of the park. There is a mini zip line, swings, a slide and age-suitable climbing frame. Mine were too old for this, in fact it wasn’t really in use at all as most younger kids were busy splashing about!
Next on the map is the ‘Wilderness’ where you can find three zip lines for older kids to play on, and the ‘Over the Wall’ play area with rope bridge, tunnels and aerial walkways. The kids spent the majority of their time at Blenheim’s Adventure Playground in this section, loving the zip wires which weren’t too fast, high or scary for them. I declined to have a go I’m afraid.
The other main attraction is the ‘Grand Bridge’ and the ‘The Great Gates’, a huge wooden structure, suitable for older children of 7/8+. There are rope bridges, treetop walkways, towers, cargo nets to climb over and tunnels to climb through, slides and interactive talking tubes. It’s a great space for little adventurers to encourage their imaginative play and, hopefully, give you a well deserved a bit of peace and quiet. On a not unrelated note, there is slightly sheltered seating for adults and a coffee shop selling hot and cold drinks and cakes.
The Adventure Playground is in extremely good condition and well maintained. The planting is really nice (not that the kids will notice or care, but I did!) and it is easy to see why it was such an expensive project! There are toilets and a baby change behind the cafe, which are also clean.
Entry to Blenheim’s Adventure Playground gives you three hours in the park, and the slots can currently only be booked at 10.15am and 12.15pm. This may change during peak season but you can’t yet book that far ahead. I imagine that with siblings or friends, children could easily play for the full three hours if you remember enough snacks and/or lunch to take with you. The children certainly all enjoyed the new area and would give Blenheim Palace Adventure Playground a positive review.
Is the Adventure Playground at Blenheim Palace included in the ticket price?
Entry to the Blenheim Palace Adventure Playground is not included in the regular ticket price. Being honest, I think it’s really only worth visiting if you already have annual passes for the Palace and Grounds.
Entry to the adventure playground comes at additional cost of £7 per child and £5 per adult (available here and must be pre-booked), which for a family of six makes for a expensive day out in itself. On top of Blenheim Palace and Grounds tickets (which costs £99 for a family of four, but last for the whole year) it wouldn’t be within most family’s budgets even as a special treat.
My hope would be that in the future, the Adventure Playground at Blenheim Palace will be included in the standard ticket price, because as good as it was and as much as the kids enjoyed themselves (and they really did love it!) I wouldn’t personally want to pay the extra.
The Walled Garden Pizzeria
The Pizzeria in the walled garden makes very good pizzas. During the half term there was an offer on for free children’s pizzas and squash which we were told about in a press release. However, this wasn’t advertised at all in the pizzeria itself and I had to ask the server about it; they weren’t forthcoming with the squash either and didn’t actually have any. They clearly weren’t prepared for anyone to ask about the offer, which is slightly embarrassing!
The press release didn’t make it clear that it was one small kids’ pizza free per adult pizza purchased, so we had to get three adult pizzas and three kids’ pizzas – which was lucky as they turned out to be so small, even the four year old wanted more.
The wait was incredibly long. Luckily the kids could run around outside, but I definitely wouldn’t bother again; although the pizza itself was good and it wasn’t overly expensive, the 20 minute queue to order and then the 40 minute wait for food was insane.
I think I’ll pack a picnic next time!
Other family attractions at Blenheim Palace
When visiting the Adventure Playground you will have entry to the Palace and Grounds including the Walled Garden, where there is the Marlborough Maze and the Butterfly House (however this part was was closed).
We took the mini train at a cost of £1 per person back to the Palace as we thought we’d take the opportunity to take a look around.
I was surprised at how engaged the kids actually were in the Palace itself, searching for the mice hidden around, and I’ve promised to take them back in the summer for a better look and a stroll round the lake which I imagine could take several hours in itself.
Blenheim Palace and Gardens tickets
Tickets to the Palace, Park and Gardens cost £22 for children over 3 and £38 for adults. A family of four costs £99. This gives entry for the whole year, which is great if you’re local as there is so much to get around that you probably wouldn’t manage it all in one day. This does not include entry to the Blenheim Palace Adventure Playground featured in this review which must be booked separately as above. The Gardens apart from the Walled Garden and Formal Gardens are dog friendly. All tickets must be booked in advance and downloaded or printed to be scanned on entry. You can get them here.