Picture the scene. We trundle out to the car and get in. Chris starts the engine. Anya pipes up ‘Are we going somewhere?’. Chris and I look at each other biting back a sarcastic answer of ‘no, we’re just going to sit in the car on the driveway for a few hours’.
We headed off to Bracknell which is about 15 minutes away. None of us have ever been to the Look Out before. It is a huge forest complex with a Go Ape section, a playground, bike hire shop and of course our destination the Discovery Centre. Even the car park provided loads of interest with the sheer scale of the trees.
Speaking of the car park, it is pay and display but the fee is deducted from the centre ticket if you present the stub.
So the entry cost for us was £20 with £2 refunded for the car park and Zach was free. We were offered the opportunity to go to an interactive balloon show for an extra fee but we decided against it as we weren’t sure if the kids would be ravenous by that time and spoil the experience. We were given wrist bands which gave the opportunity to go in and out of the centre as many times as we wanted that day and we could buy show tickets later if we wanted.
Matthew got to grips with some giant Lego bricks and then they all headed for the ball pool!
After a battle to get Zach and his buggy up the stairs (we didn’t find the lift until we were heading back down *rolls eyes*), we had fun with mirrors and the older two were fascinated by the body activities.
The light and colour exhibition was great fun with a shadow wall and a dance zone where moving in front of coloured lights made music.
We also had more mirror fun with a two way mirror
The Look Out tower was an amazing cardio workout! I thought my thighs would never recover but the view was spectacular from the top and the way down was much less strenuous! Matthew was terrified of the height but still made it all the way to the top whereas Anya raced on ahead, the daredevil!
At the base of the tower is the building section with a small house that the children can renovate with roof tiles, or build walls (more giant Lego). There were also ride on diggers and trucks, hard hats and hi-vis jackets
At lunchtime we decided to make a move and head off for food. The Look Out does have a coffee shop but we wanted a full meal after all those stairs. We had planned to return later in the day and maybe visit the balloon show. However the car park was an absolute nightmare and completely full as we left so we decided that rather than returning later we would go back to Crowthorne (where we went a few weeks ago) which was on the way home.
Overall, the Look Out was loads of fun and we’d happily go again, maybe taking a picnic with us so that we can double the length of our visit. It will be nice to go when Zach is older and can join in with the activities.
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