What a fantastic day out. This place offers a lot for family's…read more Great value for £8 per adult and £5 for children over two, under twos are free ! The grounds are fantastic lots of open space for the children to wonder and explore and also paths that follow through the trees and gardens. There's a big adventure playground full of lots to explore, zip wire, slide climbing frame etc. There were also blow up slides and a paddling pool. There was a separate area with Wendy houses, trampolines and a climbing frame for the smaller children which was in a really nice relaxing area. You can get up close with pigs, rabbits, guinea pigs and chickens in Pet's Corner. There is 66 acres of beautiful gardens and woodland walks, the views across the River Severn and Wales and spectacular ! There's also a cafe and shop. The cafe is really nice I had a caramel latte with a cheese and chutney sandwich came to £5.50 wich Is good value. Plenty of parking available. Overall a fantastic day out which was really enjoyed by all.

Old Down Country Park is not your typical stately home. It is a farm/zoo/park/house. Great for the…read morewhole family too. They have large lawn areas for picnics, a café for those who didn't pre-prepare food, and lots and ltos of animals. Expect to find your typical farm animals. Goats? Check. Pigs? Check. Sheep? Check. Ponies? Check. Wallabies????check!!! Entry is only a fiver and you can spend the whole day there (weather permitting) walking along the Victorian walls and cooing at all the cute animals.

This lovely woodland area, which is open to the public, is set in open countryside just north of…read morePontprennau, one of the newer suburbs of Cardiff. It's popular with horse riders because there's a woodland jump trail, and also with cyclists and joggers because of the network of forest paths. The woods are on quite high ground overlooking the river Rhymney valley and they're a lovely place for a stroll, particularly in the Springtime when the wild flowers are all out. Some of the trees have been stood here since 1600, so parts of the woodland are ancient and very well-established and have been designated a Site of Importance for Nature Conservation (because of all the plants, birds and invertebrates the area supports). If you fancy a visit, the main entrance can be found on the western edge of the woods from Cefn Porth Road, where there's a handy car park.

Clearwell caves in the Forest of Dean is a must do visit over the christmas period…read more We took our nieces and nephews last year,they absolutely loved it and have asked to go again this year. Clearwell is an impressive large underground cave system,created by mining for iron ore. During christmas the caves are elaboratly decorated with fairy lights and decorations which are very good.The highlight of the caves is Father Christmas in his beautiful grotto where the children can recieve a gift. There is even a underground cafe and small christmas market. It is really worth visiting because the caves look magical with all the twinkling lights and even some floating light displays on the underfround lake. Take your family along and have a fab time.

I don't want to sound all 'bah-humbug', but I can only assume that the other reviewer (reviewee?)…read moreworks for the caves, is loaded, or easily pleased. To charge £7.50 per head for everyone aged 2 and above is daylight (perhaps that should be fairylight) robbery. I should have known when we reached the entrance to find a sign saying 'Adults - £7.50, Children - £7.50, Concessions - £7.50' - an interpretation of the word 'concession' that I have not come across before! In return for this gross over-charging, the children can choose from a cheap and nasty array of (unwrapped) toys, randomly tossed onto a table. In effect, I paid £30 for a plastic dinosaur and a 7cm 'Lightning McQueen' 'Hot Wheels' type car. To arrive at Santa's grotto, one walks past hundreds of named boxes, symbolising presents with every name imaginable (and unimaginable!), branches cut from Leylandii, and copious quantities of fairy lights. If your child wants to talk to Santa, be prepared for a wait of between 45 minutes and an hour, after which you can walk past scenes depicting the twelve days of Christmas...Hmmmmmmmm..This then leads you to the underground Christmas market and cafe, just in case you've got some hard-earned left in your pocket, and if they don't get it out of you there, well there's always the gift shop, which of course you have to go through in order to reach the exit. Admittedly, I have visited the caves before (out of the silly season) and the setting is therefore not as 'magical' as it might be for someone on their first experience, particularly children. My main objection is the blatant over-charging and poor value, considering that adults don't really get to see the caves in their true glory. But hey - it's Christmas - so I don't suppose I should expect anything less!! Oh - and prepare to get muddy, if I haven't put you off already!!

Tewkesbury Marina is well placed being at the cross roads of the River Severn and the River Avon…read moreand was my home for a couple of years as a liveaboard. The marina itself is split into two distinct halves with one side on the River Severn (level) and the other on the Avon. The facilities include toilets and showers (which are pretty good but not luxurious) an elsan point, a re-fueling point, water, electricity, hoist and waste tank emptying. The staff are friendly and there are always quite a few of them around to help out if needed. The fees are quite expensive and rising from the sound of it but if you have got a boat you may not being worrying too much about that anyway. A good place to moor!

A friendly club that is as good for beginners as it is for experienced runners. The main meeting is…read moreon thursday nights at 7pm from the castle school. The also meet on tuesday nights at filton college wise campus for a track session starting at 7pm and there is a long run on a sunday morning at 8.30am starting from castle school car park. The club members do well in the local races and also put on a couple of races the next one being the river bank rollick in january see the website for details. I really enjoyed visiting this club and they make you a nice cup of tea and a biscuit after your run!

This is a beautiful old house just outside Newport, very easy to get to from the motorway, and well…read moreworth a visit. For anyone who's a fan of BBC costume dramas, then this is the type of house that would make any Jane Austen heroine fall in love with even the most ruthless and cutthroat of villainous rich men. It packs quite a punch. Sitting in 90 acres of surrounding parkland, this is a lovely oasis of tranquillity. The house and gardens are open to the public during the summer months, and there are also countless festivals and seasonal events happening throughout the rest of the year. There is also a short avenue of arts and crafts shops which are open throughout the year. Here you'll find Busy Bees Patchwork and many other pottery, art and smithies. Pop along for a cultural afternoon.

Tanya is right on the money when she says this park is straight out of a BBC costume drama (don't…read moreeven get me started on their version of Pride and Prejudice - I know the whole damn thing by heart and that series is most likely the reason I moved to the UK in the first place). I used to work at the government building that's right around the corner, so a few lunch hours were spent walking around this park's stunning grounds. The park and woodland walk is open from 9 am to dusk. The House is open from Easter to the end of September, with house tours from Wednesday - Sunday. Tours last a little over an hour starting at 11am, then run hourly until 4pm. Events are held year round, and more information can be found on their website. Tredegar House is licensed for weddings and caters for conferences, although I'm happy just meandering around the park with the grand house serving as part of the background. If you're not a driver, you can get here via the number 30 and 36 Cardiff Bus, which I'd recommend instead of taking the train, as Newport Railway Station is a fair bit away.

An OK swimming pool just for a quick dip. My son went swimming here for the very first time when he…read morewas about 6 weeks old and he seemed to enjoy it! The staff were nice enough but it is a bit rundown and it was a nightmare to park too.

Public swimming pool with leisure facillities and sauna. Pool used by schools and for lessons so be…read moresure to check that it is open for public swimming if you are thinking of going down. Definitely tired and worn looking and could use a facelift. Situated in a car park. You do have to pay for parking but if you use one of the 2 machine either side of the swimming pook it will issue you with 2 tickets - 1 to display in the car and the other you take into Cascades with you and get a refund of up to 2 hours parking.

For anyone into fishing, Hendre Lake Park in the St Mellon's area of the city is well worth knowing…read moreabout. The whole park is centred around the big 10-acre lake - where you'll also often spot local school children enjoying some educational pond-dipping sessions during the week. It's right next to a substantial residential housing area, so tends to be well-used and is far from 'remote' - but it's a pleasant enough space for a walk and some wildlife spotting. There's been quite a bit of European Union funding given to the project, and the lake is constantly being improved to make the fishing better there. Most of the park falls within the Gwent Levels Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) because of all the rare and protected plants that grow in the area, particularly in the reens (which are historic ditches criss crossing the area). The lake itself is obviously used for fishing and by schools for environmental studies, but there are also pathways running around the edge for casual walkers and joggers.