FRONTPAGE ARCHIVES DAYS OUT PHOTOS & MOVIES ABOUT

 

 

Sheffield Park, East Sussex

Very attractive grounds. Not as varied as nearby Wakehurst but can be combined with the Bluebell Railway to make more of a day out.

National Trust.

Update: Over Christmas the gardens are lit for special evening openings. These are a bit pricey but, if you are lucky enough to get a calm evening, the reflections in the lakes are magical.

Sheffield Park at Night

Child-Friendliness: 4/5
Value For Money: 5/5
Acceptable Distance: 30 minutes

Website / Map

Wilderness Wood, East Sussex

This is an excellent, inexpensive nature trail in East Sussex. It has a small children’s play area, but the main attraction is the extensive woodland that holds numerous little nooks and crannies in which to mess around.

The best way to explore the woods is to pick up one of the trail guides from the cafe at the entrance and then head off into the forest.  There are numerous items of sculpture and similar objects distributed along the route, all of which can be used as fodder for young imaginations.  If you’re lucky you might catch sight of the deer.

It takes a couple of hours at a leisurely pace to do the entire loop.  There are a couple of small inclines, but nothing that should tax anyone over the age of 4.

If you go down in the woods today...

Child-Friendliness: 5/5
Value For Money: 5/5
Acceptable Distance: 45 minutes

Website / Map (note that the website appears to be, rather annoyingly, IE-only)

West Wittering Beach, West Sussex

Huge sandy beach. Great for all times of the year, although I imagine you would have to get their pretty early in the day during the summer as the car park could fill quickly.

West Wittering

Child-Friendliness: 5/5
Value For Money: 5/5
Acceptable Distance: 60 minutes

Website / Map

Hove Seafront, East Sussex

Brighton without the crowds. You can stroll into Brighton from here (may be a bit far for the very young). Use the car park on the sea front, at the junction of Hove Street and Kingsway.

Mustn’t forget to mention Marrocco’s, a restaurant on King’s Esplanade, that’s chiefly famous (in our house) for its ice cream. If you walk along this stretch of seafront with any sort of regularity you will have stopped at Marroccos. Even out of season it always seems to be popular, and rightly so.

Another 'cheese' face

Child-Friendliness: 5/5
Value For Money: 5/5
Acceptable Distance: 45 minutes

Website / Map

Brighton Seafront, East Sussex

Sun, sea, sand and sangria - all the cliches. Heaving on a hot sunny day; it can resemble a frying pan when all the worshippers are stretched out under the sun. Out of season it is just as attractive, in that typically British way, and the crowds are more subdued. Don’t forget the pier, of course, which is a simple, if potentially expensive, way of keeping kids amused (assuming you don’t have a gale blowing off the Channel, of course).

Bounce

There is also the well kept secret that is the twilight dance of the starlings:

Parking Tips: Parking can be a bit of a nightmare so take the train if possible (Update 29th April 2007: this is even more true now. The local council seem to be doing their best to eradicate any trace of on-street parking) . If you must drive, get to the coast via Rottingdean or Hove and enter Brighton by driving along the front. In summer, park at the Marina or at the far end of Madeira Drive and get the small train that runs along the seafront. Alternatively park in Hove and walk along the front (a bit of a hike). In winter, you should be able to find something more at the Brighton-end of Madeira Drive, or you could try one of the back streets from the front (not any more, back streets are all permit-only parking now). There are also, of course, the big multi-storeys but, if you time it wrong, you can spend a long time in the queues. Parking at the Marina is free all the time (although time-limited), while there is free parking on some of the back streets on Sundays.

Eating Tips: If you happen to be in Brighton on a Sunday, you could do far worse than try the Aumthong Thai Brasserie. It offers an “all you can eat” buffet and is positioned on the seafront (note: the map is a little misleading, it is between Black Lion St and King’s Road). Not any more; it’s now an American diner(!).

Child-Friendliness: 5/5
Value For Money: 5/5
Acceptable Distance: 60 minutes

Website / Map

Hove Museum & Art Gallery, East Sussex

This is the sister museum of the Brighton Museum & Art Gallery and, while smaller, is another surprisingly well presented collection. Like it relative, this consists of a collection of design exhibits combined with local history and other items of interested.

In this case, the main display (which I assume changes with time) is based on the theme of weaving, which is much more interested than it sounds. A small section where children can create their own weaves means that they can better relate to the exhibits. There are also a variety of interactive bits and pieces which are also useful for keeping younger visitors amused.

Making full use of the facilities

Of course, the big draw for children is the toy collection. This is a compact but broad collection of toys dating from Egyptian times to the current day. Alex was a bit freaked out by the sleeping wizard that the display is themed around, but was soon distracted by the various nooks and crannies.

Sleeping Wizard

Entrance is free.

Child-Friendliness: 4/5
Value For Money: 5/5
Acceptable Distance: 30 minutes

Website / Map

Tilgate Park, West Sussex

Although approached via one of the less attractive areas of Crawley, don’t be put off by the location as the park itself is excellent. It has a small “zoo” (farm animals, birds, wallabies etc.), gardens, maze and craft shops. Entrance is nominally free, however donations are encouraged.

Cows

Apparently it also has extensive cycle paths, although we have yet to venture this far into the park.

Tilgate Park

Child-Friendliness: 5/5
Value For Money: 5/5
Acceptable Distance: 30 minutes

Website / Map

Nymans Garden, West Sussex

The main attraction of this National Trust property is that it makes a pleasant fall-back destination, i.e. if you just want to get out of the house for a walk in attractive surroundings, this fits the bill nicely. It also helps that this is sufficiently close to where we live to allow us to pop-in at short-notice.

Ruin, Nymans Gardens, West Sussex

The property consists primarily of gardens, in a variety of styles, with the remains of a house (only a handful of furnished rooms are accessible). There are also some longer walks in the surrounding countryside.

Never walk when you can run (2)

Child-Friendliness: 4/5
Value For Money: 5/5
Acceptable Distance: 30 minutes

Website / Map

Paradise Park, East Sussex

We weren’t quite sure what to expect of Paradise Park. We had passed signs for it a few times while passing through the area, and seen the odd advert, but were never entirely sure what it had to offer. The adverts and website seemed to sell it as a sort of Shangri-La with something for everyone, however this image never seemed to quite suit its position (wedged in the corner of an industrial estate in Newhaven). The name also seemed to smack a bit of desperation.

For these reasons we had never been particularly inspired to visit. Finally, however, a desire to do something other than the usual suspects at the weekend (plus a small dose of emotional blackmail from Alex) forced our hand. And I’m glad it did.

Paradise Park is essentially a large garden centre, hence the somewhat industrial location, to which has been added a surprisingly wide ranging set of attractions, all imaginatively crammed into a fairly small area. These include a somewhat random museum (several large animatronic dinosaurs are the main selling point, although it also covers an eclectic range of other topics), a set of tropical green houses, a collection of miniature Sussex landmarks, a small train. It also, apparently, has more to offer, however our smallest companion was distracted by the train at this point and thus we got no further.

Having said all that, the entrance price does seem a bit steep when you first present yourself at the door. There are also a number of attractions that require extra payment (such as the train), so I am in two minds as to whether this is good value for money. We did not, however, leave feeling like we had been ripped off.

Paradise Park

Would we go again? Probably, at some point. Would we recommend this to others? Well, this should probably be on your list to visit at some point, if you are in the area, however there are other attractions (such as Drusillas or Newhaven Fort) that you will probably want to visit first. Having said that, if you are waiting to catch a ferry and have kids to entertain, you could do a lot worse than let them burn off some energy off here.

Child-Friendliness: 5/5
Value For Money: 3-4/5
Acceptable Distance: 45 minutes

Website / Map

Jack and Jill Windmills, West Sussex

The South Downs above Clayton are one of those places where it is nice to go when you’ve been stuck inside and you just want to blow the cobwebs away. Like Devil’s Dyke and nearby Ditchling Beacon, the hilltop offers excellent views from of the valley to the North, and access to all the wind that one could wish for (it is a good place for kite flying). In addition to this it also has the windmills: Jack and Jill.

Windmill, West Sussex

Jack is privately owned, and so must be viewed from afar, while Jill is maintained by a charity and can be visited on most Sundays and Bank Holidays through the summer months (and occasionally other days).

When the mill is open, you can enter (via the precipitous stairs) and visit the three floors. A favourite feature among the young is a small, manually-operated grindstone (called a quern, apparently) that allows flour to be produced (and spread liberally around the person operating it).

There is also a teashop on the ground floor.

Child-Friendliness: 4/5
Value For Money: 5/5
Acceptable Distance: 15 minutes

Website / Map