We were recently invited to the opening of a new play area for children under 7 at Hever Castle, which took place yesterday. This new playground, fittingly called Acorn Dell, blends in with the Tudor Towers play area. It continues the castle theme, with castellations featuring in both the play area and the seating area at the top. The natural aesthetic of the playground is fantastic and encourages children to use their imagination.

JB Gill, formerly of JLS, who presents Down on the Farm on CBeebies was the guest of honour to cut the blue ribbon before the playground was opened. His wife Chloe and 3 year-old son Ace also attended. Of course, the new playground needed some little testers! 

I could see that the playground really got Autumn thinking and she really enjoyed it. With a 2 metre high living willow tunnel and surrounded by plants, this play area is beautiful. My favourite part, however, was probably the slide. Autumn was a little unsure about the clatter bridge on the way to it, but loved going down the slide on my lap. It was a lot faster than I’d anticipated! As well as attendees of the opening party, local children from Hever Primary School came to try out the playground and just from looking around, you could see it was a huge hit.  Also a hit were the massive ice creams, which Autumn managed to order herself a second one of (cheeky!)

After leaving the playground, we enjoyed lunch at the Moat restaurant and exploring the beautiful grounds. When we last visited at Easter, there weren’t as many plants in bloom. My personal highlight was the breathtakingly beautiful and fragrant rose garden. Afterwards, we had fun feeding the ducks and fish and cooled down in the water maze. I finished off the day with a peaceful walk around the inside of the castle.

The day in photos

Disclosure: I was not asked to write this by Hever Castle.