With huge indoor beaches, pirate ships, dinosaurs, climbing frames and bouncy castles it's a year-round paradise for kids at this play barn in Cheshire. And Castaway Play in Congleton has just been named the best in the region.
The indoor space has grown in just three years from one small room at a popular garden centre into a vast space with a range of different play zones. There are also regularly changing themes to keep families coming back for more.
It was crowned 'Best Indoor Play Centre' for the Greater Manchester and Cheshire region at the recent Red Kite Awards in a public vote. It beat off competition in its category from fellow nominees Clip 'n' Climb in Oldham, Tumble Jacks in Marple and Head Over Heels in Wilmslow.
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Castaway Play was launched three years ago by husband and wife team Joanna and Simon Cotterell. As parents themselves, they thought it would be great to create a varied play centre with lots of facilities, including for those with special educational needs.
Starting out with just one pirate room, it now offers a whole range of themed areas, a Jungle Room, a sensory-play area and party rooms that can be hired for birthdays and special events.
Dinosaur models greet you at the entrance to the play centre, before you can walk through to a vast indoor beach with loads of slides and play equipment in the sand. You can then walk through to play areas suitable for younger kiddies, with sectioned soft play and smaller slides, as well as Princess-themed bouncy castles and a Gruffalo-themed play area.
You can then continue on into the main indoor play which features another huge beach area with a pirate ship. There's also a car track here, as well as a mini-river where children can 'pan for gold'.
Mini-builders can get to work on a construction site, as well as head onto a large climbing frame or bounce on another mini bouncy castle with slides. Here you also find the play centre's main café, which is open seven days a week and serves up hot food, sandwiches and cakes.
There are a further two cafes at the other ends of the play kingdom, that open at peak times over the weekends as well. The centre has play areas suitable for the tiniest tots up to the age of 9, with an upper height limit of 145cm.
At the furthest end of the site you will enter 'The Lost Jungle' where dinosaur fans can explore models of the creatures as well as head onto a mini climbing wall shaped along a raptor's back. Here there are also giant dinosaur eggs, another sand pit and more bouncy castles and slides.
Staff at the centre said they were all stunned and delighted to receive the Red Kite Award. Assistant manager Sarah Wilson said: "We couldn't believe it when we won. This is literally a small, family-run business, so to win an award voted by the public like that, we just couldn't believe it. In fact one of my colleagues was crying when she found out we had won."
Sarah says the real joy of the centre, however, is seeing all the faces of the children when they walk inside. She said: "Honestly it's wonderful just to see the faces. People do come quite often once they find us.
"When they walk in and you see the kids go 'wow', sometimes you take that for granted, but it's really wonderful that we have that effect on people when you see the little faces."
As well as all the permanent attractions, the team put on special themed events throughout the year as well. They have Harry Potter themed events, a dinosaur adventure in the summer holidays, and every weekend they do 'meet and greets' with larger-than-life characters including the Gruffalo, Paw Patrol and Bing.
Sarah said: "We try to constantly come up with new things to make it different every time families come to us. For the February half term we will have meet and greets with characters throughout the week and at Easter we do an Easter Egg hunt."
Naturally the venue has become a big hit for children's parties, which they host in four different themed rooms on the site, which are available to book every weekend. The themes are enchanted princess, superheroes, pirates or a beach birthday.
How to get there and prices
Castaway Play is at 71 Moss Road, Astbury, Congleton, Cheshire, CW12 3BP. Tickets can be booked online at the Castaway Play website here. It's recommended to book ahead for peak times, although walk-ins are welcomed in the week.
In January there's a mid-week offer of £5 per child, and £1 for adults, for play all day. Weekends and holidays are -classed as peak prices which are, for 1-10 year olds, £8.50 and adults £2.25 - for a two-and-a-half hour time slot.
Normal off-peak prices are under 3 months free, 3-11 months £ 2.50, 1-10 year olds £7.50 and adults £2.
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