Matlock Farm Park – All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go
Ad – We were kindly gifted tickets for Matlock Farm Park in return for an honest review of our day. All opinions are our own.
Thank you for coming to read Matlock Farm Park – All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go. Matlock Farm Park is one of the main Peak District Attractions and was high on our list of places to visit during our recent holiday in the area.
Where is Matlock Farm Park?
Matlock Farm Park,
Jaggers Lane,
Matlock
DE4 5LH
How much do tickets cost?
Weekday Term Time Prices:
Child (4-14 years) – £9.95
Toddlers (2-3 years) – £7.95
Concessions – £9.95
Under 2’s FREE
Weekend and School Holidays Price:
Child (4-14 years) – £10.95
Toddlers (2-3 years) – £8.95
Concession – £10.95
Under 2’s FREE
Family Day Passes
Children £46
Family of 5 (2 adults and 3 children) £56
Family of 6 (2 adults and 4 children) £67
These save money when visiting at weekends/school holidays. Mid-week and term-time individual tickets are already discounted. Please check if individual tickets or a family pass is the most cost-efficient for the date of your visit.
When are the opening times?
Open all year round – Closed Christmas day and Boxing day.
1st April – 31st October Everyday 10.00 am – 5.00 pm
Extended opening to 5:30 pm during summer weekends (weather permitting)
1st November – March 31st – 10.00 am 4.30 pm
Please note, due to the close contact with animals, dogs are not allowed into the farm park. Guide Dogs are permitted.
What is there to do there?
There is so much to do at Matlock Farm Park, in order to enjoy everything I’d recommend getting there near to opening time and plan to stay there for most of the day.
We spent a lot of our time in the Outdoor Play Areas. There is an area that is outdoors but covered (absolutely brilliant for wet weather) and it had a small coffee shop with simple lunches and a variety of drinks and snacks. There was loads of places to sit too. With a huge sand pit and lots of pulley systems the girls had a brilliant time. In fact, I think the girls would have spent hours and hours there had we not had other things to see! In the same area, but outdoors, there was a play frame which the girls also loved.
There is a brilliant Indoor Rainforest Play Barn, (again ideal if the weather is less than perfect), which is adjoining one of the cafes. So you can grab something to eat whilst the children play. In that Indoor Play Area, there is a dedicated area for young children too.
Another play area, which is a designated toddler area is the Tots Area, this includes a large sandpit, Wendy house and a sit-on original tractor.
A highlight of the day for us was the short pony rides that are offered for an extra fee of £3.50 and 2.5yrs plus. For this extra charge they get to ride around a small arena on gorgeous ponies. The girls LOVED it. If we had had time I would have definitely taken up the option to do horse riding lessons at the riding school based at the farm later in the week as the girls really want to do this. The lessons on offer differ depending on if you are a beginner or experienced riders. You can find out more about horse riding at Matlock Farm Park here.
There are 2 Go-Kart Tracks at the Farm. One is a paid-for coin slot Go-Kart and one is a pedal go-kart track. The girls loved the pedal go-karts (we didn’t have cash for the other ones!).
A favourite of mine is always the sheep race at Farms. You can place a free bet on which Sheep you want to win and they run twice. It was so fun to watch. Although our sheep clearly didn’t realise he was taking part in sheep racing as he stopped to eat grass halfway round!
There is a wide selection of animals at the Farm, including Goats, ponies, ducks and wallabies. We purchased a bag of animal feed upon entry which I would definitely recommend as the girls loved feeding the animals.
Another highlight (there were so many!) of our visit was the small animal handling. In fact, the girls enjoyed this so much that we did it twice. On both occasions, the girls got to hold guinea pigs and (huge) pet rabbits.
Food and Drink
As well as the food and drink areas I’ve already mentioned there is a dedicated licensed cafe called the Garden Room Cafe. With a good selection of food for both adults and children. There is indoor as well as outdoor seating. We arrived at midday and it was getting busier but we got a space to sit. By the time we finished eating there was a queue so I’d advise getting there earlier rather than later.
There was also loads of picnic tables scattered all over the Farm so if you had a picnic you’d easily find somewhere to sit.
Anything else?
There are special events throughout the year. When we were there it was Halloween themed. At Christmas, there are a number of events including a Santa’s Grotto and Breakfast with Santa. Check out full details and dates here.
Summary
We had a great day at Matlock Farm Park. It’s location, in the tranquillity of the countryside is just perfect and the girls loved the large selection of animals, the super indoor play area, the wonderful outdoor play areas and the pony riding! As parents it was so nice for us to have somewhere to relax while the children played and also a great variety of farmyard fun to choose from. It was an ideal place for a spot of fresh air and a family day out.
Thanks for reading Matlock Farm Park – All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go. If you’d like to read more about our Day Trips in the UK, click here for Thomas Land and Drayton Manor, or here for Hampton Court Palace.
