Mountain View Ranch is a family visitor attraction, 6 miles from Cardiff and is a great place for a dry day. There is an admission fee of £19 for a family of 4 to gain entry to the 100 acre attraction.
We visited during their Halloween themed October half term week and on arrival staff let you know about their daily events, and answer any other questions that you may have which was a lovely personal touch and a great welcome to the attraction.
The Ranch is about free range fun and exploring for the whole family. There are many events and activities included in the entry price such as rabbit petting, guinea pigs, ponies, goats, chickens, Gruffalo walk, the Indian village, Fairy Forest, Roly Poly Hill, Badger Wood, archery, story time, meet the animals, tree swings, lots of wildlife and the best of all campfire and marshmallow toasting.
For little ones instead of pushing the pushchair around the woodland area a fun way to explore the attraction is by hiring a cart for £3. You can also fit bags and picnics on the carts.
Additional extra cost activities are golf, High Ropes or Segway. It is advisable to book ahead, there is the option of booking online or you can turn up on the day and hope for the best. There is a height restriction for the high ropes at 125cm.
There was plenty of space to picnic and let the kids run around or you could eat in the café area. In the Play Area there are football nets, a netball hoop, bunnies and a snack shack where ice creams are available.
There are some beautiful Woodland Walks with a Fairy Forest which have fairies in the trees for children to find. During the week in term time the cost of the Adventure Play is £2.50.
Toilets are located at the entrance and in the café area. If you have little ones, it is advisable to go to the toilet before you start your journey into the Woodland area.
The walks through the park grounds are well laid out and the wicker craft and wood art is amazing. Tree houses, fairy doors, tree swings and climbing frames are all there and can be found on a map provided on admission.
One of the attractions that the girl’s really enjoyed was the old fashioned rope swings and looking for fairies in the fairy wood.
We visited for Halloween, it was a lovely dry sunny day and the story of the day was themed appropriately – from the Julia Donaldson classic Room on the Broom.
The staff were dressed up just as the characters in the book and interacted well with the children. This involved tasks where the children had to collect hidden characters from different areas in the woodland through a walking story.
The Gruffalo story is the main story and is a must if you have children who have read the book. The interaction with the narrator taking you through the tale with set areas is great.
All of the characters from the Gruffalo were made of willow, and were simply gorgeous and this is one of the main attractions of the ranch and what made us visit.
The cafe area can get very busy in peak times so expect long wait times which isn’t great especially when you have young children but there is a snack cabin in the play area where you can buy drinks, snacks and sandwiches.
A family ticket of two adults and two children was £19. During our visit there were events running throughout the day such as meet the ponies, rabbit petting and archery all included in the admission price. I found the admission charge was very good value and competitive compared to other similar attractions, plus if you are planning on visiting regularly you can purchase a season pass.
Top Tip:
Remember to bring a change of shoes or wellies, change of clothes and I would recommend a picnic. Roly Poly Hill is a favourite with the little ones. The attraction is a great opportunity to explore countryside with fantastic scenery.