Nanny Pat’s days out: family fun at the Lost Gardens of Heligan


Three children at Heligan smiling for the camera next to a hedge.

We are so lucky to have the Lost Gardens of Heligan on our doorstep. It is an all year round attraction and we often use our Locals’ Passes to pop in for a quick walk with scenic views, check out the animals, admire the beautiful trees and flowers and burn off some surplus energy down in the jungle. The cafe is excellent for snacks, coffees and lunches so it’s a regular haunt for days out.

In the school holidays the Heligan team excel themselves with a variety of activities for children. This Easter I visited with my four grandchildren, ages 2, 5, 7 and 9.  I recommend taking a buggy or backpack for little ones, there’s quite a lot of walking and some steep hills in the jungle area.

Heligan offers a range of activities for primary school age children during the school holidays

We were directed to the start of the trail. Our quest was to find wooden Tamworth piglets in the gardens and count how many we could spot. On the way, we passed the new indoor animal barn, complete with lambs and piglets. We were thrilled to see the poultry outside again after having been shut in by the avian flu restrictions.

See Tamworth pigs at HeliganThe trail led us to the lawn below the Steward’s House. We met a lady with a basket of chocolates for the children who had completed the trail and counted the correct number of piglets (ish!)

Heligan welcomes families and puts on a range of child friendly activities during the school holidays
Easter treats!

On the lawn there were Easter themed games for the children to try: hooking rubber ducks off a pond, egg and spoon races, and an obstacle course to bat a rubber egg along with a wooden spoon. There was even a racecourse with jumps to ride a hobby horse through!

Family fun at the Lost Gardens of Heligan

Inside the marquee were lovely ladies making finger puppets and animal headbands. There was also a place to plant and pot up your own runner bean seed.

Heligan offers craft activities for children during the school holidaysMy lot were happily entertained for a couple of hours until I dragged them off to play on the fallen log scramble course that the Heligan team have assembled in one of their fields. A quick trip to the jungle and a climb back to the Visitor Centre (assisted by the promise of a yummy ice cream) finished off a perfect day.

Heligan is a paradise for adventurous families
A new friend!

Every school holiday presents us with new trails and games and we can’t wait for the next one!

Child friendly days out in Cornwall

For more ideas for great tried-and-tested child friendly days out, download our free ebook, Nanny Pat’s Adventures.

Where’s your favourite place to visit in Cornwall during the school holidays? Leave a message below, post on our Facebook page or tweet @Bosinver – we’d love to hear your suggestions!

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Action Nan and the rest of the team are always busy writing posts that we think you’ll like – from top tips on where to take the kids, to what’s likely to be going on in the local area when you stay – we’ve got it all in our blog!