Oh how wonderful it was to hear the news that soft plays are OPEN again, it’s been so hard knowing the littles ones have had to miss out on so much for so long, and for so much of their little lives!
When this was announced, the huge sense of joy and relief (even just to have options again) is a sentiment I know that many parents would have equally shared after so many months in what seemed like ‘Groundhog Day’ in the land of small children’s entertainment. At last, something other than a field or a park to attend! We were SOLD!👏🏻🙋🏻♀️
LOCATION & ENTRY
One of our favourite venues is Ocean Adventurers, a underwater themed extensive play facility located in the quirky village of Cheddar. It is quite a lot further for us to travel but has always been worth the journey in terms of the fabulous diversity of apparatus, cleanliness of the equipment (even pre-covid) friendliness of staff and an all round enjoyable experience. Car parking is available on site and is free, which is always great and no nasty hidden surprises there! One of the most impressive things that I like about this particular soft-play is that they have always routinely sanitised and deep cleaned the apparatus even in the pre-covid days when they didn’t technically ‘have’ to...(which I couldn’t believe wasn’t a regulation for these kind of activities!) Having said that, as much as I was shocked to hear that this was the case, if you’ve ever been to other soft-plays and seen the appalling state that some have previously existed in, it was obvious that this was an undeniable truth. Thankfully COVID regulations should have addressed this problem for soft-plays all over but knowing this about Ocean Adventurers provided me with the reassurance that this company operates with the health and safety of the children in mind, going above and beyond to provide an excellent customer service - they haven’t disappointed us yet.
WHAT‘S THERE FOR THE KIDS?
We love the way they have different zones that are suitable and well designed for different age ranges, which is fantastic for families looking to keep multiple children entertained. When booking reopened, we looked forward to celebrating the return at our favourite venue and expected to walk back in as we’d last left it but were very pleasantly surprised to see that they’ve made a few sneaky changes…..
The play areas are all still as they were before, beginning with a baby friendly zone (aged 0-2) which is nearly tucked away in the corner with its low level soft blocks in a delicately illuminated space, with a colourful light up bubble tube providing an appropriate and relaxing sensory style experience and a brilliant introduction to soft play.
There is also a self-contained toddler area encompassing easily accessible split levels, with tunnels, slides, an interactive screen and a ball pit (which is still closed under current guidance) as well as a ground level soft block area, suitable for littles ones 2-4 years of age.
The Junior zone has a selection of activities, obstacles and spaces in and around tunnels across 4 height levels, including a helter skelter style slide stretching from the very top to the bottom, all of which is suggested as suitable from 5 years upwards. This has benefited from the enclosure being removed allowing the older children to move more freely without being locked in and has enabled more space for seating, which means if you are coming with an older child you are able to keep a closer eye on where they are whilst playing inside.
There is also the role play village upstairs which seems to have been spruced up a bit since our last visit with a wider range of accessories, toys and costumes, all of which were in excellent condition and plenty to go round between the children. This is particularly great to spark their imagination and they can try their hand at being a chef, a vet, a builder, or hairdresser to name just a few of the fabulous options they have available here.
What is great about each zone is how secure they have made it for the littles ones with lockable safety gates which require an adult to reopen once closed by actively pressing a button, located out of reach of the children meaning you can supervise from outside the space, grab a drink etc without fear of them running off or getting lost. This is yet another example of how well thought out their design is with an emphasis on safety.
SO WHAT’S CHANGED?
In addition to re-designing the layout surrounding the Junior area the obvious change upon entering the unit is that the café has been relocated from upstairs to the ground floor. What’s more is that they have totally upgraded their hot and cold food offerings, having added a new pizza oven for freshly cooked pizzas and a ‘Subway style’ counter offering a selection of Sub sandwiches including a vegan option which is always great for us to see. There is also a delicious cake stand with huge individual slices available as an indulgent treat. The prices of the subs seemed reasonable, the pizzas were a good size (the smell was amazing!) and the cake seemed to be very well received! The café relocation is very clever one as it literally can’t be overlooked now and the clear counters showcase the delights they have on offer. Moreover, what used to be the old café area has now given way to additional seating, which I have previously found to have been a bit scarce at times, particularly when very busy, so this is a very welcome amendment.
COVID ROUTINES
In keeping with current guidance, Ocean Adventurers are still implementing COVID safety systems including the QR code for NHS App check-in, temperature checks on arrival, masks on when moving around the premises and as aforementioned the ball pit remains closed. Sessions are still operating with breaks in between which I assume is to allow them time to clean down and set up ready for the next slot and the overall capacity of bookings has been significantly reduced. None of these aspects impacted on the fun the kids had, if anything the reduced capacity made it even better.
THE END OF THE SESSION
Even though the weather is looking absolutely beautiful, too much sun isn’t great for anyone (especially the kids) and so it was nice to know they would be shaded and entertained for at least two hours of the day! Sadly the two hour time slot seemed to fly by and when the session came to a close they didn’t want to leave (our little bumble bee tried her best to stay hidden inside the play space so we couldn’t take her home!). However, even this has been well thought out by the Ocean Adventurers team and they were ready to entice us out with the gift of Haribo sweets and a large Ocean Adventurers sticker. Both of which were a fabulous distraction from her continued overreaction at having to go home. Nice work guys! 👌🏼
BOOKING
If you haven’t been before and are looking to book a safe, well considered and well appointed soft play with good standards of hygiene, we highly recommend Ocean Adventurers. Tickets can be booked in advance through their website https://oceanadventurers.com and range from £2 - £9.45 (age dependant) with adults incurring an additional charge. Although this may be a slightly higher price bracket than some other soft-play centres I guarantee the children won’t be disappointed and for us it was worth the extra cost. It does mean we can’t go as regularly as we’d like, although helps to keep it fresh and exciting when we do manage to go. If you really want to treat yourself as well, don’t forget to give their new menu a test run whilst you’re there!
I hope this has been helpful and as always, if you have any questions or anything you would like me to review in future please don’t hesistate to get in touch via our Butterfly & Bee Facebook page or Instagram account (@butterflyandbeeteam).
Wishing you and your family lots of fun and adventure, whatever you get up to!
Hannah x
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