Three Counties Christmas visits Adam Hensen’s Cotswold Farm Park
Posted on 28th July 2021 at 16:13
Situated in the outskirts of Cheltenham, in the heart of Gloucestershire, is the hidden gem, Cotswold Farm Park. Perfect for family days out, short glamping breaks and general tranquillity, this attraction in the Cotswolds is one of the best we have visited.
Having been brought up on family farms in Herefordshire, it appears my love of the countryside and animals has rubbed off on my young family and therefore we tend to gravitate towards farm parks around the Three Counties in want of a nice day out.
Three Fun Facts:
1) Adam Hensen is a well-known farming personality, due to his TV presenting role on BBC’s Countryfile.
2) Adam’s Dad, Joe Hensen, founded Cotswold Farm Park in 1971 to help protect some of the rare breeds of farm animal.
3) Surrounded by Cotswold hills, Cotswold Farm Park have introduced ‘festival style bell tents’ for this Summer.
Our Day:
Sunday 18th July was a scorching hot day, one that questioned whether going to a farm park was the best decision in the first place…HOWEVER, I couldn’t have been more wrong! Driving through beautiful Cotswold countryside and shaded by trees lining the roads as we headed out of Cheltenham, I took in the breath-taking scenery.
I was expecting the car park to be rammed as it was the first weekend of the Summer holidays but actually, the entire farm park remained perfectly ‘busy-enough’ throughout the day. We were able to use facilities without queuing and the children were able to spend time feeding the animals without the pressure of moving on. The sheer quantity of things to do, kept us busy for the whole day! From bouncing on giant trampoline pillows, to visiting multiple barns with ride on tractors, we found many activities that kept us entertained. Cotswold Farm Park have even brought the seaside to Gloucestershire, with mechanisms and pulleys to lift and move sand around their well-designed beach area.
Our Favourites:
Charlie's favourite thing at this Cotswolds rare breeds farm were, of course, the animals! We had bought feed at the entrance and it was plenty to feed most of the animals.
We walked around fields of goats, sheep, cows and horses, but our highlight was the Gloucestershire Old Spot pig, who had battled with the goats to get his lunch. The funniest attractions were the smaller animals based in one of the barns, where a Cotswold village had been created for some guinea pigs.
Two ice lollies each later, a lovely lunch and a bit of shopping of Cotswold local produce, we headed home, back to Worcestershire. Now, I am feeling the need to go again very soon as I feel like we only scratched the surface of this Gloucestershire delight!
A Note From Ali:
It is difficult to compare a day out at farm park between locations, from Herefordshire to Gloucestershire to Worcestershire, we are blessed with the rural countryside to facilitate and support British farming. Adam Hensen’s Cotswold Farm Park certainly had our little family hooked on the large amount of child age-appropriate activities but more importantly, I would like to highlight some of the rare breeds that originated from the Three Counties that Cotswold Farm Park works hard to protect from extinction…
~ The Old Gloucester Cow – used to be main producer of Double Gloucester cheese.
~ Gloucestershire Old Spot Pig – also known as the Orchard Pig and now extremely rare.
~ Cotswold Sheep – also known as ‘Cotswold Lion’ and used to roam the Cotswold Hills.
~ Kerry Hill Sheep~ originated on the Herefordshire-Welsh border in Powys.
For full information about Adam Hensen’s Cotswold Farm Park and further information about his work with rare breed farm animals, please visit:- www.cotswoldfarmpark.co.uk
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