Easter Fun at Lulworth Castle

Due to Hubby’s line of work he doesn’t get any time off over the Easter break, apart from Easter Sunday, so I planned a day out that wasn’t too far away.
Having heard Corfe Castle advertised on the radio, Isaac really wanted to go however as we hit the Wareham Road it was gridlocked and barely moving under the sheer weight of traffic so I made an executive decision and headed for Lulworth Castle as the kids had so much fun there last Easter.
The journey to onto Lulworth was surprisingly clear and the kids initial disappointment was soon replaced with excitement.
Lulworth Castle is one of my favourite places to visit in Dorset, and regular readers of my blog will recognise it as the home of Camp Bestival. Once inside, and clutching their activity books, the kids were drawn to the fountain and a the chance to play hook a duck. I am definitely going to invest in some ducks for the paddling pool for the summer as they would have stayed here all day given half a chance.

Once inside there were lots of activities to take part in and we headed for the castle first, where we had to find 10 keys that were hidden inside, make Easter masks and watch a magic show.

Masks decorated, it was then time to find the keys, some easier to find than others.

The theme of the Easter activities was Alice in Wonderland and it was lovely to see the castle and some of its staff all dressed up.

Lulworth Castle was built in the early 17th Century as a hunting lodge and much of it was destroyed by fire in 1929. Restoration work was undertaken by English Heritage, returning the exterior to its original glory but much of the interior is still just a shell, albeit a beautiful one.

The basement rooms are still intact and we got to find keys in the wine cellar, dairy, laundry and kitchen as well as taking part in a spot of dressing up.

No visit to Lulworth Castle would be without climbing up the stairs to the top for the magnificent view which stretches over Lulworth Cove and all the way to Poole harbour.

From the top of the castle the kids spotted a maze, cleverly mown into the gardens in the shape of the castle and couldn’t wait to climb down to try it……..stopping to collect their lolly reward for finding the keys first.

The great thing about the events organised at Lulworth Castle is that almost everything was included in the entry price, so there were no hidden extra’s, apart from food and face painting. There was so much to do, including finding the Cheshire cats, the white rabbits and an Easter egg hunt, that the whole day was easily filled and we were there from late morning until it closed at 4pm.

The Easter egg hunt was held in the woodland section that holds the Dingly Dell at Camp Bestival. Instead of finding eggs, we had to find coins which could be exchanged for either a small, medium or large egg. Sadly we only managed to find coins to earn a Creme egg each, but the kids were more than happy and enjoyed finding the Peacocks and playing in the park too.

Back out on the lawns it was time to try our hand at a game of croquet, although I am not sure that Sebby got the gist of the game, he had fun nonetheless as Isaac and Eliza tried to beat Daddy.

The Alice in Wonderland theme continued throughout the grounds with signs, posters and even half painted white roses, as the queen wanted them red.

We successfully completed all our challenges and headed back to the castle to collect our other prizes which included a colouring book and small game.

It was then off to try our hand at a spot of crazy golf.

Back at the beginning the kids were keen to play hook a duck again, so Hubby and stopped at the cafe where Beales Gourmet were serving cheeky coffee’s and cakes, before heading home.

I think our traffic issues turned out for the best, don’t you?

We cannot wait to return, only next time we visit it will look completely different and be a lot busier!!
 
 

• Dorset
• easter fun
• lulworth
• Lulworth Castle
• tourism
• visit dorset