Walesby Forest Activity Centre - Attraction Review

DadAugust 25, 2022

One of our finds in 2022 has been Walesby Forest Activity Centre, located near Mansfield, about 10 minutes away from Wheelgate Park.

What is Walesby Forest Activity Centre?

Walesby Forest Activity Centre is probably best described in 2 parts; the activity centre and the associated campsite.

Now, we are definitely not campers and haven’t been camping here, but having spoken to others who have been, and they have said that the campsite is really good. Having been on the site, the toilet blocks look really clean and what you would expect.

However, this blog post is based on the activity centre part. You can camp without doing the activities and vice versa, so it is perfect for a day trip or a weekend.

What activities are at Walesby Forest Activity Centre?

The activities are different each week and there are morning and afternoon sessions, with different activities in each session. Your activity band lasts for the whole day and so you want to get there in plenty of time to get full value for money.

A selection of the activities include:

– Low ropes

– Air rifles

– Outdoor laser tag

– Body Boarding

– Kayaking

– Outdoor swimming

– Axe throwing

– Assault course

– Outdoor swimming (unheated!)

– Archery

You can check out on the Walesby Forest website which activities are due on the day that you’re going to be there. They tend to run 7 or so activities on a morning and afternoon session. As such, you might want to pick your day accordingly.

Be prepared!!

Given that Walesby Forest Activity Centre has plenty of Scout groups attend, it is unsurprising that you need to be prepared, As most of the activities are outside, you’re at risk of inclement weather,

Also, if you’re planning on doing the kayaking, body boarding or swimming, I would try and do it at the end of the day, so the kids aren’t wet during the day. Also, take a spare set of clothes and towels for them to get changed into! There aren’t any changing rooms near those activities and so a quick change of clothes in the open is needed (hence the large towels to protect modesty!).

As you can tell, body boarding gets a bit wet!

Also, as it is an outdoor activity centre, there is little to no cover if it starts raining!!

All the activities are relatively close together, apart from the body boarding and kayaking. These are about a 10 minute walk from the main site.

Our Favourites

Heidi absolutely loved the laser tag and archery, whereas Oscar was all about the assault course.

For some of the activities, there can be a bit of a wait, but for the body boarding and assault course in particular, you should be able to get straight on.

Food and Drink

Walesby Forest Activity Centre has an on site bar which serves food and drink and there is also a little shop selling crisps, chocolate and little gifts.

The activities stop between 12 and 1:30 and so you have plenty of time for lunch, The good thing with this is that the kids will not ask for an early lunch break!

We brought our own lunch and had a picnic in the (free) car park, This helped refresh the kids and stop them from getting grumpy later on!!

What’s nearby?

If I am being honest, there isn’t much close to Walesby Forest Activity Centre. However, if you’re looking for a substantive meal before heading back home, check out the Carpenters Arms (NG22 9NJ) is a wonderful little pub.

Carpenters Arms pub front — Carpenters Arms pub

It doesn’t have any soft play or kids playground, but the staff are so friendly to children. They are more than happy to provide pens/paper for them to draw pictures for the kitchen staff (allegedly!). If you have spent all day at Walesby Forest Activity Centre, the kids will be too exhausted to do anything else!!