Would you pay to visit an outdoor play area?

[Mummy2fourturningintobruh]

I have an idea to open a new play area with a bug school, bird watching area, small animal care area (rabbits and guinea pigs), natural play area with den building and water play (purpose made stream), digger area, dinosaur bone discovery area, panning for gold etc.

I plan to use large canopies to shelter from rain and sun but still allow for the benefits of playing outdoors. It is a fence enclosed area with secure entry and exits plus toilets and small building for viewing children play or eating picnics.

Am I nuts to think people would choose to pay to visit over going to their local park? All opinions welcome.

i would sounds great

There’s one near where I live (no animals tho) and they have toddler sessions that seem very popular. Think it’s about a fiver but they get coffee and biscuits included.

There’s one near me with no animals, it’s really popular!

I’m a member of something very similar and it’s worth it over the park for us

Can you set up a little food area for parents to get hot drinks, ice creams etc?

No, can get all this in the woods for free

Or not quite all you've described in the woods,. To me it sounds like enforced fun. My kids had fun just stomping around and exploring on their own

I think you’d get people paying as most of that isnt available in a park.

And some of what is available is in petting zoos which are quite expensive.

So I think aiming at school groups and nursery groups, running toddler groups with drink and biscuit (hot drink for adults) included as well as general opening you’d have a really good variety of people who will uptake the opportunity.

if you’re a tourist area you can also target extras during holidays - especially if you can do a deal with local farmers for tractor rides etc.

maybe have loads of puddle suits that can be hired/ borrowed etc for educational groups.

how you’ll make money is not necessarily what you charge but making sure what you charge is value for money enough you get repeat customers. So how long is realistic to spend there - how much time can you spend doing what you have on offer. Is there going to be session timings or half day tickets. I’d there a return incentive of money off of you returning a set timescale?

the whole concept is great and there’s loads of similar ventures out there which is how you know it’ll work. But to be successful it’s what sets you apart from similar places or free places etc.

People pay to go to open farms so I don't see how this is any different as a business model. See if you can do a deal with a local coffee truck to get beverages for the place. You'll need to factor in the cost of public liability insurance as you've got live animals, plus somewhere for the animals to live when they're not "out" and the cost of their health and welfare. Price your tickets accordingly. £2 or £3 a ticket will not cover your costs, I'd imagine, in 2025.
For marketing, this will do better if you add it to Google maps and build a proper website with ticket booking (or at least info on how to pay at arrival), don't just put up a FB page and expect people to flock to you.

I wouldn't pay for the animals. We have pets, my kids are not too bothered about petting other animals. And they definitely wouldn't be interested in bugs.

But they would like, and I would pay for, water play. They love water wheels, those channel things where you can block bits off then let all the water rush through, theres one near us with a slab you jump on and water sprays up into the air, that sort of thing. Maybe some little wooden boats and the like.

Yes we often do that in the woods for free but sometimes I like something a bit more organised and controlled if I need a bit of a break and want to let them potter around on their own.

Include a nice established pond for pond dipping and it would definitely have been something I’d visit when my two were young.

People would definitely pay to attend.

However an area like you describe would be incredibly expensive to set up, and attendance would fluctuate wildly depending on the seasons.

Have a look at Williams Den, similar to this. Imo overpriced

I haven’t answered the survey, but we pay around £10 each per month to both national trust & English Heritage. When DC were younger we would go and use the outdoor play areas and grounds at least once a week. So I definitely think there is scope for paid for outdoor play, but it will depend on what is in your area already.

It depends what else is available locally, how much you charge and how big your area is
There are a couple of farms/parks with animals amd wooded areas that children can visit free near where I live so I probably wouldn't pay. But there are many areas that don't have facilities like that so I imagine it might be popular if the price was right.

I used to pay for mine to go to the adventure playground at Chatsworth. I’ve always liked playgrounds with a big children area and a little children area. Not an enforced rule like at soft play, but there are so ,any ways to entertain smaller children and not so much when they are eight.

I wouldn’t pay for den building and bird watching type things though as that’s something that dc just do when in a wood.

Thank you so much for all the feedback! This has been so helpful. There is a cafe nearby for adult coffees and snacks and I will offer a place for those to be enjoyed whilst watching children play. There is nothing similar in the area at all, it’s been helpful to see what is on offer elsewhere. Very grateful for all the responses x

We went to a nice one called Rookery Woods in the Lake District. It was great. The bits my kids loved in addition to what you mention were a zip wire, and some trails through the woods with worksheets (find all the letters and decode the secret message type thing).

There’s a farm near to me that sounds similar - they have an indoor play (which is a bit rubbish and rarely used), the animals and a playground. TBH, I’d pay the admission (I think it’s about £8) for the playground alone because it’s huge, much better than public parks and has a mini go-kart area which is always really popular. Oh, and lots of picnic tables!

I think the prices you’ve put are very low.

Will you have an unsupervised play area, perhaps age-related, say age 8 and over, under 8s supervised by their adult?

Those prices won’t even come close to covering your costs. On top of your start-up costs, have you factored in things like:

Insurance
Maintenance
Licensing for the animals
Animal food
Electricity
Paying yourself a wage
Holidays and pension
Staffing costs

It won’t be cheap. You also need to think about bad weather days, the off season etc.

I would pay just as a safe haven from dogs which have taken over outdoor spaces.

I wouldn't be too bothered about paying regularly. So I'd pay £5 per child occasionally. £2 a child is more like it.

It would be easier making money on the cafe

I think I would want there to be some actual play equipment too, as we'd just go to the woods for that kind of activity

I agree too you need to factor in the cost of insurance etc. And that your visitor numbers are going to fluctuate wildly depending on the weather.

Mine would definitely have enjoyed it when they were small and if there were plenty of seats I would have enjoyed taking them (I have an invisible disability)