It was a bit like stepping back in time into a miniaturised world – a tiny model landscape depicting 1930s England. A friend had recommended that we visit Bekonscot, which is the oldest original model village in the world. It seemed like a nice place to spend a sunny afternoon with my mum and the girls. I thought the girls would enjoy it but I wasn’t expecting quite so many squeals of excitement as we turned the corner and saw the model village for the first time.
There was so much to look at. We saw a tiny zoo with lions, pandas and a chimps tea party; miniature shops displaying their tiny wares in their window; bridges and boats crossing a small harbour; churches; schools; a windmill and a brightly coloured fairground. Best of all, was the model railway with trains making their way around the village.
The trains were a big hit with both the girls, but especially so for Sophie. The sound of an approaching train would usually be signalled by a very excited squeal of “oooh” from Sophie. She would then run to the side of the path to see the train pass by.
Jessica found the miniature shops fascinating. She loved looking in the windows and seeing the tiny loaves of bread and other items displayed in the windows. She was also fascinated by the model fairground with its moving ferris wheel, swings and carousel – so fascinated that taking our eyes off her for a brief moment resulted in her heading across the grass and making a beeline for it. Thankfully I caught up with her before she managed to reach it!
Both the girls loved seeing the tiny model people, particularly the ones that moved. Jessica loved watching the model lady washing the windows and a painter who kept nearly falling off his ladder. She kept telling Daddy over and over again when we got home about the “poor man” who fell off the ladder. Sophie loved the little man waving at the window of the colliery. She spent ages standing there watching him, waving back with a cheery “hello!” and then blowing him kisses when we were ready to move on.
I loved the level of detail with the models and the bright colours of some of them – particularly the model circus with its acrobats and trapeze artists.
After we had wandered around the village, we headed to the children’s playground which Jessica particularly enjoyed, before going back to the café for some tea and cake. Sophie had loved the model village so much that we went back through the village again after leaving the café. It had been quite quiet when we first arrived, which was a bit of a relief as the paths were quite narrow and not always easy to negotiate with the buggy. By the time we left the café though, there were more families with children who had just finished school for the day. It became a lot more difficult to get around with the buggy, particularly as ours is a little on the wider side. I would definitely recommend trying to avoid using a buggy if you can. I will use the toddler carrier for Sophie if we go again.
We finished off the day by taking a ride on the miniature railway. Sophie enjoyed this although Jessica wasn’t quite so sure.
At £9.80 for adults and £5.80 for children over 2, Bekonscot is reasonably priced for a day out. Car parking is free. It is open daily from 10am – 5.30pm. The ticket price drops to £5 for adults and £3 for children after 3.30pm. I suspect it is somewhere that we will visit again at some point as the girls enjoyed it so much. We did briefly contemplate getting a season ticket but with these costing £50 for an adult and £35 for a child, I doubt we would visit often enough to make it worthwhile. It’s definitely somewhere I would recommend though for a family day out if you are in the area.
I just had to Google to check if this was the one that my aunt used to take us to when we were kids, and it is! The photos brought so many memories flooding back 🙂 We loved it when we were young, and these are such lovely photos of your two enjoying it x
Thanks Sara, so glad it brought back happy memories – it is such a lovely place to visit 🙂
The model village looks adorable, I’d be so scared my boys would destroy something!
I can understand that although most of it is well out of reach! 🙂
I hadn’t heard of Bekonscot before – I can see it would be terrific fun for young kids!
It was a great place for a day out 🙂
Bekonscot sounds fantastic. I would be scared my little one would break something too but you really have inspired me to go. Great pics
Thank you Colin – would definitely recommend it 🙂
It looks like a real little village in every scene. A great place to visit, it clearly captured the girls imaginations and I must say I adore their matching outfits, they just look so cute and absorbed in every photo. Thank you for sharing your day on Country Kids.
It was such a lovely place to visit and I loved watching how much the girls enjoyed seeing all the models. Lovely to link up with #CountryKids again 🙂
Sounds like a lovely day out. Love how the girls wanted to look through the windows. 🙂 we’ve seen a Lego mini village and our girls enjoyed that. 🙂 #countrykids
Thanks Stacey – it was a lovely day. Glad that your girls enjoyed the Lego mini village 🙂
That Looks like such a lovely day out. Those models are amazing and look so detailed xx
It was amazing – the level of detail was quite something
We’ve been here, and you’ve reminded me how much we enjoyed it. The adults almost as much as the kids! I l enjoyed your top picks taking us into the wonderful little details. Amazing place. Must return.
Glad you enjoyed my post – it is such a lovely place to visit and I am sure we will go back again 🙂
We love it there and you can often gets days out deals to reduce price further. #countryKids
Ooh will have to look out for those – thank you for letting me know 🙂
I like the look of there, it sounds like something we’d enjoy too.
It’s a lovely place to visit Iona, would definitely recommend 🙂
Looks like you’ve had a fab day out. Awww, and the girls are dressed the same: they look so cute! If we ever go there, I’ll definitely get the kids to look out for the chimps’ tea party! #CountryKids
Thank you Mel, it was a fab day and am sure your little ones would love it too 🙂
This looks amazing. I love your photos especially the model fairground ones. Your girls are also totally rocking their marching outfits 🙂 I definitely want to go to a model village now……
Thanks Morna – it was a great day out and the girls loved it 🙂
Lovley clear photos, it looks as if you had great weather and lots of fun. Mich x
We had a lovely day, thank you Michelle 🙂
I remember going there when I was a kid too, loved it. I haven’t got around to taking my two yet although they might be a bit old for it now. The adult season ticket price seems wildly wrong, I wonder how many people actually buy one?! #countrykids
We really enjoyed it. Agree with you about the season ticket price – you need to visit quite a few times before it starts being worth the price.
Popping over from #HomeCountiesDaysOut
This is on my to do list with my LO as I won some tickets in a raffle at the end of last year. Seeing your pictures, I’m really looking forward to going. It looks great with a lot to see!