The best farms to visit with children.
Nothing says summer more than the gentle hum of fat, golden bumblebees and the soothing scent of lavender blooms. Fragrant lavender is in full bloom during July and August, so these are the best months to dig out your camera and get snap happy among the purple blooms. This is the ideal time to capture those summer vibes with a visit to a lavender farm, and if you go yearly, you’ll also collect lifelong memories of the family as they grow.
I’m a massive fan of London. London without kids is fun. London with kids is even better. Anything you fancy doing, London will have it, and a lot of the best activities for kids in London are free too. Because there is such a lot to do, I’ve split this blog post up into themes – so whether you have a dinosaur fan, book worm or outdoor explorer you’ll find the best of London for the family.
Hmm Mayfield Lavender Farm wasn’t really that suitable for taking an 18 month to, and trying to take pictures of. I had to rescue him every five seconds from trying to pick up bumblebees. Plus he was more interested in picking up stones in the car park than looking at all the pretty fields and imagining he was in rural France and not on the outskirts of Croydon.
And he had a paddy after about 10 minutes as he just.wanted.to.be.picked.up. (I know I will miss this when he’s older, and I do secretly like that I am Number One Mummy at the moment, but it would also be nice to be able to DO THINGS WITH TWO HANDS once in a while). But go with two people and it would be a different story. Or go if your mini me is younger or older than mine.
The farm is quite small (25 acres) so it won’t take long to wander around and take some arty shots. There’s a cafe and small outdoor shop at the entrance. Across the road there is also an entrance to The Oaks Park to let small people stretch their legs a bit more. There’s unfortunately no playground, but there are a lot of dogs. And quite a lot of poo. Which reminded me even more of being in Croydon. Sorry Croydon (not sorry).
PS If you don’t want to go to Surrey there is also a farm in Kent. July/August is the time of year to go and see the lavender in full bloom.