The Christmas and Pumpkin trail at Bunkers Hill Nursery is legendary. Lots of you have recommended it to me as a great, family-friendly trail and this year we finally went! You can even do the trail by torchlight! Turns out I’ve driven past this place loads of times on my way back home from Blenheim Palace when I want to avoid congestion on the A34!!
The Christmas and family trail at Bunkers Hill Nursery is always run in aid of Restore and Mind. Very sadly the owners of the nursery lost their son at the age of 23 after a short period of mental illness and have raised thousands of pounds for charity ever since. Last year they raised £9,000 at Christmas alone! How great is that!
The trail
You have to hunt for reindeer that are hidden around the garden centre, collecting letters and then unscramble the word to collect your prize. Isn’t that how most Christmas trails work!?! Although this one is in a garden centre it actually doesn’t feel like it is, it feels more like you’re in a garden because of how they’ve laid the centre out! It was really good fun!
They have put all of their trees out the back in a forest of Christmas trees walk through which I bet looks amazing when it’s full. You have to go through here to find one of the reindeer. We visited on the 21st December so most of them had gone but even so the kids loved exploring this bit.
The prize is a certificate, a sticker and a packet of seeds. Each child gets to choose their own packets. The boys were sensible and picked tomatoes. Smallest Child wanted the watermelons. How the hell am I going to grow WATERMELONS in my garden!!???!! I’ll let you know how I get on with that!
Free Hot Chocolate
Once you’ve finished your trail, or even part way round if you want, you can help yourself to some free hot chocolate. It’s just from a self service machine so it’s not the best in the world but it’s free and it’s hot so the kids don’t care. They ask you (currently) to bring your own mug but they also have plenty available. There’s a nice little seating area to enjoy your hot chocolate in whilst aeroplanes fly over your head.
What else is there to do?
As well as the Christmas trail at Bunkers Hill Nursery there’s also the wildflower meadow to explore at the back (if the weather is good enough). Out the front there are a couple of lovely places to take a photograph as well.
Our Bunkers Hill Nursery Christmas Trail Review
I was a little bit worried that it might be too young for the boys (9 & 11). Actually they were into it as much as Smallest Child was!! The trail is great for little legs because it’s quite a compact space so you’re not walking for miles. We were there for about half an hour. It should have been quicker but we knew we’d made a mistake and then couldn’t find the reindeer we knew we’d got wrong. We also knew what the letter was supposed to be but the boys insisted in seeing it with their own eyes! Sigh.
Even if it wasn’t for such a good cause £2 per child would be great value. Given that it is means that this is a great trail. We’ll have to come back for their next one!
Admission cost
£2 per child. Visit their website for the latest dates and to check if pre-booking is required.
Parking / How to get there
Parking – Free, on-site
Address – 1-2 Bunkers Hill, Nr. Kidlington, Oxon. OX5 3BA
Toilets
On-site
Food
There’s a little tea shop with self service hot drinks. There’s also cakes with a cash only honesty box.
What else is there to do nearby?
Blenheim Palace is just down the road. Oxford is full of free things to do with the kids as well. Or why not try one of the Treasure Map Trails in Oxfordshire (Affiliate link)?
Hi, I’m Vicky. My husband and I live in Aylesbury with our three children; a 14 year old son, an 12 year old son and a 6 year old daughter. I (mostly) love spending time together as a family. We visit all kinds of places and we’re quite happy to drive a fair distance for a decent day out. A few years ago I decided to set up Free Time with the Kids as a way to share our experiences of these family days out.
You’ll find the essential information you need to know before your visit that can be surprisingly hard to find out. Where do I park? How much will it cost me to get in? Are there any discounts available? Are there loos? Can I take a picnic or get food? My aim is to be your go-to guide for all your free and cheap family days out across Bucks, Beds, Oxon, Herts & slightly beyond. I really hope you find the reviews helpful. If there’s anywhere that you’d recommend please get in touch contact@freetimewiththekids.com or get in touch via Facebook
