This review of Denham Country Park, whilst a day out in itself, is actually part of a much bigger review. That’s because Denham Country Park is just a small part of Colne Valley Regional Park which is HUGE. It stretches from Rickmansworth to Staines and covers several different counties. Once you’ve read this review of Denham Country Park make sure you check out Rickmansworth Aquadrome, Black Park Country Park, Langley Park Country Park and Chiltern Open Air Museum which are all part of the park.
Colne Valley Visitor Centre
We started our visit to Denham Country Park at the Colne Valley Visitor Centre. Mainly because it’s where the car park is and, mostly importantly, the loos!! There’s also a cafe there so we popped in for some ice cream. Because apparently it’s the law now that we cannot walk past an ice cream retailer without buying some!!
Anyway, one of the things that makes Denham Country Park so cool is that it’s where the Rivers Colne, Misbourne and Frays are all next to each other. Plus there’s the Grand Union Canal. If you’re not a fan of water, this isn’t the place for you! The reason I mention it is because right next to the visitor centre is the River Misbourne and they’ve made a little beach area. Seeing the inevitable chaotic fun that was coming I promised we come back to this later. Good job I did…
The water was deeper than you’d think (although it has been raining solidly for 6 months so that’s to be expected). I’d swapped the kids into their waterproof trousers and wellies so it didn’t matter if they got wet. The water was over the top of their wellies within a few steps. It’s clear water and actually looked nicer than the “beach” at The Hub at Aston Clinton. It’s quite shaded too so I imagine this is lovely in the summer.
Even though the wellies were soggier than a paper straw that’s been left in the drink too long the kids kept them on to protect their feet from the pebbles. Sandals/crocs/beach shoes are also an option. But then you wouldn’t have endless fun emptying all the water out everywhere!
Family friendly walks
Before we went for a dip we went for a walk around the park. There’s a recommended family friendly circular walk that I imagine is also pushchair friendly. I say imagine because we didn’t actually get to do the whole thing. You remember those rivers I mentioned and alllll the rain. Turns out that in combination that creates a fair amount of flooding. Stupidly we hadn’t put our wellies on at this stage and it wasn’t passable in hiking boots so we doubled back on ourselves. Until this point it was a lovely walk though.
When you get to the canal there’s a cafe by Denham Deep Lock (can you guess why it’s called that?). It’s only open a few days a week but it’s a useful pitstop if you need it.
This walk also has an animal themed brass rubbing trail. We didn’t have any paper or crayons with us so we were just spotting the posts but it was another point of interest along the way.
By no means is this the only walk you can do, but we only had so much time. And there was a river to play in. We’ll just have to go back and do some more exploring.
The adventure playground
I’d seen pictures of the adventure playground at Denham Country Park on another review and I thought it looked amazing. Once we were there I was actually a little bit disappointed. It’s not that it’s rubbish but there’s not really a huge amount there other than the big play frame. You kind of see that and think the whole is going to be great, but actually there’s only a few other bits there. And the big play frame is mainly just access to a slide and a fireman’s pole. There’s not much else to it.
This review of Denham Country Park is based on our experiences at the time of our visit. Things can change over time, including the facilities available. If you have any specific requirements such as access it’s always best to check with the site directly before visiting. If anything I’ve said in this review is no longer accurate then please do let me know. Thank you.
Our Denham Country Park review
This place was really lovely. I imagine it will be a popular spot when/should it get warm in the spring & summer. It’s a nice family walk, with the bonus of knowing there’s some other fun to be had at the end. The playground was a bit of an anti-climax but the kids still enjoyed playing there for a bit.
Admission cost
Free
Parking / How to get there
Parking – Two car parks. You can pay by cash or Ringo. £4.20 for up to 3 hours or £5 all day. Maybe we got lucky but the car park was virtually empty despite being the school holidays and one of the few nice days we’ve had recently.
Address – Denham Court Drive, Denham, UB9 5PG
Toilets
On-site
Food
Cafe on-site. Picnics allowed.
What else is there to do nearby?
As well as the reviews I’ve already mentioned, you’re also quite close to Windsor. You might want to check out Windsor Great Park, Windsor Castle and Savill Gardens.
If you’ve found this post useful please consider supporting the future of blog by buying me a coffee. You can either click the blue coffee icon in the corner, or the blue button below. It’s quick, secure and very much appreciated!
You can get all of the latest reviews, what’s on guides and discounts sent straight to your phone by following my WhatsApp channel. It’s completely confidential; no-one (other than your contacts) can see that your number or that you follow – including me. Click the button above to follow.
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