I have happy memories of family day trips to Bournemouth beach when I was a child on hot summer Saturdays.
We took our children Jamie, who is 4, and 9 month old Juliana for the weekend to experience some of the many sights and attractions of Bournemouth.
Bournemouth is a British seaside resort on the south coast with so much to offer families and is a wonderful place for a family to have a great holiday.!
The Norfolk Royale HotelWe stayed at the luxurious 4 star Norfolk Royale Hotel. The entrance was bright and spacious and the receptionist welcoming and helpful. The hotel has its own underground car-park and also an unloading area at the front. A porter carried our luggage up to our suite. This had an entrance hall, bathroom and 2 bedrooms, which was ideal.
The decor of the hotel is very smart. The bathroom had smart black and white tiles and Molton Brown toiletries and there was bath with a power shower. The towels were warmed on a lovely heated towel radiator and we were given bathrobes for our use during our stay.
Dinner was good. The waiter William was very friendly to the children and made us feel very welcome. There was a highchair for Juliana and a children's menu for Jamie. We were the only family with children there though as the other guests were mainly older couples. The food was tasty and presented very well.
Lower GardensThe hotel is centrally located on Richmond Hill, right by the shops. The only downside is that we got woken up in the night by noisy people leaving the bars.
From the hotel we took a walk in the Lower Gardens near the seafront where the Bournemouth Balloon is tethered. The gardens are beautiful with a stream running through. We discovered there was an aviary there with lots of beautiful birds in. Juliana enjoyed watching the birds flying around and Jamie enjoyed pointing out his favourite ones.
We had a walk to the beach and enjoyed walking along the pier.
The Bournemouth BalloonOn Saturday morning we went on the balloon which is located in the lower gardens, so not far to walk from our hotel at all. The balloon is tethered to the ground and operates if it's not too windy. It goes about 150 metres high and the views are fantastic.
There is interesting commentary with all the major sites given a mention. Jamie was very excited about going in it. I would recommend going in it on a sunny day. It was a bit cold and rainy when we went but the great thing was that we had the balloon virtually to ourselves.
Next we walked to the Oceanarium on the sea front. It has all sorts of sea creatures from sharks to turtles. It was well laid out with themed rooms for different countries with ambient music. There were plenty of benches to sit and rest. The dive cage was impressive. It takes you on a virtual underwater adventure. Jamie found it a lot of fun and particularly enjoyed being in the tunnel where we saw sharks and other interesting fish swimming above us. Juliana found the oceanarium fascinating too. It's buggy-friendly with a lift, which is good. THe Oceanarium is well worth a visit and we had a great time.
Bike HireWe hired bicycles from Front Bike Hire just to the east of Bournemouth Pier. The guys were friendly and lent us bicycles and a trailer for the children. We were able to leave our buggy with them whilst we were on the bike ride. It was a good flat ride along the promenade. We got to Boscombe Pier and then rode back as it started to rain. The children loved it and were very cosy in the trailer which protected them from the wind and rain. It was fun and I would have loved it more if the sun had been shining.
Aruba RestaurantWe went for lunch at The Aruba Restaurant where there was a parrot to welcome us at the entrance. This was a great attraction and the kids loved it. We had a tasty lunch and were privileged to have a table right by the window with a fantastic sea view. The Aruba restaurant is on the sea front at the foot of the pier. It is a large, trendy and popular restaurant. The waitresses were friendly and brought a high chair for Juliana and colouring pencils for Jamie. The children's menu was good. This restaurant is upstairs and there is no lift so if you have a buggy you will need to carry it up the steps.
Boscombe Surf PodAfter lunch, we took The Land Train along the promenade and through the interesting Chine Gardens to Boscombe Pier. This is an excellent way to get to Boscombe and saves a long walk. There are lots of traditional beach huts along the beach at Bournemouth and they have recently built the modern Surf Pods. They are in a complex with showers, toilets and a chic restaurant/bar called Urban Reef. We spent some time in one of the Surf Pods. These are equipped with a kettle, microwave, sandwich toaster, plates and mugs, along with deck chairs. We couldn't make a cup of tea though as we didn't have any tea bags or milk with us. There are double doors leading onto a balcony where you can sit and enjoy the fantastic sea views and watch the world go by. It wasn't very cosy there on a cold wet day but I imagine it would be very pleasant on a sunny day.
We then went back to our hotel and made use of the swimming pool and Jacuzzi. It was really lovely in a glazed building attached to the hotel overlooking the garden and we all enjoyed this.
Urban Reef RestaurantIn the evening, we drove back to Boscombe and went to the popular Urban Reef restaurant on the sea front. It's an airy and contemporary restaurant with elegant arum lilies in vases. It was a very quick and friendly service and again we were given a highchair for Juliana and colouring pencils for Jamie. There is a children's menu and they also offer half price off any dish from the adult main menu. The food was very tasty and well presented. Again, this restaurant is upstairs with a bar downstairs. There isn't a lift but this wasn't a problem as we just carried the buggy upstairs.
Unfortunately Paul was very sick in the night so we had to go straight home the next day without going to the Adventure Wonderland, which I had been looking forward to taking the children to. I drove back to London whilst the rest of my family slept in the car, all worn out from their busy Saturday. It had been a really fun weekend.
There is a lot to do in Bournemouth for young families even when the weather is cold and wet. There is also the Littledown leisure centre which we didn't get to but perhaps we'll save that for another visit.
Review by TheBabyWebsite Member KatB
May 2010 | 
Bluestone Wales
