Pop Up Play Village UK (Basingstoke)
I had only been to a play village on two occasions before with my toddlers, it was a whole new level of excitement for them (which made leaving interesting!) I was always keen to go more often but, being located that little further afield, it just never happened. So when I heard about a pop up play village coming to Basingstoke, I pretty much booked there and then. I wasn’t sure what a pop up version would be like, but I was very keen to find out.
I have to say, I was really impressed. To see my toddlers role-playing is heart-warming, and makes me really appreciate just how much they are taking in nowadays. I am so pleased that something like this is available locally, and we will definitely be visiting again!
About
To quote their website, Pop Up Play Village is “a portable play village that features a supermarket, builders yard, library, hospital, baby nursery, vets and cafe. On our event days, we also feature an art studio where children can get creative by choosing a craft to decorate and take home.” The sessions are aimed from birth to 8 years old and they are offered at various locations in the Basingstoke area. They can also be hired for events such as children’s parties.
The session that we visited was at the Beggarwood Community Centre, next to Beggarwood Park. The hall had been laid out in the different sections listed above, with a clothes rack offering various different dress up. There were large colourful signs indicating the different areas and an impressive selection of accessories in each, all in very good condition. The team kept making sure items made it back to their correct places so the experience continued throughout the session. There was also a cafe available offering a good selection of hot and cold drinks, snacks and healthy snacks for the children.
My toddlers had an incredible time and pretty much tried everything, there were many protests on leaving. I have been trying to find new places to take the boys for a while as they have more or less outgrown play groups and get bored easily, but by the end of this session they were still going strong. Brilliant!
Tips
Make sure you book in advance on the Pop Up Play Village Website.
It is a shoes off environment for children and adults alike, so make sure you bring socks.
Food
There is a cafe selling hot, cold drinks and snacks.
Facilities
Dependent on location. At Beggarwood Community Centre there are toilets and baby changing facilities on site.
Parking
Dependent on location. At Beggarwood Community Centre there is a small car park available for users of the centre as well as a larger car park at Beggarwood shops, adjacent to the centre.
Locations
Please check the Pop Up Play Village UK (Basingstoke) Facebook page for locations and upcoming events.
Rating out of 5
I would have to give it a 5 out of 5. My toddlers enjoyed every minute of it!
For further information visit their Facebook page on Pop Up Play Village UK (Basingstoke) or Pop Up Play Village Website
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