Having attended Geronimo Festival the last 2 years and camping for the first time last year I was looking forward to going with Lucas being older this time. The festival was well sign posted and the car park was well attended. We exchanged our tickets for wrist bands at a kiosk in the car park and we were good to go. The parking was further away this year and it isn’t easy when transporting all your weekends supplies to the tent on a warm day but we managed it with our camping cart.
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The campsite had light bulbs dangling throughout so we rarely needed our torches and there were plenty of toilets. The port-a-loos were one thing I dreaded but they were actually well maintained, however I recommend going early (if possible of course) as the morning rush was the only time they became unbearable. There wasn’t as many washing up facilities as last year and queues were quite long.
As with the past years, there was an amazing line up of entertainers that any CBeebies fan would recognise.
We visited the Circque Du Hilarious and we enjoyed it so much we went twice once on the Saturday and again on the Monday, it really was hilarious.
There were a wide variety of shops, including Lucas’ favourite, the bubble shop. Manchester City had a stand where memorabilia were being given out and a competition was on who could hit the net in the fastest Km. They didn’t have the mini football pitches there this great which Lucas was a bit disappointed with.
We had a go of archery and axe throwing which we really enjoyed. There was an abseiling rig set up, but you had to be 5 to try but it looked great fun and Lucas has his eye on it for next time despite him only being 4 when we go again! There was a caving rig that Lucas loved exploring and we also watched people doing the Mad Drop!!
Other areas included Marvellously Musical, full of workshops and classes this was a great place for the toddlers. There was a Tumble Tots tent complete with obstacle course that Lucas really enjoyed. Hasbro City was another zone we enjoyed with favourites such as My Little Pony, Transformers and Play-Doh the kids were in their element however naturally the queues were a bit long here and Play-Doh weren’t as relaxed as last year so we didn’t enjoy it as much, it was very regimented this year.
The fairground was a hit and it was lovely to see so how many rides there were for the little ones. We especially enjoyed the big Ferris Wheel and the Helter–Skelter. There was a large section of inflatables to play on which Lucas delightfully investigated. The fairground rides were also free if you had a full weekend camping band which was a bonus!
There was also a huge selection of craft and building areas, an adrenaline zone, woodland playground a huge tent where you could choose from vast amounts of lego and other building-based activities. Here Lucas won a Lego chicken on the Tombola from a great charity, Fairy Bricks who send Lego to unwell children. These were fab areas for the older kids to build, swing and explore.
There was also a big wheel where you could see all over the festival and Arley Hall looked amazing as the night drew in to see all the festival lit up.
For the people camping, there was a Dorset Cereals tent offering a free breakfast. Lined with benches and overlooking the lake, surrounded by hay bales outside coupled with yoga mats it was a tranquil place to start the day with a bonus of soulful live acoustic sessions. The tables were of course lined with the full range of Dorset cereals with milk, yogurt and juices, everything you needed to fuel you for the exciting day ahead.
There were plenty of vendors within the festival area from pizza, vegan, crispy duck pancakes to your usual burgers and chips. We only saw one vendor that offered kids options, but we found two portions were plenty to go around all 3 of us especially considering the amount of food we also brought with us. We also noticed that there were plenty of water points, but they were not all sign posted or pictured on the map.
There was some fab music played on the main stage, our favourites Mr Tea and the Minions. The Rockin Rhino’s always get us dancing and it was great to see them again. The last night Sunday was fantastic with some great DJ’s on, it was great to see everybody singing and dancing and having a great time in the glorious weather we are having. The event was marshalled very well and all the security staff and St John’s Ambulance were really friendly and helpful.
We fully enjoyed the weekend and can’t wait for next year!
