Belper River Gardens Reviews Summary

Parking

Pros:

• "Limited free parking to the front near the abandoned building."
• "Free parking as you go past the river gardens and you can park right next to the gardens where you can pay for parking."
• "Parking costs here are reasonable. It cost me £1.10 for 2 hours."
• "Parking is easy and cheap at just 60p for an hour."

Cons:

• "Only real let down is having to pay for parking."
• "Car park charges are high considering how short the walks are around the bandstand."
• "There is less parking space and the parking price is higher."
• "The car park entrance has some dangerous pot holes that urgently require attention."

Cafe and Food Services

Pros:

• "There is a nice little cafe available as well which is reasonably priced."
• "Lovely cafe serving fresh food at a reasonable price."
• "These provide good food & drinks at decent prices."
• "Be sure to visit the lovely little cafe with a selection of hot and cold drinks and sandwiches."
• "There's a very nice cafe in the gardens and it's a fabulous spot to sit and while the time away."
• "Great place to take my toddler grand daughter. Lovely tea room."
• "We called at the cafe for an ice cream which was lovely, there were plenty of flavours to choose from too."

Cons:

• "The latte was disgusting and tasted cheap."
• "Cafe looks lovely, unfortunately they weren't serving food only cakes on a hot Saturday afternoon."
• "The cafe was very expensive, cake was £3.80."
• "Recently opened cafe with expensive small meals and ok ish coffee."
• "Cafe a bit overpriced 3 sandwiches and 3 drinks nearly £29 and not that good a quality either, service slow and forgot our order."
• "The Bakewell slice was stale."
• "Very very very slow service in the cafe."

Play Areas and Activities

Pros:

• "Small playground that can entertain the young children for a few hours would recommend to friends and family."
• "Good playground for children, plenty seats to have a rest."
• "Children's play area was popular but the partly demolished pavillion was a bit of an eyesore."
• "The pedalos on the river are great fun and the kids enjoyed the play area."
• "A very good play park for the children, excellent ice cream van also sells hot drinks."
• "The play area is great, mostly aimed at youngsters under 8 and well shaded by the trees."
• "Good quality play area (suitable from 3 -10 years) this park is well worth a visit."

Cons:

• "A sub standard play area in need of attention."
• "Playground average aimed at younger children."
• "The only thing really to watch out for is if you have little children, there is no railing to prevent falls into the water."
• "The children wanted to ride on the Swan boats but I was told that they don't take cash."
• "It's a shame that there is no cafe there, as this would draw in lots more people!"
• "The pedalos were also closed which was a shame as it was perfect weather for them today."
• "Just a shame the building at bottom is a disgrace to the gardens falling down may as well just pull it down may look better."

Maintenance and Appearance

Pros:

• "A splendid Edwardian park being steadily rejuvenated."
• "Tranquil and calming with great adjacent parking."
• "Kiddies play area ice cream van on site well kept borders flowers look lovely."
• "The gardens were tended well."
• "Very well maintained park. Beautiful flower beds."
• "A well cared for outdoor area in the Belper vicinity."
• "Gardens were nicely kept, not as big as I expected and with a lot of ducks and geese so some areas were a bit messy."

Cons:

• "Imagine what our parks would like a decade after we are wiped out by zombies... Or just go to Belper and see into the future. Sadly abandoned gardens, not worth a visit."
• "Such a shame the council are allowing the Swiss Tea Rooms to fall down in such a public way rather than simply demolish it."
• "The main evidence for its dingy appearance is the old tearoom which has been allowed to fall into a state of disrepair."
• "The gardens are also overshadowed by a huge abandoned mill building with broken windows."
• "Unfortunately it looks a little uncared for whilst the old tea shop remains cordoned off in a collapsed state."
• "Sadly, very disappointing - for June it looked very run down and the flowers seemed to be overwhelmed by weeds and a lack of care."
• "It's a lovely area but it's a shame that the old building is still not renovated."

Wildlife and Nature

Pros:

• "Had a lovely walk around the river gardens, fed the birds which are very friendly and the pigeons land on you."
• "Opportunity to see the peregrine falcon family in the mill building ledges."
• "Lovely flat walk along the river, not too long, where geese, ducks and gulls watch for food opportunities."
• "You can have so much fun feeding the geese, ducks, gulls and pigeons."
• "A peaceful haven with lots of wild fowl on the River Derwent and row boats for hire too."
• "Had a fantastic time feeding the ducks, taking pictures and enjoying the scenery."
• "Beautiful gardens and gentle sound of horseshoe falls."

Cons:

• "The only criticism is the horrible dirty gulls that are always around in huge numbers, fouling the place."
• "This visit was disappointing. Seems very unkempt both promenade and grass area covered with bird pooh."
• "Beware when feeding the ducks. They are quite feisty and aggressive."
• "Every single bin was packed to overflowing with trash."
• "The gardens are also overshadowed by a huge abandoned mill building with broken windows."
• "Sadly, very disappointing - for June it looked very run down and the flowers seemed to be overwhelmed by weeds and a lack of care."
• "The toilet area near the car parking were disgusting."