Idle Valley Nature Reserve (Notts Wildlife Trust) Reviews Summary

Cafe

Pros:

• "There is also a café with lovely homemade cakes !!!!"
• "Cakes looked lovely, I had latte and a shortbread slab which was delicious!"
• "The soup was lovely & tasted homemade, always a bonus."
• "The modern cafe provides good quality food at reasonable prices and is worth a visit in its own right."
• "The food is fantastic, the room is bright & airy, with panoramic windows to watch the birds fly in & out."
• "The food was really tasty and fresh."
• "Lovely cafe with good quality food."

Cons:

• "The cafe does not allow dogs inside although the floor is filthy with muddy boots anyway."
• "Unfortunately the cafe food took quiet along time to come out (30 minutes for a sandwich) and didn’t taste the best."
• "Food in the cafe was a bit disappointing, and it closes a little too early."
• "Cafe is lovely but very expensive for what it is, and it's vegetarian."
• "Food expensive although all profits go to site."
• "Food is little overpriced but nice."
• "Cafe, very poor quality food, no menus or price list, limited choice and very over cooked, very expensive."

Wildlife & Nature

Pros:

• "Good nature reserve with lots of birdlife and other wildlife."
• "All 5 owl species in the UK breed here too."
• "Went for a walk around Idle valley nature reserve this morning... Although it was frosty the sun was out and made everything beautiful."
• "Lovely place to walk with lots of wildlife on show."
• "It's a beautiful place to walk and be closer to nature ❤️ nice short walk around with lots of birds for spotters."
• "The wildlife is in abundance and there is lots to discover."
• "Absolutely stunning place. Took the dogs for the Riverside walk. Loved it."

Cons:

• "Diversity of birds wasn't as hoped so don't think I will go again."
• "Hedges over grown and only limited viewing areas of the lake, not good for being able to spot the wildlife."
• "Poorly sign-posted which makes navigating the large reserve tricky."
• "Incredibly poorly signposted, very bleak in areas resulting in very little wildlife to spot."
• "Plenty of different walks to do we did the 5.8ml riverside walk. Nice walk but not very much wildlife to see."
• "Couldn't see much due to overgrown hedgerows."
• "Although again the noises from the frackers will more than likely stop one of them breeding."

Facilities & Maintenance

Pros:

• "The whole place could do with some TLC, overgrown and a bit run down."
• "Both the wife and I use powerchars the main lake trail is accessible as is the cafe."
• "Now has a well-run shop with helpful volunteers all very polite & full of advice and useful information."
• "Great visitor centre and cafe with views across a lake."
• "Shop well stocked with gifts, toys and activities for all ages."
• "Very nice nature reserve with wheelchair friendly paths around the lake."
• "They have a great visitor centre with drinks and toilets!"

Cons:

• "The outdoor eating area needs attention to make it more inviting."
• "The play area isn't really a play area so not really worth it."
• "There are not enough seats outside."
• "The kids play area is very overgrown and no real equipment."
• "Sadly as so often these days, too many dogs and dog dirt everywhere."
• "The bins in the car park were absolutely overflowing not a good example for a nature reserve."
• "Dogs on leads only and not enough dog poo bins."