National Trust - Wicken Fen Nature Reserve Reviews Summary

Wildlife and Scenery

Pros:

• "Keep an eye out for the wildlife and many photo opportunities!"
• "Great wildlife and scenery and all that."
• "A good place for wild flowers, bugs, butterflies, damsel and dragonfly's."
• "Beautiful location full of interesting wildlife."
• "Lovely place to walk round, lots of insects, butterflies and moths, even saw a water vole."
• "Whatever time of year, there is so much wildlife to see."
• "Most recently we saw a kingfisher flying overhead, a slow worm sliding through the grass and a lizard sunning itself on top of a wooden post."

Cons:

• "Only problem is that none of the RUDE visitors let you skinny dip in peace."
• "Perhaps the reserve wouldn't be so frustrating for bird lovers if families kept their kids off the boardwalk when instructed to do so by signs."
• "It was very windy the day we went so didn't see many birds."
• "Sadly, I wasn't impressed... We saw some highland cows, fens and nothing much else."
• "The only problem we experienced was the number of wasps around the cafe."

Facilities and Accessibility

Pros:

• "The cafe has been remodelled and pleasantly airy and well laid out with friendly, helpful staff."
• "Toilets were clean and fresh. Good car parking."
• "You can rent bikes and go for longer explorations."
• "There are many walking trails including the main fen boardwalk trail, which is wheelchair friendly."
• "The Boardwalk is also pushchair friendly at 1.2km or 3/4 mile long."
• "Boardwalks make it easy for everyone including pushchairs and mobility issues."
• "Great disabled facility walks, managed to drive a mobility scooter to drive around the walk."

Cons:

• "Cafe food is expensive."
• "The only negative is that the Cafe service could do with a bit of perking up and service with a smile could be introduced a little more."
• "Although the staff were welcoming, the produce was poor."
• "No playground for kids though."
• "Parking is £3 for a day regardless how much time you spend there (can be a good or a bad thing)."
• "The Boardwalk is wheelchair friendly, apart from the hides."
• "The cafe was small with limited selection."

Staff and Service

Pros:

• "The staff at Wicken Fen is are always friendly and helpful."
• "The staff is very welcoming, and the visitors centre warm and very well kept."
• "We were welcomed and given all the information we needed by a lovely lady from the gift shop."
• "Fabulous place. National Trust staff are really lovely and helpful."
• "Very friendly and informative staff with a reasonably priced and pretty good café."
• "The staff and volunteers are wonderful. They run boat tours through the lode and the gentleman who delivered the tour for us was a wealth of knowledge on the site."
• "The staff are excellent, very helpful."

Cons:

• "The only negative is that the Cafe service could do with a bit of perking up and service with a smile could be introduced a little more."
• "Although the staff were welcoming, the produce was poor."
• "We were met with the rudest individual who unapologetically advised that dogs were not allowed."
• "Awful rude staff more interested in selling coffee than helping wildlife."
• "Most staff I've met are lovely and approachable apart from a couple in the shop area who seem blunt."

Value and Membership

Pros:

• "Car parking free for NT members and you need to book in advance for the boat trips around the waterways which are really popular."
• "We are National trust members so it's free."
• "Free parking and entry to NT members."

Cons:

• "Cafe food is expensive."
• "Parking is £3 for a day regardless how much time you spend there (can be a good or a bad thing)."
• "A visit for two is around £15 with parking and entry, which is pretty steep."
• "Wicken fen is expensive for what it is if you don’t have National trust membership."
• "It's a shame they don't have two types of membership."
• "National Trust properties not cheap to visit."
• "However, the cost of joining the NT is prohibitive for many people."

Trails and Walks

Pros:

• "Loved the place NT owned property with great walks around the area with loads of ongoing work being done for conservation reasons."
• "The Boardwalk was a great short distance walk through woods and marshes."
• "Great walk well signed with lots of information."
• "Always a great day out whether you want to walk, run, cycle through the fens or stroll on the paths behind the visitor center."
• "The routes were easy to follow, the pathways were well cleared and flat and lovely and quiet."
• "Lovely walk around Sedge Fen, very accessible for all with a well maintained boardwalk."
• "Great for walking and bird watching."

Cons:

• "2 gripes, only one dog poo bin so be prepared to carry a bag, and speed crazy cyclists at the weekend because it's a national cycle way."
• "The pathway, which takes you through pretty boring scenery, is shared with bicycles some of whom were traveling very fast and were not inclined to slow down."
• "But it's quite small really and the woodland walk didn't have many trees."
• "Not so sure you could keep the kids entertained for long though."
• "The paths have now been closed for so long. Please open them and not use the silly excuse they need to recover."
• "However, many of the trails were closed due to being waterlogged."
• "I didn't feel like it was signposted well and instead of doing as the guide instructed, we went wrong and ended up walking back into the village."