Shropshire Hills Discovery Centre Reviews Summary

Cafe

Pros:

• "The food is homemade and delicious."
• "The cafe is large, airy and scrumptious. They cater for dietary needs amazingly, whether you're vegan, vegetarian or gluten free just chat to the staff."
• "Good cafe, a reasonable choice on the menu."
• "The restaurant serves good home made specials at reasonable prices."
• "The cafe has lovely fresh food and icecream is to die for."
• "Good coffee, nice cafe."
• "The cafe is lovely with home made local fresh food and cakes a wonderful atmosphere."

Cons:

• "Walks are short and nothing interesting, very expensive cafe, better to just eat in a place in the town centre."
• "It was ok, not great just ok, expensive to get in and the food in the cafe is expensive and are small portions."
• "We found the cafe to be very hot and the tables whilst clear hadn't been cleaned."
• "The only negative point is that because the canteen is staffed mainly by older volunteers, service can become slow when busy."
• "Cafe bit slow but very nice coffee and snacks."
• "The food and drink is extortionate."
• "Service is not great at all when busy."

Parking

Pros:

• "Easy free parking."
• "Free parking and free entry although to visit the 'museum' bit you do have to pay."
• "Handy stop off open daily with ample parking and clean toilets."
• "Parking is free and accessible but a donation is suggested."
• "Parking was free too."
• "Loads of parking."
• "Good parking, we had a 6m motorhome and that was ok. Access to toilets and shop."

Cons:

• "Parking is a huge problem because you can't see if there's any spaces before you turn into a bit but then you have to just reverse back out because you can't always turn around if full."
• "Parking is free but a suggested donation if a pound is recommended unless you're spending in the shop."
• "Parking is a huge problem because you can't see if there's any spaces before you turn into a bit but then you have to just reverse back out because you can't always turn around if full."

Shop

Pros:

• "Excellent shop with a wide range of books and gifts."
• "Also a shop full of interesting books, small toys and other items that kids love."
• "Shop had some interesting bits & pieces to purchase."
• "Good selection of interesting unusual gifts."
• "The gift shop is lovely."
• "The shop has lots of interesting items to buy."
• "Lovely little shop with bits for all the family."

Cons:

• "The shop had toys more aimed at 90's kids than today kids and some of it is extremely overpriced for what you're getting."
• "The gift shop is really good some very different gifts on sale rather than the Usual ones you see in nearly every gift shop."
• "The shop was a bit depleted of toys much to my grandchildrens dismay."

Museum

Pros:

• "Interesting Museum with plenty to see."
• "A lot of interest for different ages, although we did not go into the museum; get there early for the best food in the cafe!"
• "Lovely exhibits, some quite old devices and things dating back to the 1940s."
• "The centre boasts a fantastic exhibition with film about the history and sights of the area."
• "The exhibition is brilliant & shows what it was like around our area years ago with an actual woolly mammoth."
• "Great selection of snacks, light meals, cakes and beverages in the cafe."
• "Good display and information centre with cafe with good choice of food."

Cons:

• "Not worth paying for entry to the museum, and wouldn't recommend travelling more than 20 minutes to see, nothing special and expected much more."
• "You pay extra for the Museum part which i wasn't aware of but i may not have read the info on website properly."
• "Not a huge amount in the exhibit for £5 each."
• "The exhibition is pricey for what it is, but interesting nevertheless."
• "Felt the price was perhaps a little high given the size of the exhibition."
• "But the mammoth is just a replica and there isn't much else there, we were a bit gutted tbh."
• "It was underwhelming and lacking a friendly, engaging instructor."

Facilities & Cleanliness

Pros:

• "The toilets were pretty clean given how busy they were at the time, plenty of hand sanitizer available at the entrance and masks worn by staff and most visitors indoors."
• "The facilities are very clean and staff very friendly."
• "All the staff were helpful and friendly and the cakes and drinks were delicious."
• "It is all very accessible to disabled visitors."
• "Clean accessible toilets."
• "Free parking and entry with a good cafe area."
• "Great little centre. Free parking and toilets."

Cons:

• "Did feel a bit neglected."
• "We had fish and chips but the fish was either stale or over cooked or both."
• "We found the cafe to be very hot and the tables whilst clear hadn't been cleaned."
• "Some areas of the building and fittings in need of refurbishment/repair."
• "The discovery center itself is time-worn, shabby and in need of some TLC - urgent funding!"
• "The discovery center itself is time-worn, shabby and in need of some TLC - urgent funding!"
• "Overgrown paths made it difficult to walk in places and felt it lacked signage."

Accessibility

Pros:

• "It's wheelchair friendly."
• "Lovely place to explore the beautiful Shropshire countryside, free parking for Blue Badge holders and if it's available there is an electric mobility scooter for those who need it."
• "There are pathways down to the pond area and beyond which although uneven in places can be negotiated with a powerchair or scooter."
• "It's interesting, but not as wheelchair friendly as they like to make out."
• "They even have a mobility scooter on the premises that you can hire for a small donation."
• "It's free! It's educational. It's nature. It's relaxing."
• "A place to walk around with the family, a coffee shop and a gift shop too."

Cons:

• "Great place to spend a few hours, hard going in a wheelchair but covid-19 has affected maintenance."
• "Unfortunately they're dog semi friendly bins on the walks everywhere on the walks."
• "Then when. You get back to the visiter center dogs are not alowed inside so if you want food you have to sit outside and there's no covered area."
• "It's one of those places you want to return to again and again."
• "However they really lack plant based options at the cafe - a little counterproductive considering this place is supposed to be about preserving the natural environment."
• "Especially iritationg when you go inside there's a beautiful pic of a black lab in bluebells behind the shop desk...... A sour note for a nice place."
• "Awful waste of I presume council tax money."

Overall Experience

Pros:

• "The nature park outside is really lovely and the children really enjoyed exploring and playing."
• "Well worth a visit."
• "Fantastic showcase of the local area!"
• "Loved it there."
• "A lovely educator gave our group a talk about the local wildlife, and the prehistoric finds from the area- she was excellent with our group of mixed aged children."
• "It's a glorious little jewel set in the beauty of South Shropshire."
• "Overall this place is great when the weather is good enough for a walk, and is free/very reasonable in terms of price."