Lowther Castle & Gardens Reviews Summary

Price

Pros:

• "The cafe in the forest was reasonably priced and the picnic area was fabulous with benches made from large tree stumps."
• "Well worth the entry fee."
• "A family ticket is still £45 and that’s reasonable for the time and size of the estate."
• "£38 family ticket totally worth it in my view."
• "All in all a really good day out and well worth the money."
• "Great place for the whole family... really reasonably priced."
• "Thoroughly worth the entry fee."

Cons:

• "It's a bit difficult to understand how people can be charged £12 pp to visit when there is almost nothing to see at this stage."
• "Price is quite steep at £14 pp, families a little cheaper."
• "The only negative was that there are not enough benches around the grounds on which to rest."
• "They welcome dogs but not in the playpark (understandable) HOWEVER absolutely terrible facilities for a dog friendly establishment."
• "The grounds are beautiful but I feel a bit overpriced entry."
• "12 pounds admission fee is a bit steep."
• "Cost is expensive ish £9 an adult £7 a child."

Staff and Service

Pros:

• "The staff were so helpful."
• "The lady who served us at the entrance to the Castle itself was very different, and was most pleasant and welcoming."
• "We were served by a lovely young girl called Millie who made my children’s day with her professionalism and sweet personality."
• "The staff were friendly and a joy to speak with."
• "Staff willing to help and assist when needed."
• "The staff were very friendly and attentive."
• "The staff are so friendly and informative!"

Cons:

• "We were unlucky to experience poor customer service when entering with English Heritage membership."
• "The only downside was the staff, who all seemed rather unhappy to be there."
• "The waitress who brought our food also didn't smile."
• "Unfortunately the attitude of the cafe staff left a little to be desired."
• "After we seated ourselves, we were treated with attitude by our waiter, even after explaining that we did wait."
• "The only improvement would be more benches/seats dotted around the walkways around the gardens."
• "The only downside was the staff, who all seemed rather unhappy to be there."

Facilities and Grounds

Pros:

• "Ample parking is available, and it is free."
• "The gardens are extensive and must be beautiful in the summer and there are miles of superb walks through the parkland."
• "The gardens were colourful and varied."
• "Really beautiful grounds."
• "The gardens they've created with the castle walls are stunning."
• "The gardens are huge and really lovely to walk around."
• "The grounds were beautiful and the castle playground very impressive."

Cons:

• "It feels like they go out of their way to make things uncomfortable."
• "There are virtually no bins on the grounds on walkways."
• "They are having some restoration done on the outer walls, so there are building works going on at the moment."
• "Such a shame that they won’t allow balance bikes in for toddlers."
• "The gardens not at their best (obviously) in October."
• "The gardens are still in development, so many areas, like the Japanese garden, are far from being ready to be a feature."
• "There was a lot of renovation work being completed on at least 2 parts of the facility which was disappointing."

Play Areas and Activities

Pros:

• "Unbelievable play area to keep the kids happy."
• "The adventure playground was vast and well built, amazing for kids and adults!"
• "The trim trial in the woods was a hit and then they found the lost castle play area which my kids described as the best play area they have ever been too."
• "The lost castle for the children and even adults who also participated in the slides."
• "The large wooden castle adventure area was the best great for small and big kids."
• "The wooden castle adventure play area was a welcome surprise for the whole family."
• "Fabulous gardens, great views from The Terrace."

Cons:

• "Turned up at the castle yesterday with a large family group... Which then gives people two options either go home again with a screaming child or tie your dog up to the fence and leave it alone."
• "The play park is fenced off and people with dogs have to wait outside the fence and are not allowed in with their children."
• "For smaller children you will need to follow them around as it is big and easy to lose sight of them."
• "The children's area is excellent but could do with some better monitoring as we where told on entry that it was monitored but while we where there all of the hand sanitizer pumps where empty and it was a busy free for all unfortunately with no visible monitoring."
• "The secret castle is a children’s play area in the forest but this has to be one of the best in the U.K.."
• "The amazing play park for children will keep them entertained for hours."
• "An amazing adventure playground."

Food and Cafe

Pros:

• "The food is of a great quality, a decent portion size, and reasonably priced."
• "The rarebit at the cafe was amazing as well as the ice cream."
• "The cafe food and service was top notch! Great fish and chips, and Beef cheeks."
• "Super coffee and excellent cafe with good healthy food for both adults and kids."
• "The cafe menu was amazing & I wished we had more time to spend there."
• "They have a wonderful cafe with hot and cold food available and plenty of refreshments."
• "Food in cafe excellent quality and good value."

Cons:

• "The food wasn’t anything special. The Victoria sponge was stale and gross."
• "Only thing we were disappointed with was that the cake in the cafe looked nice but was dry and very uninspiring."
• "The cafe inside food is not very good my daughter ordered a chicken & avocado wrap barely any filling."
• "Service was very slow in the cafe, it took over 30 minutes to serve breakfast rolls."
• "Only let down was the cafe, we were told it was a table service only after we went looking for a menu after 10 minutes, we waited a further 20 minutes and no staff member took our order."
• "Unfortunately the attitude of the cafe staff left a little to be desired."
• "My only criticism is that the food is a little on the expensive side when you're charged £3 for a short bread biscuit."