Shropshire Hills Discovery Centre
Latest Reviews
Good quality and choice of food in the cafe but surprisingly not dog friendly which is a real disappointment as they could very easily accommodate given hard floors and multiple entrances to the cafe. No outside shelter so would only visit again on a dry day. Couple of destination EV chargers which is a bonus.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Great cafe with lovely staff but we called in for morning coffee today, decided to buy a bag of crisps.....nearly fell through the floor when told the price, £1 30 for a 25g bag which we discovered had come out of a multi pack which shouldn't have been sold as a separate pack anyway.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
What’s not to like? 5 pounds donation for motorhome overnight stop. Centre has great cafe and interesting home/stationery/children’s book etc and the surrounding walks in the country side has something for everyone. Lovely staff. Great stop! And Wi-Fi!!!
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Always a brilliant place to stop for the loo and a coffee/snack. Their sandwiches and cake are also amazing if you need to pick up something to takeaway. Lovely surroundings with a large meadow at the back and relaxing walks.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Very compact centre , within walking distance of Craven Arms station. OS maos for sale , always a good sign. We made a few impulse purchases for Grandson - wide range of prices for goods. Also had a look at cafe , we regretted having eaten at Subway as food looked very good.
Bought a pack of local walks and chose the shortest to do. This is where the rating drops unfortunately. Firstly we could it find the route over a small bridge at the start. A local saw us wandering aimlessly and asked if ever “looking for the bridge” . Apparently she gets asked often for this information ! A small sign on the pathway would be of great help , it is in the centre’s grounds. At the end of the trail we followed what we thought were the instructions and ended up outside the town with a walk on a busy A road without a footpath into town. Again a local helped with a cut through a housing estate. Maybe the routes need re visiting ?
Otherwise this is a little gem of a place !
Bought a pack of local walks and chose the shortest to do. This is where the rating drops unfortunately. Firstly we could it find the route over a small bridge at the start. A local saw us wandering aimlessly and asked if ever “looking for the bridge” . Apparently she gets asked often for this information ! A small sign on the pathway would be of great help , it is in the centre’s grounds. At the end of the trail we followed what we thought were the instructions and ended up outside the town with a walk on a busy A road without a footpath into town. Again a local helped with a cut through a housing estate. Maybe the routes need re visiting ?
Otherwise this is a little gem of a place !
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Lovely morning on the Spanish Tapas cookery course. Chrisse was an excellent tutor. Plenty of goodies to take home Will be back.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Compact little exhibition giving a good if brief overview of the history of the area. The 12 minute widescreen film is excellent, essentially an ariel tour of the Shropshire Hills. Stuff to do for small people. Good for passing maybe an hour. Helpful staff and handy for the bust stop.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Stopped for a light lunch
Had carrot and coriander soup and a coronation chicken sandwich. Very tasty.
Appears cafe has just been done up.
Cafe has character being attached to the shop
Would eat here again
Had carrot and coriander soup and a coronation chicken sandwich. Very tasty.
Appears cafe has just been done up.
Cafe has character being attached to the shop
Would eat here again
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
We had booked a table for Sunday lunch here, and thought we would make a day of it. Really good quality food, nice walk around the nearby woodland and an interesting visit to the exhibition. Would definitely come again if in the area
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Lovely walks with good stone paths so even when wet plenty of options. Brilliant for dog walks.
The centre is a fun place for children and the shop has a excellent selection of gifts, books and cards.
The restaurant is good for ice cream, tea, cakes and scones...
BUT the cooked food is pretty poor. I have complained about a chicken salad in the past! But today I risked the full breakfast. I mean, how can you go wrong with that? Wrong it was. I only ate the egg. The rest was inedible. However, when I returned my plate I was told by the "chef" that I was wrong. Believe me I was not. So many good places for breakfast. This us NOT one!
Coffee is from an auto machine so not even a decent cappuccino on offer.
This is an honest opinion. Hopefully improvements will be made.
Visit the centre by all means but NOT for breakfast or lunch.
Afternoon tea maybe your best option!
The centre is a fun place for children and the shop has a excellent selection of gifts, books and cards.
The restaurant is good for ice cream, tea, cakes and scones...
BUT the cooked food is pretty poor. I have complained about a chicken salad in the past! But today I risked the full breakfast. I mean, how can you go wrong with that? Wrong it was. I only ate the egg. The rest was inedible. However, when I returned my plate I was told by the "chef" that I was wrong. Believe me I was not. So many good places for breakfast. This us NOT one!
Coffee is from an auto machine so not even a decent cappuccino on offer.
This is an honest opinion. Hopefully improvements will be made.
Visit the centre by all means but NOT for breakfast or lunch.
Afternoon tea maybe your best option!
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Very interesting insight into the history, archeology and geology of the area. Extensive displays, aeriel film of the area, children's activities, large gift shop and cafe and toilets. Footpaths through 30 acres of surrounding meadows and outdoor play area. Small entrance fee to exhibition area and voluntary £1 contribution for car park. Well worth a visit.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
The Discovery Centre is informative and fun. We will be going back as we only paid a brief visit. The shop is full of quality items for all generations, and books about the locality and environment. I would have loved this as a child.
Something to look forward to.
Something to look forward to.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
A lovely place to visit on a sunny day. A nice cafe, small museum and super walks. The surrounding countryside is breathtaking.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Lovely meadows, so pretty, full of kids activities, wildlife and ponds. We enjoyed a picnic. Met the Mammoth, good local history and kids activities.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
We decided to pop along to this on a day when the weather was not being so kind. And what a lovely surprise. The exhibition is fascinating and the video really interesting. It has made us want to come back and explore more of Shropshire. The cafe was super and is obviously well used by locals. And, despite the rain, we still ventured out for a walk across the meadow areas and by the river. A super space which is probably even better in the sunshine. I would highly recommend anyone visiting to pop along - for a walk, a cup of tea and/or a browse around the shop. We were made to feel very welcome. And, where else would you see a sign that says - Cafe, Shop, Mammoth.........?!!?
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
We were looking forward to seeing the mammoth so popped in here. Got a voucher off groupon. There is a great gift shop, cafe and benches outside two children's play area, wonderful areas to walk.
Museum was interactive and it was great not to worry about what the children were touching. They enjoyed crayon scrapping pictures of the mommouth, and touching the wall to find out answers.
Great spot to stop into.
We also visited stokesay castle as it was 2 minutes drive away.
Museum was interactive and it was great not to worry about what the children were touching. They enjoyed crayon scrapping pictures of the mommouth, and touching the wall to find out answers.
Great spot to stop into.
We also visited stokesay castle as it was 2 minutes drive away.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Fabulous place with walks, playground, lovely cafe, tiny soft play area to amuse very young kids while you have a coffee and a lovely exhibition with lots of brass rubbings and craft for the kids to do. Worth getting membership if live in Shropshire. School holiday activities are always brilliant. Has a really nice gift shop. Staff really friendly. My six year old wants to go on a very regular basis!
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Visited with our 4 year old grandson using a Groupon voucher
Staff friendly. Our grandson loved the little museum but he also enjoyed the outdoors. The obstacle course was fun as were the walks
Will definitely return later in the year and do some of the longer walks
Cafe VERY busy. We just had drinks and a delicious piece of cake as we had taken our own picnic
Highly recommend
Staff friendly. Our grandson loved the little museum but he also enjoyed the outdoors. The obstacle course was fun as were the walks
Will definitely return later in the year and do some of the longer walks
Cafe VERY busy. We just had drinks and a delicious piece of cake as we had taken our own picnic
Highly recommend
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Plenty of parking. Good selection of books (incl. local walks books, OS maps, etc), bookmarks, postcards, birthday cards, etc.
Cafe did a good lunch, maybe not the cheapest, but really tasty and quite filling. We both had jacket potatoes which were good, and came with a colourful and tasty side-salad.
Walked from there to Stolkssy Castle, which is excellent, and from there through the woods, a good afternoon out. We were hoping to finish with a meal at the pub next door, but that wasn't serving food, so we went for a curry a few mins walk away instead.
Cafe did a good lunch, maybe not the cheapest, but really tasty and quite filling. We both had jacket potatoes which were good, and came with a colourful and tasty side-salad.
Walked from there to Stolkssy Castle, which is excellent, and from there through the woods, a good afternoon out. We were hoping to finish with a meal at the pub next door, but that wasn't serving food, so we went for a curry a few mins walk away instead.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Always a great place to visit to go for a walk in the meadows, do a bit of gift shopping and have a brew and some food.
Great place to meet up with friends or hold an event or attend a workshop
The exhibition is worth a visit and the film of a drone flight over the area is fascinating
Great place to meet up with friends or hold an event or attend a workshop
The exhibition is worth a visit and the film of a drone flight over the area is fascinating
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Stayed in our motor home on a Brit Stop stop over. Staff very accommodating and the cafe was good value with great coffee.
Superb walks for the dog, pub right outside and Indian, Chinese and fish and chips take always within 5 minutes walk.
Will definitely stay again, big car park and mostly level.
Superb walks for the dog, pub right outside and Indian, Chinese and fish and chips take always within 5 minutes walk.
Will definitely stay again, big car park and mostly level.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
My sister and her partner, with whom we had stayed with for the weekend, recommended this place as a possible lunch stop on our journey back to West Devon from north Wales. I'm glad she did, as after a beautiful trip down the eastern countryside of Wales and back into England, we found the centre easily on the southern outskirts of Craven Arms.
The discovery centre itself was not our main concern, but the exhibitions and information looked very interesting, as did the outside area beyond. The cafe had an adequate range of options for our purposes, and we shared a large Coronation chicken sandwich with generous salad garnish. It appears to be run by a charitable organisation called 'Grow Cook Learn', providing a range of activities to enhance "wellbeing" in the local community.
My partner also spent some time in the shop, whilst I quickly selected a couple of bottles of local beer!
The discovery centre itself was not our main concern, but the exhibitions and information looked very interesting, as did the outside area beyond. The cafe had an adequate range of options for our purposes, and we shared a large Coronation chicken sandwich with generous salad garnish. It appears to be run by a charitable organisation called 'Grow Cook Learn', providing a range of activities to enhance "wellbeing" in the local community.
My partner also spent some time in the shop, whilst I quickly selected a couple of bottles of local beer!
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
This is our favourite 'pit stop' on our way to and from mid Wales. There is easy parking, interesting shopping and an excellent cafe. Nothing is too much trouble for the friendly cafe staff and the home made scones are to die for! Full marks.
Dog owners must sit outside and we were interested to watch a party of young schoolchildren on an 'adventure' visit. The teacher was truly inspirational.
Fortunately the weather remained fine on both visits but it would be helpful if a small area indoors could be made available to the increasing number of dog owners visiting the centre. It would be good for business too!
Highly recommended.
Dog owners must sit outside and we were interested to watch a party of young schoolchildren on an 'adventure' visit. The teacher was truly inspirational.
Fortunately the weather remained fine on both visits but it would be helpful if a small area indoors could be made available to the increasing number of dog owners visiting the centre. It would be good for business too!
Highly recommended.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Such a lovely place for a family day out. The exhibition was well set out and the activity leaflet encouraged the children to read the information boards. It was lovely to walk around the meadows. There was lots to see including watching water birds from behind a screen. There was a play area too. Lunch from the cafe was excellent- freshly made and prompt service. We would happily return as there is more to explore.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
This would be about our 10th visit and it never gets boring . Ample parking is always a good start. Easy to find and well signposted. Staff are all friendly. There are great walks from the centre . Inside plenty of gifts and a wonderful restaurant serving very good meals . The exhibition on the mammoth and surrounding areas is well worth the small entrance fee.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
