Did you know we have a few sister sites around Scotland? Some members of our team visited one recently, the amazing Landmark Forest Adventure Park in beautiful Aviemore up in the Scottish Highlands. As soon as we got to the park we were welcomed in by their friendly staff and given a tour.
Our first stop was the Ancient Forest Adventure, a lovely opportunity to stretch our legs after the journey. The trail leads through the forest away from the bustling hub of the park, and you can take a moment to enjoy the peaceful atmosphere surrounded by nature. You might even spot a red squirrel! The boardwalk has recently been refurbished so is easily accessible, and it leads you past fascinating aspects of the forest such as a tree that was struck by lightning in 1982, where you can still see the jagged scar down the trunk.
Next, we explored WonderWood which had its own Vortex Tunnel, Topsy Turvy room and Growing-Shrinking room (which we call our Ames Room here at Camera Obscura in Edinburgh). We found the Topsy Turvy room particularly head-spinning as we all tried to find our balance. The Bamboozeleum had even more bewildering exhibits, including an Infinity Corridor, Giant Kaleidosphere and a shark attack exhibit that gave us a bigger fright than we care to admit.
Our next stop was Dinosaur Kingdom, Scotland’s biggest dinosaur experience. They were more realistic than we were expecting; they moved around, roared, and even blinked at us. The largest was the Diplodocus at 90 feet long, which was a spectacular sight to see in the middle of a Scottish forest.
The Butterfly House had even more wildlife. We stepped into an immersive jungle where butterflies, tropical birds and Asian quails surround you as you explore their habitat. A highlight was Timmy the Tortoise who was very friendly and came right up to us to say hello. Luckily, the resident tarantula kept its distance. The butterflies are not shy – make sure you check for any hitching a ride on you before you leave the house!
We stretched our legs climbing Forest Tower – 105 steps up but they’re worth it for the panoramic view from the top. If you can conquer your fear of heights for this, you can definitely tackle RopeworX, the tallest of the park’s high-ropes courses. We took on this challenge ourselves and although there were some wobbles, we were proud of ourselves by the end. Be warned – it’s a workout hanging from those ropes!
To cool off we headed to the Wild Water Coaster and had a go on all three slides: Falcon, Wildcat, and Otter. Our favourite was the Otter – a twisting tunnel slide that disorientates you and plunges you in to complete darkness – and then plunges you into the water pool at the end.
Our last stop was the new attraction NetworX which is due to open later this year. We were kindly given the opportunity to try it out and we had so much fun! It’s a system of nets suspended from trees high up off the forest floor, where you can bounce around and crawl through tunnels on your hands and knees. This attraction had us working up a sweat too, but we can’t wait to visit the park again soon and see it open for the public to enjoy.
Thank you to all the friendly staff at Landmark Forest Adventure Park who made our visit so enjoyable. We’re proud to have such amazing sister sites around Scotland that go above and beyond for their visitors. If you want your own day out at Landmark, visit their website to book and enjoy the stunning scenery on your way up to the Highlands!