The VIP launch of Little Beaulieu

We have an exciting weekend ahead with the VIP Launch of Little Beaulieu taking place tomorrow at 11.00. The full public opening is then scheduled for Sunday 15th March.

This is how the press materials describe the new adventure play area, set in the heart of the New Forest at the home of the National Motor Museum and the ancestral home of Lord Montagu, Palace House and Beaulieu Abbey. There are some pictures of the work underway here.

"Let your imagination run wild as you storm up the bridge of the magical wooden palace and explore its secret passageways and hidden tunnels, to its turrets and lookout tower. Peek out from behind portraits and crawl through a trick bookcase to discover every nook and cranny, from his Lordship’s library to the tree-top boardwalk. Keep your eyes peeled for a bird’s-eye view as the ‘Skytrain’ monorail rumbles past, change the time on the old-style clock faces and take the easy way down through a giant spiral tube slide or fireman’s pole.

Become the gatekeeper as you peer through the telescope to spot playmates approaching, call down through the fun funnel speaker and play a tune on the melodic xylophone chimes. Don’t get in a tangle as you tackle the tricky rope maze room, try a brainteaser as you match up pairs of pictures in a giant wooden game, then let off steam on the epic climbing wall.

Get behind the wheel of a wooden car – what else in the grounds of the National Motor Museum? If you are feeling strong, hang around on the swing bar rings, leap over log hurdles and make sure to keep your balance on the stepping stones and balance beams.

Younger tots have their own special zone of Little Beaulieu. Scoop up buckets of sand to drop down a chute and jump aboard the wooden play bus, modelled on Beaulieu’s Veteran Bus at one of the south’s leading visitor attractions.

The £½m Little Beaulieu, which draws on the heritage of Lord Montagu’s ancestral home of Palace House and Beaulieu Abbey, has been brought to life over the winter by industry-leading adventure play area designers and builders CAP.Co Adventure Play. Their ingenious past projects have included builds for fellow Treasure Houses of England, Castle Howard and Leeds Castle, as well as the creation of an intimate wooden stage for Glastonbury Festival.

When you are all played out, their family-friendly design includes a generous covered seating area for a picnic from the café for a sneaky cuppa with a slice of cake, warming light bites or cooling ice creams. What better way to end a perfect day out for family fun all together?

Little Beaulieu will be included in a ticket to Beaulieu from March 15th. A ticket also includes entry to the National Motor Museum which tells the story of motoring with its collection of over 280 historic vehicles, the World of Top Gear, On Screen Cars, Palace House, Secret Army exhibition, Beaulieu Abbey and its gardens and grounds. Tickets can be bought in advance online. For tickets and details see www.beaulieu.co.uk or call 01590 612345."

We'll update with pictures of the opening and some first impressions of what the new Little Beaulieu adventurers think of our latest work.

Fingers crossed they love it as much as we do.