Yet another visit that felt like being in a children’s playground! When are management going to realise that this is first and foremost a nature reserve and that by always trying to attract families and children they are spoiling the place for nature lovers and losing sight of what this place is about. I have been visiting for years and over the last year or so I’ve seen many changes which I feel are for the worse. I used to be able to spend all day here but slowly my favourite elements of the park have been taken away and it doesn’t feel the same anymore, meaning that my visits now are no more than 2 or 3 hours. There used to be a tv in the waiting area of the shop which played a nature video, there also used to be quite an interesting display of how the area would have looked when there was a settlement there thousands of years ago. This has all rather disappointingly been taken away. I don’t think I’ll be renewing my membership next year.

I have been visiting Pensthorpe for over 20 years and the last few years it has slowly become less attractive for Birds Watchers and Photography. Every year it has always been a must go back and every year the amount of birds seems to have reduced. There are always plenty of walks and wild birds to see, but the enclosures where it has been possible to get up close to many wild species have reduced in numbers over the years, again making it less attractive, and unfortunately due to the current bird flu risk, the main enclosure is also closed, which I wasn't aware of until I had paid and entered the park. Disappointing visit this year

We had a very great day out here. The park is well laid out and the trails are easy to follow with good information beside them. The bird watching areas have well presented hides and are quite spacious with useful information on the walls. Information on recent bird and dragon flies is kept up to date. There are a variety of activities going on all day for children ranging from climbing areas, shelter making , pond dipping. The cafe had a range of both hot and cold food at very reasonable prices and was kept spotlessly clean. Would strongly recommend this park.

Still great value for money, we had two great days at Pensthorpe during our weeks holiday in September. The café was a little unorganised this time, but who cares when there are so birds that need photographing. We see something new here each time over our four visits, even with our restricted mobility.

Went with my partner and 9 year old daughter who is a bird enthusiast. We had a great time , shame it rained for about hour but timed it well with pumpkin carving just made the outdoor play area too slippery buy can't be helped. We went for the birds and views and walks and had rain gear on so we were fine! Great food in cafe and lovely gift shop. Excellent full day out for us thank you!

We visited on a very blustery day with our two children. It's was very quiet, we felt we had many areas mainly to ourselves. Cafe was great, lots of choice and Vegi options. Loads of cool birds. While away the hours with a hot drink while the children enjoy the indoor and outdoor play areas. Every staff member we spoke to was friendly. Nice gift shop. It's a bit on the pricey side. Tickets for two adults and two children came to £58. But then again we were easily there for three hours and didn't get round to the sculpture garden as the kids were tired! Well worth a visit

We visited Pensthorpe for their North Norfolk Pole Santa experience. Unfortunately we found it overall quite disappointing. I have visited before to go to the nature reserve which is brilliant, the tickets for the Santa experience do not include this but you can “top up” on the day to also visit the reserve. We didn’t do this as the weather was extremely foggy, so wouldn’t have been worth it for us. Good aspects include children getting to pick a gift from the workshop, rather than being given a wrapped gift they may not be interested in. Not too big a group, so it wasn’t overwhelming. It starts with everyone sitting on tables in a marquee and a “show” between Santa and his elves, which was full of bad jokes and chat and went on for too long. Additionally my children couldn’t see the stage, it would’ve been much better to bring all the children to the front so they could feel more involved/actually see what was going on. The show was like bad panto, a little cringe worthy in places, I wasn’t convinced anyone was having a really good time. Then came the crafts, while some families had their turn to see Santa, the children made tree decorations out of wooden plaques, pens, feathers etc. then iced gingerbread men. That was good! I was under the impression they would be making “reindeer food” too, but instead they were just handed pre made bags which are actually the feed they sell on entry to the reserve, so that was a shame. It felt like then we were in limbo for a little while waiting for our turn to be called up to the stage, and when we did get up there it was a quick “do you want a photo?” And move on. No basic questions like “what would you like for Christmas? Have you been naughty or nice so far this year?” However, Santa was a convincing one looks-wise, so that was something. As mentioned, being lead through to the workshop to pick the gift was good. The elves were very friendly and chatty, they periodically came around to tell jokes, have a chat with the children, although maybe too often. It would’ve been nice to offer refreshments as part of the ticket price, we have done other experiences that have mulled wine/mince pies/hot chocolate etc available, it just didn’t feel as festive as we’d hoped! Hopefully next year some improvements can be made. Sadly this will be our first and last visit to the North Norfolk Pole. We’ll be back for the nature reserve at least.