We visited Sandworld in Weymouth last week with nanny and were luckily enough to enjoy one of our rare sunny days.  We got there as they were opening and were immediately met with great big warm smiles from every member of staff we spoke to and you can tell they are all passionate about the attraction and their visitors.

As you go in there is a sand sculpture right in front of you and you are immediately drawn to it's towering size.  Having seen pictures before, I knew they’d be good but the detail really is something else.  I could see straight away that there was a play area with spades, toys, a wendy house and ride on’s but before I had a chance to inform my boy he was straight in the house offering me tea and sandy toast.

We did try to encourage him to have a walk around the indoor sculptures but after having a near heart attack when he got too close to one we decided we’d rush him around and then we did a tag team so he could play outside while we took turns to have a good look inside.  Each sculpture has a plaque telling you all about it and some history on the artist, many of whom flew in from another Country.

When I went to find my mum and son I realised he’d discovered the large sand pit which had tools to make your own sculptures and huge plaques on the wall with instructions on how to make a perfect sandcastle, turtle and pillar of sand.  The area does clearly state ‘Under 5’s only’ and I can see why as my son just wanted to jump on any sandcastles we had attempted to make.  The staff are quite relaxed though and as there was literally only a couple of children (and we were watching him like a hawk) they didn’t mind him playing in there.  It really was quite lovely to be able to sit next to the pit with a cuppa and enjoy the sunshine for a little bit.

While we were there I noticed a very lovely elderly couple and after saying hi they started telling me that they had visited before and had come back to see the new sculptures.  I asked them what their favourite one had been and the lady said that there was a D-Day sculpture which she would never forget as there were what looked like hundreds of teeny weeny little tanks around it.  After speaking to them I arranged for them to have a free cuppa in the café as part of our ‘Random Good Deed’ for the month and had to laugh when the gentlemen tracked me down inside and demanded me to tell him who had paid haha.  I explained that my son was doing good deeds and that I hoped himself and his wife had a lovely day.

We didn’t have lunch while we were there because we had promised our son a picnic outside but there is plenty of food on offer and an appealing kids menu which included a roll, drink, crisps, biscuit and activity book.

Opposite the café there is a lovely bright area for children to fill a bottle with layers of coloured sand.  My son loved this activity and I was actually quite surprised at the level of concentration he had.  Half way through he did go back to the sand pit for a play but then came back in to finish it off and we now have a fantastic souvenir of our day.                 

While we were there I actually noticed quite a few adults making their own sculptures and I myself found it quite therapeutic sitting down with the tools provided and attempting to make a masterpiece (whilst battling off a wildly excited 2 year old!).

We ended up staying for a couple of hours and would of stayed longer if we had not already made plans to play in Lodmoor Country Park.  We’ll most certainly go back and take daddy with us although I know straight away that he would say ‘I can do that!’.  (He couldn’t haha). 

If you are planning to visit then I'd recommend visiting Sandworld to see if there are any special offers or seasonal events coming up.  

I enterted a competition which Pixifoto in Poole were running for a free family photoshoot plus a free print and to my surprise I found out shortly after that I had won.  I spoke to a lovely lady at the studio who asked a few questions about our hobbies and interests and we booked a date for a few weeks later.

Having seen the studio at the back of Mothercare in Branksome before I wasn’t a stranger to the location and firmly told my husband that we would be going in to quickly do the shoot and receive our free print and that we would try to avoid the sales pitch at the end haha.

Now anyone with a 2 year old child will know that there is a very small window of cooperation and that bribery in any form can only be used a couple of times before it’s success wears off.  We had a lovely guy doing our shoot and he wasted no time at all getting us ready and within minutes he had the camera going.  We did our ‘Complimentary’ family picture first and then he went on to change backing screens and get toys out.  

We were asked to come back after 45 mins to have a look through our photo’s which was fine with us.  I was fully prepared to say thanks and walk away with the complimentary photo on order but I was trapped by the first photo of myself and my son which instantly brought a tear to my eye. 

We had a very quick look through the other shots and both loved a few of them.  Sadly our little angel had turned into a little devil and hunger and tiredness on his part meant we struggled to concentrate on the packages prices that we were being offered.  I’m not very good under pressure and in the end I had to ask if I could go away and have a think about it. 

My husband did quite rightly told me that we will never ever be able to capture the same photo’s that were taken and that although the amount of photo’s we wanted would mean a certain package price we both knew they were worth it.  So I rang back and visited them again whilst my monkey was at pre school so I could have a good look through the pictures and we ended up buying a great package.  Having now received the prints I can say I am thoroughly pleased with Pixifoto.  The staff we dealt with were all very friendly and professional and I will definitely go back to them again.

UPDATE: Sadly Mothercare in Poole has now closed.