We recently needed an indoor activity for our son's birthday so we thought we'd take a trip to Romsey Rapids.  I had a look at the website and the pirate ship and affordable admission prices sold it to us, plus I wanted to go somewhere we had never been before.  We had a lovely wonder round the shops in town and had a bite to eat before heading to Romsey Rapids.

When I rang in the morning I was told that if it was busy they would have to limit our time to an hour but considering it was a wet rainy day in the summer holidays I thought it wasn't too busy at all, although we did choose to go mid afternoon when the receptionist said it would be quieter.

You have to walk over a bridge to get to the pool side and our son just stood and stared at everyone below having fun.  The communual changing rooms have family rooms with changing tables which is great and in no time at all we were heading to the pirate ship for a play.  

It really is a great place for babies, toddlers and older children and we literally spent an hour an a half playing on the slides, the pirate ship squirters, chilling in the bubbly tubs and going round and round and round in the lazy river!  The only thing we didn't go on was the large flume because Sam was a bit scared and we only left because we could see he was getting tired.  

So if you are looking to take the family somewhere out of Dorset for a fun swim then please check it out, it really is very family friendly and well recommended.

For details on swimming times, prices and location, please visit Romsey Rapids Sports Complex.

GOOD TO KNOW:

The pool area is really warm so if you are playing outside of the water you won't get too cold.

There is a Costa Coffee selling drinks, cakes, toasties, sandwiches and panini's however Romsey town centre is only a couple of minutes away and there are plenty of eateries there if you're after more of a meal.

Parking is free for up to 4 hours.

Update Nov 2021: We visited today and yet again had a brilliant time with the kids.  Please note that sessions are currently only for 1 hour however the prices are still very reasonable and car parking for 4 hours remains free.*

Photo credit with permission: Romsey Rapids Sport Complex

*Any details stated are correct at the time of writing.

We were lucky enough to be invited to the opening night of ‘Pirates of the Pavilion’ in Weymouth and it will certainly be a night to remember.  My husband was unable to come with us so I took my nearly 3 year old son and his nanny.  Myself and my mum hadn’t seen a Panto since I was a child and it was a first for my son Sam.  I was a little nervous that my son wouldn’t be able to sit still long enough but I carefully planned a fun filled afternoon followed by him zonked out in the car for a long nap so he was energised at the Pavilion and sooo excited!

The Weymouth Pavilion itself is a lovely theatre and all of the staff are very friendly and helpful (thank you to the lovely steward who had my son giggling away during the interval).  You can buy some great merchandise and a programme from the foyer plus any drinks and snacks you need for the show.  There is also baby change facilities in the foyer and booster seats in the theatre for small children if required.

Whilst waiting for the show to begin I kicked myself for not dressing Sam up as I watched all of these cute little pirates coming in with their families.  When the show started I couldn’t help watching my son as he sat there in complete and utter amazement.  It didn’t take him long to get the hang of the boos and cheers and myself and my mum were giggling away when he enthusiastically joined in without prompting.  There is a lot of audience participation which all of us loved and I couldn’t help but reminisce about Panto’s I’d seen as a child and how happy they’d made me feel. 

The humorous cast are very talented and Seadog Billy had us all in stitches.  The story continues on from last year and now Morgiana knows the treasure is on the Saucy Sally ship she wants it back!  Now I obviously can’t tell you any details without ruining it and I’m itching to write about one certain scene which literally had my mum and I crying but it would be a complete spoiler alert so I’ll stay shtum and just say you’ll be laughing pretty much nonstop.   

The show was much longer than I was expecting but we certainly weren’t bored.  My darling toddler did get a little fidgety in the second half but we only needed to take him out briefly once and considering he suffers from severe ants in his pants I’m actually quite surprised how long he did stay sitting for.  You could tell all of the children were enjoying it and I loved listening to the odd child heckling when Billy did something silly.

So if you live near Weymouth or are planning a holiday near here soon then I recommend you get your tickets quick because it really is a great family Panto and you won’t want to miss it!

For more information and tickets, please visit the Weymouth Pavilion.