Chill Factor e - Review

It's my birthday tomorrow, so as a gift, my Mummy took my boys and I for some fun at the snow park.

Ed in particular has been very sad about the fact that it didn't snow this Winter. Every day, as the weather warmed up, he's had a little moan about there not being any snow yet.

Mum & I kept it a secret from the boys, they didn't know where we were going until the very last minute. They hadn't even realised I'd filled the boot with warm clothes! 

I was a bit concerned because the only booking we could make it to was at 6:30pm - bedtime! And it was on a day when they'd been playing at a group all day. They'd been outside, running around with all the other boys all day long, so when we got in the car to go home I asked them to have a little sleep because we were going to go out instead of go to bed at bedtime. Confused, but weary, they thankfully obliged.

There was time for a quick tea before we left for Manchester.

Then, after an hour's drive, still confused, they didn't argue when we got out of the car and changed into snow gear.

Sledging together.

 Snow angel!

 I love sledging!!

Bean loves sledging too, but he doesn't like to try to get up when he's reached the bottom.

Me & my little guys.

A little info on our adventure;

We went to Chill Factor e in Manchester, & booked online at

chillfactore.com

We got snow park passes, which include;

Tubing - There's one regular slide and two bumpy slides. Slide down in huge a rubber ring. 

Bean & I loved the bumpy slides & Ed loved being span around on the normal slide.

Snow & Ice Luge - Snow slide. 
It looks like a toboggan run, but you're given a flat bit of plastic to lay on. I bashed my fingers all the way down and therefore wasn't keen but Ed went on it again & again. You have to be 6 & over to ride, so Bean didn't get a chance :(

Sledging
A lot of fun! There's no travelator for this one, so you have to work for your thrills ;)

Everyone loved it & we could race. Once again, my Mum whooped my ass!

SnowPlay Area - Slightly deeper snow which is perfect for snowballing & snow angels. There's a little sloe and loads of foam shapes to throw around.

SnowPlay Carousel - Perfect for younger children. 

Unfortunately this wasn't manned but it was a bit late for smaller kids at that time of night.

Prices

Adult or child for 1 hour £20

or 2 hours £25

Plus they do a double up deal, so the 2nd adult or child is only another £5,

so it cost us £60 for the 4 of us for 2 hours.

FYI, we didn't stay for the whole 2 hours. We arrived late (didn't know the way) and then left when the boys asked to. It was good to have our options open though, especially as kids can be so unpredictable, and there's no point forcing them to stay.

I'm not sure I'd go with a child under 4, as there's only the play park and I personally would get cold and bored (that close to sledging but unable to leave the little one), but it does cost a lot less, at just £6 each for the under 4 and the accompanying adult.

(correct at time of print)

For more info on prices, go here.

When you arrive, you'll be given helmets & snow boots free of charge, so don't worry if your kids have grown out of their winter gear (Ed had grown out of his snow boots but the rest of us had our own). You can also hire coats & trousers for a fee. I was a bit foxed by the helmets at first...until I saw the slides. I'm so glad our heads were protected! It meant we could really let go and have fun. It also means we didn't need to pack our woolly hats.

Oooo and there's one more thing I need to say. The staff there are brilliant. All helpful and cheery, which really helps when you're at the bottom of a slide and you can see your four year old is at the top, too nervous to come down for the first time, but chatting with a lovely staff member.