5 top spots with kids in Cape Town

Cape Town, with its focus on the great out­doors, is sel­dom short of places to which you can take your chil­dren — beaches, walks, pic­nic spots abound — but there are times when the more formal, child-designated spot comes in handy, and a few of these are worth tak­ing note of.

The top five, in no par­tic­u­lar order (hav­ing gone through no com­pet­it­ive pro­cess to reach these pages other than to have gained my approval), are the Barnyard in Tokai, Bugz in Kraaifontein, Deer Park (also known as Rocklands Park) in Oranjezicht, Imhoff Farm in Kommetjie, and Scarecrows in Hout Bay. Most of these are out­door ven­ues, to accom­mod­ate the gor­geous sum­mer weather, and places where par­ents also get to unwind.

1). The Barnyard
This is a con­stantly buzz­ing, effort­lessly easy to use venue where your chil­dren can imme­di­ately enter into a range of activ­it­ies that include play­ing in a huge, shady sand­pit, sway­ing on swings and jungle gyms, or feed­ing any num­ber of farm anim­als kept in pens on the peri­phery of the venue. That it lies in a par­tic­u­larly pretty set­ting, just bey­ond the Steenberg Golf Estate, vine­yards sweep­ing up the hills behind it, def­in­itely helps.

Parents can par­take in typ­ical farm­house food and any num­ber of drinks, smooth­ies and muffins whilst drink­ing in the views, so it at once ful­fills the require­ment of being out of doors and in touch with nature, without los­ing its kiddy appeal.

Other attrac­tions include animal pet­ting, pony rides, and a jump­ing castle (although this hap­pens sporad­ic­ally). The chick­ens get to wander in amongst vis­it­ors quite hap­pily, but the rest of the birds, tor­toises, rab­bits, goats and geese are in pens, large enough not to offend. It's also a pop­u­lar venue for parties.

The upside
• great for south­ern sub­urbs' moms
• beau­ti­ful venue, great views
• plenty of space and activ­it­ies for chil­dren
• extra long open­ing hours between Wednesday and Saturday
The down­side
• park­ing!
• the ser­vice isn't always what it could be
• the food could bene­fit from a little more imagination

Website: www.thebarnyardrestaurant.co.za
Address: 4 Steenberg Road, Tokai
Telephone: 021 712‑6934
Open: Sun–Tues 8am-5pm, Wed-Sat 9am – 7.30pm

Photographs: The Barnyard, Tokai

2). Bugz kid­dies play park
An extra­vag­anza of what it is to be child, Bugz includes a huge array of out­door play and one of the biggest indoor play areas in Cape Town. Situated at the Cape Garden Centre in Kraaifontein, Bugz is a play park full of sand­pits, pedal cars, jump­ing castles, row­ing boats, jungle gyms, a train (which you can now ride for free), a water slide, quad bikes, horse rid­ing and paint­ball (used more fre­quently by dads than their pro­geny) it's a bar­rage of col­our­ful children's delights, and a great party venue for children's birthdays.

The com­bin­a­tion of the play park and the garden centre, is, to say the least, a little over­whelm­ing, but if you don't mind the con­stant, bale­ful strains of muzac, the gar­ish use of primary col­ours, a res­taur­ant that offers food that con­sists mainly of ham­burgers, soft drinks and chips, and a R20 entrance fee per per­son, then this is the place for you.

The upside
• chil­dren love it
• hours of enter­tain­ment
• down­time for par­ents
• pretty bath­rooms
The down­side
• elev­ator music
• food that ser­i­ously lacks imagination

Website: www.bugzplaypark.co.za
Address: 56 Tarentaal Street, Joostenbergvlakte
Telephone: 021 988 8836
Open Monday to Sunday from 9am – 5pm

Photographs: Bugz kid­dies play park

3). Deer Park
Whilst most Capetonians know this as the Deer Park, although there aren't any deer, the name refers to the Deer Park Café and the road that runs the length of the park, rather than the park, which is known as Rocklands Park. The park is a great play area for chil­dren. There is ample amount of shade, great grassy patches on which to sit, the park is fenced in, and there are vari­ous jungle gyms and swings to keep little ones amused.

The reason the park is so lovely is that the local neigh­bour­hood has a com­mit­tee that holds vari­ous fun­drais­ing events to main­tain the climb­ing struc­tures and cre­at­ive play equip­ment. The park is great for birth­day parties, and par­ents can pop up to the res­taur­ant for a takeaway cof­fee, or a sit-down breakfast.

The upside
• great play venue
• safe, shady and pretty
• plenty of space
The down­side
• rarely place at a table at the Deer Park Café
• parking

Address: 2 Deer Park Avenue, Vredehoek
Telephone: Deer Park Café – 021 462 6311

4). Imhoff Farm
It might be a bit of a drive, but cer­tainly for loc­als Imhoff Farm provides a won­der­ful, rural style venue for chil­dren, whilst adults have a series of shops and res­taur­ants to choose from. There are two main play areas for chil­dren – a series of jungle gyms and swings in the sweep­ing gar­dens of Blue Water Café, with some of the most beau­ti­ful views over Long Beach, and another play area in the garden of the Free Range Restaurant that is asso­ci­ated with the Free Range Farm shop (full of great goodies).

Over and above these obvi­ously parent-friendly spots, where par­ents and friends can eas­ily swop stor­ies whilst chil­dren play largely unhindered, there is also the Higgeldy Piggeldy animal farm. For a minor fee, chil­dren get to wander in amongst farm anim­als that include goats, pigs, sheep, ducks, geese, guinea pigs, a pony called Piccadilly, and a host of pea­cocks. Most of these have free range and respond par­tic­u­larly well to a goody bag or a car­rot. Oh, and there are also camel rides.

The upside
• won­der­ful venue, loads to do
• good food at both ven­ues
• enough activ­it­ies, shops and events to make a morn­ing or after­noon of it
The down­side
• ser­vice at the Free Range restaurant

Photographs: Imhoff Farm

5). Scarecrows
This is a great com­bin­a­tion of play area, out­door seat­ing and a res­taur­ant. The cof­fee shop and res­taur­ant provide good food, it's a great venue for parties and gath­er­ings, and there are two play areas, one in front of the res­taur­ant and one behind in a large open playground.

Life-sized scare­crows lit­ter the entrance pas­sage, there are swings, jungle gyms, coin-operated rides (not always my favour­ite, but there you go), teepees, and gen­er­ally a great spot in which kids can amuse them­selves whilst their par­ents and friends catch up for five minutes. In winter there's a roar­ing fire and a res­id­ent cat, although be care­ful, as she tends to be rather stroppy. Word has it that if you bring your own dish along, they fill it with a ready meal for that evening...

The upside
• beau­ti­ful views, good food
• great play area for chil­dren
• great birth­day venue
the down­side
• can get really hot in the back play area, so come armed with hats and sunscreen

Address: 2958 Dorman Way, Hout Bay
Telephone: 021 790‑0841

Other spots worth a men­tion:
• The Range, in Tokai
• Stodels Nurseries in Bellville and Milnerton
• Noordhoek Farm Village

"Kid Friendly" Links:
Family Entertainment in Cape Town
Cape Town Family Friendly Accommodation