For a great family day out in Berkshire, Dinton Pastures is a fantastic destination. With an awesome playground, lakes perfect for cycling or talking a dog for a walk and a cafe serving hot food and drinks, there’s plenty to pack in to a day out.
Dinton Pastures Playground
Dinton Pastures playground is brilliant. It spreads out over a huge area and is filled with lovely wooden equipment. For younger children there are swings, slides, a big sandpit and lots of interesting things to climb over. We liked the giant’s chair and the nest of huge wooden eggs. For older children, there is very adventurous climbing and a fantastic fort with various tunnels and chambers. There are several picnic tables or grassy areas to spread out a rug.
Dinton Pastures Lakes
There are several different tracks around the lakes, ideal for biking and dog walking. We chose the Black Swan Lake loop (1.8 miles) and spotted lots of interesting ducks and swans. The path was flat so excellent for biking but did have some bumpy sections where the path had been resurfaced with rough gravel. It would be a bit bumpy with a pushchair and not great for scooters.
You can’t swim in the lakes but there are lots of water sport activities on offer at the Dinton Pastures Activity Centre. If you fancy a paddle there’s a little ankle deep stream that you can wade in just next to the play park. Head towards the cafe and there’s an easy access point just before the little bridge.
Dragonfly Cafe
The Dragonfly Cafe is open from 8.30am and serves a good selection of hot and cold food, coffee and ice creams. This includes all day breakfast as well as a children’s menu including lunch boxes. There is plenty of indoor seating as well as lots of outdoor tables in the garden. Our most recent visit was during lockdown so the menu is more limited and is currently takeaway only.
Dinton Activity Centre
Dinton Activity Centre is situated by the Black Swan lake, a 15 minute walk away from the car park and playground but does have it’s own separate car park if you want to go straight there. It offers a range of watersports including pedalos and kayaks and is open Monday to Friday. If you have your own water craft (we have paddleboards) you can pay a launch fee to go out on the water.
Image Credit: Dinton Pastures Country Park
Dinton Pastures Country Park Parking
There are dedicated car park onsite and as there is no entrance fee to Dinton Pastures it makes it a great value day out with kids in Berkshire. However, if you’re arriving by car there are pay and display car parks.
- Up to and including 4 hours: £1.70 per hour
- Over 4 hours: £6.80 flat rate
Dinton Pastures Country Park Map
There are plenty of noticeboards with maps on as you make your way around the lake. With all the space and activities on offer you can easily make this a full family day out within easy reach of Wokingham.
