RockReef Review
RockReef is one of the south’s top indoor attractions so it’s only right that we put together a review for you as part of our go-to guide for parents in Bournemouth.
We took our crew of 4 kids ranging from 8 to 22 and mixed abilities to give you lots of different perspectives!
Situated on Bournemouth Pier, RockReef is the perfect, all weather activity. Raining outside? RockReef is all under cover. Sunny outside? There’s air conditioning and ice cream (in the café) to keep you cool.
The fun starts before you even arrive at the centre. Everyone was excited for the days’ activities and I did wonder if the little ones would have been happy just going on Bournemouth Pier for the day as they were having a great time watching what was going on in the sea below! Access to the pier is free when you’ve pre-booked so it’s there to be enjoyed if you want to.
We’d booked in for the Ultimate Adventure so the kids could try out everything. Check in was easy, we’d pre-booked so our wrist bands were issued quickly, and our schedule explained. There are a few ‘sensory challenges’ in our group including one child who hates the feel of wristbands, but it was no issue for me to wear it for them instead. Lockers are free to use and needed if everyone is joining in.
Briefing
We moved on to the briefing room for everyone to get their harnesses on. Full body harness for little one and waist harness for everyone else. It’s really reassuring how good the instructors are at getting everything fitted and don’t just explain how to clip the kids on and off the walls but give you chance to practice too.
HighLine
The kids made a beeline for the HighLine which is an awesome obstacle course – 20 feet in the air! Everything is very safe, and the harness is attached to a rope on a rail that travels around the course. The beauty of this is not only can they not fall off, but if they find an obstacle a bit challenging, they can just lift their feet, pull on the ropes and glide on past. It was really sweet seeing a cautious little Ruby, tentatively making her way around the track and when she realised she could glide to keep up with the older ones her face lit up.
There are 2 routes, one slightly longer and more challenging without being too tough. If there are any dare devils in your group, they can up the stakes a bit and go around the course blind folded!
Clip’n’Climp
When I managed to tear them away from the HighLine we went downstairs to try out some of the 25 Clip’n’Climb walls!
The walls are suitable for children aged 4 upwards. Some are more complex than others, some go higher than others, but everyone really gets to climb at their own speed, nobody has to climb to the top if they don’t want to and there are extra features like a timer for anyone who wants to Spiderman it up to the top at record speed!
The unanimous favourite was the ‘Stairway to Heaven’ – also know as the green pipes which look like something from a Super Mario game and then jumping down! Officially one adult can clip for up to 3 children. I was glad to have brought an extra adult with me to help with the clipping so there was time to enjoy watching the kids climb and it really was enjoyable seeing them have fun while growing in confidence rather than having to rush back and forth clipping them on and off.
Pier Cave
Our Ultimate package included the Pier Cave; a network of dark tunnels to climb through linked by a ball pit cave. The kids climbed out of their harnesses, donned their miners’ hats, complete with lamp and headed in. The tunnels are colour coded for different abilities and there’s plenty of arrows to make sure nobody gets lost! Again, due to sensory issues I wasn’t sure if everyone would be up for this, but they were fine, and I could watch them all on the CCTV screen outside the cave. If anyone did get into difficulty the instructors are brilliant at swooping in to help them out. Part of the instructors’ job interview is actually showing they can do every, single part or RockReef so they’re able to help regardless of which activity they’re doing.
Vertical Slide!
When the kids were out of the cave we headed over to the other side of the centre for the big ADRENALINE ACTIVITY – the Vertical Slide!
Everyone was up for the Veritcal Slide and it was completely worth it, even if it was just to see them in the oversized boiler suits! With this activity, the kids are much more in control of how high they want to go as the handle pulls them up the slide. My eldest went right to the top, the youngsters let go when they were ready. Everyone loved it and that got a thumbs up all round.
Sensory 🌻
As I mentioned before, we do have a few sensory issues in our group and I wasn’t sure how they’d react to the noise in the centre but they actually adjusted very quickly. Distraction is my best friend when it comes managing things and there was plenty to distract. The benefit of them doing one climbing wall or activity at a time meant it didn’t become too overwhelming either plus the staff were fantastic at explaining everything which put everyone at ease.
One thing to mention is it’s worth making use of the café or having some snacks on you. There’s lots of fun to be had and the kids did need their food and drink levels topping up more regularly than usual!
Pier Zip
Somehow the boys hadn’t had enough the thrills for the day so we moved on to my favourite part the Pier Zip. The Pier Zip really tells you everything you need to know in the name. Zip wire from the 80 foot high tower at the end of the Pier, over the sea and down to the beach – awesome fun!
Riders need to be between 30 and 120kg and over 1.3 metres tall. The boys told me the staff were brilliant, really friendly, really reassuring and made sure all the harnesses were double safe!
The anticipation as they climbed the tower was nearly as exciting as the ride itself and as Pier Zip is a dual line they could both zip down the 250 metres over the sea at the same time. They didn’t have any words to say how much they loved it, just huge, great big smiles.
Overall we ALL had an amazing day out. It’s the kind of day that we’ll all remember for a long time, they had fun, they became more confident and it was a fantastic experience all round.
To find out more about RockReef or book your tickets and get your online discount have a look at their website rockreef.co.uk
Or for more ideas for days out, click on our Places to go tab
