A hands-on activity farm between Lisburn and Hillsborough — meet the animals, hold the reptiles, bounce and pedal, then add on quads, archery or pony rides.
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Open in seasonSchool & bank holidays · check the day
A hands-on activity farm out at Ravernet, between Lisburn and Hillsborough, where a £5 farm-and-play ticket gets the little ones in among the animals, holding reptiles, on the bouncy castle and pedalling go-karts — then you pick and choose the bigger adventures on top.
What you'll do — meet the farm animals with some hands-on feeding, take a turn at reptile handling, bounce on the bouncy castle and race the pedal go-karts — all of that comes with the basic farm-and-play admission.
The extras — the bigger stuff is booked separately: quad biking, archery, pony rides, pitch & putt and foot golf. Pick what suits the ages you've got and add it to your visit.
How long — most families make a half-day of it; longer if you're stacking on a couple of the paid activities.
Cost — farm & play is about £5 per person, with each extra activity priced on top — for example archery is reported from about £8 (age 8+) and short tractor-trailer rides from around £2.50. Confirm the current rates when you book.
Food & drink — there's a coffee shop on site for a hot drink and a bite between activities.
The £5 gets you in — the rest are booked extras. Quad biking, archery, pony rides and foot golf are priced separately, so plan (and budget) which ones you want before you go.
Ring ahead about opening and activities. The farm opens mainly on school and bank holidays with flexible hours for bookings, so call 028 9267 8392 to check the day and to book any activity you don't want to miss.
Plan your visit
A pick-and-choose kind of day
Spruce Meadows works a little differently from a straight open farm. The £5 farm-and-play admission covers the everyday fun — reptile handling, some animal feeding, the bouncy castle and the pedal go-karts — and then the headline activities are booked on top: quad biking, archery, pony rides, pitch & putt and foot golf. That makes it easy to tailor the day to the ages and energy you've brought along, and to keep the spend in check. The farm opens mainly on school and bank holidays, with flexible hours for pre-booked groups and parties, so it's worth a quick call to confirm the day and to reserve any activity you've set your heart on before you set off.
Coffee shop on siteReptile handling includedGreat for birthday parties & groupsMinutes from SprucefieldQuads, archery, pony rides & foot golf
Worth knowing:
Farm-and-play admission (about £5) is separate from the bookable activities. Prices and age limits for quads, archery, pony rides and foot golf vary, so ring 028 9267 8392 or check spruce-meadows.co.uk for the current rates and opening days before you travel.
Before you set off
What to wear & bring
👢Wellies or old shoesIt's a real working farm and there's quad and pony ground underfoot — feet will find the mud, so save the good trainers.
🧥A coat and a hatLots of it is outdoors across the fields, so dress for the day whatever the sky's doing — sunshine or showers, it's all part of it.
💧A water bottlePlenty of running about between the animals, the karts and the activities — handy to have water on hand, with the coffee shop for the grown-ups' top-up.
🧼Hand gel or wipesThere's animal feeding and reptile handling, so handy for little hands before snacks come out.
Good to know
Everything before you go
Cost
Farm-and-play admission is around £5 per person, which includes reptile handling, some animal feeding, the bouncy castle and pedal go-karts. The bigger activities are priced separately on top — quad biking, archery, pony rides, pitch & putt and foot golf. Reported extras include archery from around £8 (age 8+) and tractor-trailer rides from about £2.50. Confirm current rates when you book.
Season & hours
Opens mainly on school and bank holidays, with extended hours for foot golf and flexible opening for pre-booked groups, parties and outings. Hours vary, so check the day before you travel.
Booking
Booking activities ahead is recommended to avoid disappointment, though it isn't always required for farm-and-play. Parties, group visits and outings are arranged directly with the farm.
Ages
Best for toddlers up to around age twelve. The animals, reptile handling, bouncy castle and pedal go-karts suit younger children; quad biking and archery have their own age limits (archery is reported from age 8).
What you'll see & do
Meet and help feed the farm animals, take a turn at reptile handling, enjoy the bouncy castle and pedal go-karts on the standard ticket. Add on quad biking, archery, pony rides, pitch & putt or foot golf as paid extras.
Food
A coffee shop on site serves hot drinks and a bite to eat between activities.
Groups & parties
Set up for birthday parties, youth clubs, team days and group outings, with flexible opening for pre-booked visits.
Location
112 Ravernet Road, Lisburn, Co. Down, BT27 5NF — out in the countryside between Lisburn and Hillsborough, just a couple of minutes from Sprucefield.
How long
Allow a good couple of hours; most families make a half-day of it, longer if you're stacking on a few of the paid activities.
Questions
Before you go
What does the £5 ticket actually include?
The farm-and-play admission (around £5 per person) covers reptile handling, some animal feeding, the bouncy castle and the pedal go-karts. The bigger activities — quad biking, archery, pony rides, pitch & putt and foot golf — are booked and paid for separately on top.
Do I need to book?
Booking the activities ahead is recommended so you don't miss out, though it isn't always required just for the farm-and-play. Parties, groups and outings are arranged directly with the farm — a quick call sorts it.
What ages is it best for?
Toddlers up to around twelve get the most from it. Younger children love the animals, reptile handling, bouncy castle and pedal go-karts; the quad biking and archery have their own age limits, with archery reported from age 8.
Can the children really hold the reptiles?
Yes — reptile handling is part of the standard farm-and-play ticket, so the little ones can get up close. Hand gel or wipes are handy to bring for after the animals.
Is there food?
There's a coffee shop on site for hot drinks and a bite to eat between activities.
When is it open?
Mainly school and bank holidays, with flexible hours for pre-booked groups and parties and extended hours for foot golf. Hours vary, so ring 028 9267 8392 to check the day before you travel.
Getting there
112 Ravernet Road, Lisburn, Co. Down, BT27 5NF — out in the countryside between Lisburn and Hillsborough, only a couple of minutes from Sprucefield. Easy to reach off the A1, with parking on site.
Spruce Meadows sits out on the Ravernet Road, in the green rise of countryside between Lisburn and Hillsborough, and only a couple of minutes from the busy roundabouts of Sprucefield. What started as farmland has grown, over the years, into an activity farm that opens its gates to families on the school and bank holidays — a place where children can get their hands among the animals rather than just look at them over a fence.
The clever bit is how the day is built. A single low farm-and-play ticket lets the little ones loose on the everyday fun — the reptile handling, the animal feeding, the bouncy castle and the pedal go-karts — and then the bigger adventures sit on top for whoever wants them. Older children can take on a quad bike or an archery session; the younger ones can have a pony ride or ride the little barrel-train across the field; and there's foot golf and pitch & putt for a slower turn round the green.
It's the kind of spot that suits a birthday party, a youth club, a team day or just a family looking to burn off a holiday afternoon — with a coffee shop to catch your breath in the middle of it all, and a real farm humming away underneath.