EXPLORE: ROALD DAHL MUSEUM & COUNTRYSIDE TRAIL

Kids of all ages love Roald Dahl and with the Museum and StoryCentre so close to home a trip to Great Missenden is a fun outing for all the family. The Museum itself hosts plenty of Roald Dahl’s treasures and a look into his life and home which inspired his books. We spent a day immersed in the world of Roald Dahl. Arriving at the Museum in the morning we spent a few hours finding out about Roald Dahl and enjoyed the free activities on offer, we also had fun at one of the interactive storytelling sessions, which run throughout the holidays and weekends. If we’d been better organised we could also have booked into one of the special workshops, these need to be pre-booked so something to plan for our next visit.

When it was nearing lunchtime we headed to the big park near to the carpark, as you head into Great Missenden, for a picnic and play in the playground. We’d picked up the free Countryside Trail leaflet from the Museum, so after lunch decided to do some exploring.

I let the kids take charge and guide us along the trail! Quick note – make sure you have a map for each child to avoid arguments J. The map guides you from the Museum into the Chiltern countryside, through Angling Spring Wood, said to be the inspiration for Fantastic Mr Fox. The trail continues along a woodland path, where you can spot red kites and you will then get to Atkins Wood, made famous in Danny the Champion of the World. Along the way you get an amazing view of Great Missenden and the surrounding countryside. There are also activities and games to try out along the way including Woodland Bingo and Ranger’s Radio. The walk took us around 1 hour 30 minutes, so make sure you bring a drink and snacks to keep everyone happy.

We ended our day with a well-earned ice cream (and cake for mummy) from Café Twit, back at the Museum.

Overall, I would recommend a trip to Roald Dahl Museum and don’t miss out on following Dahl’s footsteps along the countryside trail. If the weathers not on your side or if your kids aren’t up for the longer countryside trail then try the Village trail which takes in the key sights of the village that relate to Roald Dahl’s books and life, including Sophie’s norphange in THE BFG, Matilda’s library and Danny’s dad’s petrol pumps from Danny, the Champion of the World. No matter what time of year, a trip to the Roald Dahl Museum and following one of the trails is a day out that everyone will enjoy!