Shropshire Hills Discovery Centre
Shropshire Hills Discovery Centre
Shropshire Hills Discovery Centre
4
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Monday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
About
As the gateway to the Shropshire Hills, the Shropshire Hills Discovery Centre is all about exploring nature and we have lots of walks and trails for you to enjoy with guided walks starting at the Discovery Centre. Drop into our licensed café for frothy coffees, homemade cakes, local lunches and Shropshire Cream Teas. We also serve up amazing Sunday lunches to.
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
4.1
268 reviews
Excellent
116
Very good
96
Average
33
Poor
14
Terrible
9
PassionatelyHonest
Staffordshire, UK38 contributions
Oct 2024 • Couples
Good quality and choice of food in the cafe but surprisingly not dog friendly which is a real disappointment as they could very easily accommodate given hard floors and multiple entrances to the cafe. No outside shelter so would only visit again on a dry day. Couple of destination EV chargers which is a bonus.
Written 17 October 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Chadsmoorlad
Hednesford, UK45 contributions
May 2024 • Couples
Very compact centre , within walking distance of Craven Arms station. OS maos for sale , always a good sign. We made a few impulse purchases for Grandson - wide range of prices for goods. Also had a look at cafe , we regretted having eaten at Subway as food looked very good.
Bought a pack of local walks and chose the shortest to do. This is where the rating drops unfortunately. Firstly we could it find the route over a small bridge at the start. A local saw us wandering aimlessly and asked if ever “looking for the bridge” . Apparently she gets asked often for this information ! A small sign on the pathway would be of great help , it is in the centre’s grounds. At the end of the trail we followed what we thought were the instructions and ended up outside the town with a walk on a busy A road without a footpath into town. Again a local helped with a cut through a housing estate. Maybe the routes need re visiting ?
Otherwise this is a little gem of a place !
Bought a pack of local walks and chose the shortest to do. This is where the rating drops unfortunately. Firstly we could it find the route over a small bridge at the start. A local saw us wandering aimlessly and asked if ever “looking for the bridge” . Apparently she gets asked often for this information ! A small sign on the pathway would be of great help , it is in the centre’s grounds. At the end of the trail we followed what we thought were the instructions and ended up outside the town with a walk on a busy A road without a footpath into town. Again a local helped with a cut through a housing estate. Maybe the routes need re visiting ?
Otherwise this is a little gem of a place !
Written 31 May 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
AGD55
Farnham, UK48 contributions
May 2024 • Solo
Compact little exhibition giving a good if brief overview of the history of the area. The 12 minute widescreen film is excellent, essentially an ariel tour of the Shropshire Hills. Stuff to do for small people. Good for passing maybe an hour. Helpful staff and handy for the bust stop.
Written 3 May 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you for visiting and for your review.
We are glad you enjoyed your time here and we hope to see you again soon.
Written 9 May 2024
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
linkyloo
9 contributions
Jan 2025 • Couples
Went today. Cafe being refurbished do not chaotic, to use a card to had to order your food, get a hand written receipt of what you had, take it into foyer to shop and pay, go back to cafe to prove you’ve paid. Goodness. Big queues as very young servers behind counters were nice but not very fast! Also 60p for a portion of jam served in a tea cup was a bit odd. I would say it was ok.
Written 18 January 2025
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Marion
2 contributions
Aug 2024 • Couples
What’s not to like? 5 pounds donation for motorhome overnight stop. Centre has great cafe and interesting home/stationery/children’s book etc and the surrounding walks in the country side has something for everyone. Lovely staff. Great stop! And Wi-Fi!!!
Written 2 August 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Sarahc
Sutton in Ashfield, UK16 contributions
May 2022
This would be about our 10th visit and it never gets boring . Ample parking is always a good start. Easy to find and well signposted. Staff are all friendly. There are great walks from the centre . Inside plenty of gifts and a wonderful restaurant serving very good meals . The exhibition on the mammoth and surrounding areas is well worth the small entrance fee.
Written 29 May 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you for visiting and for your lovely review.
We are glad you enjoyed your visit and we hope to see you again soon.
Written 21 July 2022
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Tracey G
Halesowen, UK2,222 contributions
Feb 2023 • Family
Visited with our 4 year old grandson using a Groupon voucher
Staff friendly. Our grandson loved the little museum but he also enjoyed the outdoors. The obstacle course was fun as were the walks
Will definitely return later in the year and do some of the longer walks
Cafe VERY busy. We just had drinks and a delicious piece of cake as we had taken our own picnic
Highly recommend
Staff friendly. Our grandson loved the little museum but he also enjoyed the outdoors. The obstacle course was fun as were the walks
Will definitely return later in the year and do some of the longer walks
Cafe VERY busy. We just had drinks and a delicious piece of cake as we had taken our own picnic
Highly recommend
Written 22 February 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you for your review.
We are glad you enjoyed our Centre and we hope to see you again.
Written 8 August 2023
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Judith H
Leicester, UK205 contributions
Oct 2023 • Couples
Very interesting insight into the history, archeology and geology of the area. Extensive displays, aeriel film of the area, children's activities, large gift shop and cafe and toilets. Footpaths through 30 acres of surrounding meadows and outdoor play area. Small entrance fee to exhibition area and voluntary ÂŁ1 contribution for car park. Well worth a visit.
Written 19 October 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you for visiting and for your review.
We are glad you enjoyed your time with us and we hope to see you again soon.
Written 9 May 2024
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Hywel G
St. Davids, UK6 contributions
Feb 2025 • Family
Went for Sunday lunch as it was a year to the day we lost our mother and, in the past, we had many happy memories of the place. Unfortunately the food was disgusting, the staff unhelpful, and the coffee cold and mostly froth. As a vegetarian who cannot eat cheese there was no meal I could eat, so I asked if they could do me egg, beans and chips. The person on the counter said it should be fine but came back saying the chef refused to fry an egg - I could only have beans and chips. The chips were stale, overcooked, and rock hard, and the beans could scarcely be found in a tiny bowl of tomato sauce. What should have been a poignant occasion recalling happier times was ruined, completely avoidably, by the most awful customer service and a chef who should be in another industry. If it wasn't so upsetting I would have asked for my money back. You wouldn't serve a dog what was served up to me today. The management and staff need to take a long hard look at themselves. Shameful.
Written 23 February 2025
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Steve A
Leominster, UK6 contributions
Jan 2020
I visited with my grandson age 6, and luckily only paid ÂŁ4.75 for 2 people, via Groupon. Any more and I would have asked for a refund! As some people have already stated, it takes about 4 minutes to walk through the "museum". The video playing in the theatre was not exciting/entertaining enough for anyone under 50. My grandson lasted about a minute before boredom kicked in, and he had more fun jumping around on the block seats! We arrived at the activity table. Well, that is a very generous description. A few pieces of paper with a dot to dot mammoth, and not a single pencil with a useable point! 6 yr olds don't take kindly to using a wax crayon!!!! And that was pretty much it. Raining heavily, so only option was to grab a bite for lunch. Er not at those prices! We made do with a flapjack between us, and an ice cream. The rest of the centre is taken up by charity stalls, and a great big shop! So were there any good points. The mammoth - quite cool (his words). The staff couldn't be more friendly. The cafe was clean and the food looked great even though we couldn't afford it! Here's some suggestions based on our trip (after a 40 minute drive ). Have someone make a video that is interesting to youngsters. Technology would allow you to have a video of mammoths and dinosaurs roaming the hills, and cartoon based segments, maybe make a series of say 6 short films, instead of one long boring one. (Just my grandsons, and my opinion). Include some more activities for youngsters. Create an activity sheet to complete which has a free ice cream if its completed.(Count the squirrels, name the grass, who made the pottery? etc. (This really isn't rocket science!), and please have the pencils sharpened otherwise get rid. Create some different activity sheets. The dot to dot mammoth took about 30 seconds to complete! Have the activity sheets spaced out around the museum, not as the big finale (Which it wasn't!). Would I go back, or recommend? Not unless it changes to make it more interactive. I did take a quick look at the rear of the building, and saw the very minimal play equipment. I know it's expensive, but some more interesting kids play equipment would be great.So overall, not a very successful visit.
Written 10 January 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you for visiting and we are sorry you were disappointed with what you found here.
We are pleased to hear you found our staff to be friendly and welcoming and that your grandson was impressed with our mammoth.
We are very surprised to hear you found the 10 minute panoramic high definition film to be boring as we have received wonderful feedback from it including how people of all ages found "awe inspiring" and "completely stunning". The table at the end is stocked with crafts where children can build their own mammoth skeleton, complete a jigsaw puzzle and colour and draw too as well as there being interactive elements throughout the exhibition. Starting with feel the difference between a mammoth and elephant tooth, smell pots of the Iron Age, lift the plate lids on a medieval banquet as well as a Wild Edric game and a join up rotating match game, we are sorry to hear you and your grandson didn't enjoy these. We find children enjoy sitting around the fireplace in the Iron Age hut and many like to play dress up too with the Iron Age clothes in this area. With regards your suggestion for an activity sheet, we do have a Tusker’s Timeline Trail that includes the trail and a free pencil which you would have been offered at the front desk.
Our entire site is charity run so the running of the Centre and it's 30 acre riverside meadows depends on the income from our cafe, shop and exhibition as well as the kind donations from our visitors and the much valued volunteer time from our team. We aim to keep costs at an affordable price for our visiting families so we are sorry to hear you found our prices in the café to be too expensive. We will certainly pass on your feedback and will consider it when reviewing our seasonal menus.
We made changes to the exhibition back in 2017 thanks to a round of local funding that we secured and we constantly look at how we can improve should we have the funds available to us. So thank you for your suggestions about how we can improve.
The play equipment that can be seen from the back of the building is only a small part of things to do in the meadows. Just beyond the tusks, we have an extension of the play area and we have balance beams, climbing logs and wild play areas spaced around the paths. We hope you would consider visiting again on a day when you could explore the meadows and we are sure yourself and your grandson would enjoy them. We do have a lot of positive feedback that our free craft area that's available all day every day is a great indoor alternative.
Should anything not be to your satisfaction again, we very much welcome feedback to any member of our staff so that we can note down the day and time you have visited with your suggestions for improvement.
Thank you again for your feedback and we do hope you'll consider visiting us again in the future.
Written 20 January 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Shropshire Hill... D
Craven Arms, United Kingdom
Hello. We are no longer connected to the library. That is now at CASCA at the other end of town. We are on the side of the A49 at the south end of Craven Arms. The library used to be here when we were run by the council.
Written 22 August 2018
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