🐻🌈 Moobears Chester Le Street 🐻 🌈

Address: Edwards Square, Low Chare, Chester Le Street, DH3 3QF

(Ad-Pr visit)

We were invited along to Moobears on Friday. This is an indoor play area suitable for children up to around 7 years old (depending on the child-read the section on my final thoughts for further info).

It took us 30 minutes to drive from the North of Darlington and it was easy enough to find as soon as we got to Chester Le Street. You can’t miss it to be honest there is a large colourful sign on the building.

I went with Leo (my 4 month old), my sister, her partner and their 3 year old and 11 month old.

On arriving there were double doors and an area in the front entrance to leave your buggies. If you needed to you could take it in but there’s limited space. They also asked if you could take shoes off but it wasn't compulsory if you didn't want to, when just sitting at a table and not in the play area. This was a great idea as it helps to keep the carpet and floor area clean for little ones crawling about and playing on.

The staff were really friendly on arrival and very helpful in finding us a table that we were comfortable with. They explained about the different play areas too rather than just leaving us to it which I thought was a great help.

It was set up so that you could see a good amount of the play areas from the tables (mainly the soft play side and some of the role play/baby play)

There were 3 different play areas-what I would call an active play area (like a mini soft play), a role play area, and a baby play area.

We mainly stayed in the baby play and role play area on our visit. You book a timeslot and have 2 hours so we visited on the 11:30-1:30 slot.

There was a good variety for little ones to play with in all the areas, and the baby section was gated off to make it safer for them and easier for parents too, it also had a sofa in there for parents to sit on. The soft play area also had a padded border round it too so that you can still see your kids playing in there but can sit and relax next to it without them running around your tables.

On our visit, there was a character visit from Bing (CBeebies) and photo opportunities. This is included in the standard entry cost which is fantastic! It did mean the session was busier than a standard day though so if you think your child would prefer a less busy environment then bear this in mind. The baby area however was always relatively quiet during our visit and older children are welcome in there too if they want somewhere more relaxed to play. I found it very safe for babies in there and you didn’t get older kids jumping around in it like you do with some places.

What I really loved about this place is how welcome the staff made everyone feel. I noticed that the owner Julie would take time to sit and chat to people including me. This is extremely comforting especially for those who are maybe visiting on their own with their kids and need some adult conversation too, like myself-being on maternity leave it's always nice to have this!

🥤 FOOD AND DRINK 🥪

The menu had a good selection of food for kids and adults. They can also offer dairy free spread and cakes as well as soya milk. I had a hot chocolate and chicken toastie which came with a good amount of salad and tortilla crisps and I also got some of their chocolate orange cake. The portion size of the cake was huge! So I took some home for Kamron (my 6 year old) which he loved ofcourse. The food was all fresh and tasty and reasonable prices 😋

They can also cater for gluten free for parties as it’s pre-arranged so they can get the products in. There are also some naturally gluten free products on the menu too, such as jacket potatoes, chicken, salads and some breakfast items but let them know when ordering. As with most places they cannot guarantee that there's no cross contamination but they will do their best.

🦽 ACCESSIBILITY ♿️

In terms of accessibility, although there are double doors so wheelchair users can get in the premises, the toilets aren’t accessible due to narrow doors and positioning, so this is something to bear in mind. It is however all on one level with no steps. It may be worth calling ahead if you still want to visit as a wheelchair user so they can reserve you the most suitable table, and make it easier for you.

🚗 PARKING🚙

The car parking is right outside the building. It is a council owned car park costing 60p for 2 hours so it’s reasonable enough. You need cash or to call up the car parking number to pay or via the website so try and bring cash for convenience. The owner also advised me there is a car park at the back of them where Morrisons is (around a 5 minute walk) which is free to park and there is plenty of payable council car parks all the way up the road too, which I believe most are the same cost of 60p for 2 hours.

🌟EVENTS AND ACTIVITY SESSIONS 🌟

They have lots of events and activities happening all the time too. Activities including messy and sensory play sessions on a Monday and Thursday which takes place in the baby play area as well as character visits. These are both included in standard entry costs which is fantastic! 😀

ℹ️ MORE INFO AND BOOKING ℹ️

The current price is £3.50 for 0-11 months and £6.00 for children 12 months and over. This is for their standard 2 hour play sessions (messy play and character visits are also included in this cost when they are on. Check their Facebook page for when these are taking place)

For full info and the most recent updates, follow their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/moobears.cls

🌟They also have regular specials offers so it's worth keeping an eye out on their page 👀 🌟

📞 And if you would like to book a play session or event with Moobears, call or text them on 07517 258494 as they don’t use their website currently (please always refer back to their Facebook page incase this number/booking process changes since this blog was published)

❓FINAL THOUGHTS❓

We will definitely visit again as I found the staff so welcoming and have great personalities, which I find makes a huge difference when deciding where to go. And the little ones enjoyed it with plenty to keep them entertained for their ages. Sophia (my 3 yr old niece) enjoyed both the role play and baby play area so it was great she could go in both. And Harvey (my 11 month old nephew) enjoyed the baby play and even had a quick play in the soft play section with his dad before we left too 🤗

And not forgetting Leo, he enjoyed sitting in the bouncer chair and playing with the wooden baby toy arch. He would have explored the baby area more I think as it's very colourful and inviting for little ones but he's going through a bad teething stage so he was a bit sleepy from a bad nights sleep! 😴

What I would say is children getting towards 6-7 who like to run and jump around a lot it may not be suitable for. There is a slide, a ramp to climb and a tunnel to go through in the soft play section and the role play area if they still enjoy that, but it's definitely more aimed at younger I would say. It just depends on the child as some would prefer the smaller and calmer feel of this one to a larger soft play. I couldn't get many photos of the soft play section as there were a lot of kids in, you can find lots more though on Moobears Facebook page 😊

🌟THANKS FOR READING🌟

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