Review Cadbury World Birmingham

Review Cadbury World Birmingham. When looking at Cadbury World on google, one of the most asked questions is – Is Cadbury World any good? This did make me chuckle. I mean how could a place that involves chocolate and loads of activities for the children not be any good? We really enjoyed our visit at the weekend well it is my favourite confectionery.

And feel that the ticket price of £57 for a family of four including two adults represents good value for money. Another question was do you get free chocolate when you visit Cadbury World? You do get given some chocolate at the entrance for you to eat on the way round, each member of our party received a Wispa, Curly Wurly and a Dairy Milk bar. It is a chocolate lovers dream and a great place to visit during the school holidays and a wonderful day out for the whole family.

AD Press Tickets – we were gifted entry to Cadbury World for the purpose of this review. All words and opinions are my own,

What to expect when visiting Cadbury World 

At the moment due to the pandemic, you need to pre-book your entry to the attraction. They are in ten-minute slots which reduces the number of people queuing at the entrance. As you work your way around Cadbury World in a predefined order it also means that people are spaced out throughout the experience and so you should not get bottlenecks. We found that this works really well. For quite a few of the things on the tour we were the only family.

What is there to do at Cadbury World?

Aztec Jungle & Journey into Europe

You start the tour by learning all about how chocolate was discovered by the Aztecs and the origins of the cocoa bean. You walk through the jungle and can read about the story of Montezuma and the history of chocolate. And how he was controlled by the Spanish conquistadores before being overthrown. Then via small videos, we learn about how it came to Europe, to France and eventually into the UK. More importantly, how it was changed from the original chocolate the Aztec invented to something resembling more like the drinking chocolate of today.

Bull Street & The Story of Cadbury

The next section, Bull Street, feels like you are walking onto a film set. With its cobbled street and little shop fronts, we learn all about Cadbury and his Quaker roots. Before going on to watch a film about how the company grew from humble beginnings to the world recognised brand it is today. 

Making Chocolate & Manufacturing

Another cinema screen this time with moving seats teaches you all about how chocolate is made. How the cocoa butter is extracted from the cocoa pods and the different steps in the process. This part of the exhibition tour is very educational but the boys still really enjoyed it. As it is done in a fun way. After the cinema screen, you go into a room where you can see the manufacture of your favourite Cadbury’s products. A how it’s made version. The creme eggs were a big hit.

Have A Go Area

I think this was probably one of the boys most favourite areas as you actually got to see how the chocolate is made. We were first shown a demonstration of how chocolate used to be made in the 1800s. Including chocolate rain (see below). As of now, much is obviously made by machine. The boys were fascinated by the way the lady moved the chocolate around to temperate it before filing the moulds. They also giggled at how chocolate with fillings are made as there was a lot of chocolate that was shaken around! After this, the boys were given the chance to move on to writing their names in chocolate, which they both really enjoyed doing. 

Photos & Cadabra

Normally we avoid green screen photos on days out. However, there is something fun about the Cadburys ones and they do not cost a fortune. The boys chose what they would like from a number of different designs. Including surfing on a bar of dairy milk. There is also an opportunity to get your own wrappers printed which would make a novel gift. Unfortunately, Charlie had green sleeves on his top so one of the photos did not work as well! But I really liked one of them surfing. A photo cost £10 with the free digital image. Or you could buy a selection pack for £20 which included other things such as keyrings and framed photos. But there is no obligation and the lady who did our photos was really good with the boys.

From there you move onto the magical Cadabra ride which is the only ride at Cadbury World. You sit in a little car and get taken around a fairytale village where all the cocoa beans live. It’s been done nicely and although Charlie at almost nine was a bit too old. Harry really enjoyed it. Cadabra is very suitable for little ones, toddlers and younger children.

Chocolate Tasting & Making

Can you taste chocolate at Cadbury’s world? Yes, you can! Of course, we had been given a whole selection of chocolate at the entrance, much to the boys’ delight. But there is also the opportunity to taste. First, you get to pick two toppings from fudge, marshmallows, white chocolate buttons, Oreo, dark chocolate buttons and then these get mixed with molten dairy milk in a little paper cup. It was delicious. 

In the same area, you can see factory workers making various different chocolate products. We saw both chocolate teapots (oh the irony) and also the little cocoa bean characters. So there you go it is possible to buy a chocolate teapot! And in case you are wondering the Cocoa Bean characters are only available to purchase at Cadbury World. 

Advertising Avenue & Purple Planet

Almost at the end of the official tour now you can walk down Advertising Avenue which shows a number of their well-known adverts through the years. Of course, some of this was lost of the boys, but the husband and I enjoyed it. At the end, there is a little rock out area where some of the well-known tunes are played. Including the boys absolute favourite which is the Gorilla playing the drums. 

From here you walk into an interactive displays area. There are several things to keep the kids entertained aimed at different ages. The first is a cocoa pod that has a series of lights in different colours. The idea is that you press the lights in the order shown. Then you get the chance to grow your own cocoa tree making sure it gets enough sun and rain before being able to harvest the pods. There is also a floor which you can run around on and stamp on different chocolates watching them explode under your feet. This area was extremely popular with the boys. 

Finally, the purple planet is a very cleverly put together mirrored box, as you look at it you can see to all intensity and purposes a purple planet. It took Charlie a while to figure out it was mirror trickery.

Cadbury Gift Shop – The World’s Biggest Cadbury Shop

If chocolate is your thing then you will love this shop with your popular characters adorning the walls including the caramel bunny. There are various offers on a number of products when we visited. I mean who doesn’t like reduced price chocolate? Including the large 850g of Dairy Milk for £5. Plus various other souvenirs. We brought a couple of bags of Cadbury’s misfits for £3.99 each – yum!

You would be forgiven for thinking this is the end of the attraction. However, Cadbury world does actually continue around the back of the building. The rest of the attraction is for your to enjoy at your leisure which means that you can put as much time aside as you would like. The tour around the factory took us about an hour and a half but we stayed for at least another two hours outside.

African Adventure

The first thing you see as you walk around the back of the building is a large play area. It consists mainly of raised wooden huts, slides, rope bridges and climbing areas. It has been cleverly divided based on age with each area having something suitable. The boys really enjoyed it. In the middle and off to the side there are plenty of picnic tables and a cafe in the middle which was servicing hot & cold drinks, as well as snacks, burgers and hot dogs. Their main restaurant was shut when we visited and is located opposite the gift shop. 

The Bournville Experience

To the back of the play area, you can enter the Bournville Experience which talks about the impact that the Cadbury factory had on the village. Along with all the things it did for its workforce that lived there.  Many of the buildings which were created by Cadbury are still in existence today.  Should you wish it is possible to walk around the village and see some of these buildings and areas.  Also in the exhibition is a collection of memorabilia some of which I recognised as a child. 

Freddos Magic Circus

I do not think this is a permanent feature but it was good so I hope they make it one! When we visited there was a fifteen-minute show which started every half an hour. It involved Freddo taking part in various circus acts with a sing and dance along at the end.  The fact it is only short means that it is perfect for younger attention spans. Harry found it great fun, Charlie was a little old for it preferring to be outside in the play area.

Cadbury 4D Chocolate Adventure – 4D Cinema Experience

If you do nothing else outside when you visit then make sure you do the Cadbury 4D Chocolate Adventure cinema experience as it is brilliant! By far my favourite I can see why they have to limit people to only one showing in busier times. It shows continuously throughout the day. The main cinema experience only lasts 12 minutes but you spend five minutes in a holding room watching the cocoa news reports. No filming is allowed but it was brilliant, it included Cadbury creme egg airship, a giant chocolate crunchie rollercoaster, motion seats and much more. It was really good and meant we finished our visit on a high as it was the last thing we did. Apart from one last play in the African Adventure. 

So in answer to a previous question is Cadbury World worth it? In our opinion it most definitely is!

Review Cadbury World Useful Information

• We found hand sanitiser everywhere, the staggered entrance system worked well for us and we did not feel overcrowded at any point, all the staff wore masks and there were reminders constantly about the 2m distance rule.
• At the moment all tickets must be pre-booked, a family of four with two adults costs £57 a family of five £68.50, under 4s are free, adults £19 and children (4-15 years) £14. Check their website for more details – offers and prices. 
• There is a large carpark on site which is free so you do not need to worry, the postcode of the sat nav is B30 1JR. Their website also gives details of how to reach them by bus or train and you can also save 30% on your ticket price!

Review Cadbury World – Have you been to Cadbury World? I would love to hear about your experience in the comments below

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Review Cadbury World