Hotham Park Bognor Regis – Things to know before you visit

Hotham Park Bognor Regis. When we visited Bognor Regis and Felpham and stayed right on the beach in the Beachcroft Beach Huts. Hotham Park was recommended as a good place to take the boys by friends that live locally. It is the 22-acre large park is located in the seaside town of Bognor Regis and maintained by Arun District Council. If I am honest I had my doubts, the boys tend to get bored quickly so I anticipated a visit of around 40 minutes. But I could not have been more wrong as we spent around four hours in the park including trying out the Hotham Park Train. But you could have easily spent longer, especially in the Summer. It was only because we had a lunch date that we left.

Hotham Park Bognor Regis, West Sussex

Where is Hotham Park?

Located in Bognor Regis town centre, just off the High Street is Hotham Park. Originally the private estate and manicured gardens of the founder of Bognor Sir Richard Hotham. The public park is opposite the university campus and within easy reach of Butlins. Just a ten-minute walk from the main entrance or sixteen minutes walk from the pier. It can also be easily reached by public transport links. To find the park use postcode PO21 1HW. Previously the park has been looked after by the Hotham Park Heritage Trust although more recently they have stopped fundraising.

Is Hotham Park Free

Yes! There are things which you can pay small charges for, such as the miniature train and adventure golf. But if you just want to make the most of the play equipment. the walled parkland and have a picnic on the grass then it is free admission. Especially if you walk from town. Otherwise, you do need to pay for parking.

Is there parking at Hotham Park?

Yes there is a Hotham Park car park. But there isn’t loads of Hotham parking and I can imagine it gets busy in the school holidays. The car park is a reasonable size but considering the size of the park itself, I was quite surprised it was not larger. There are 47 spaces and 4 disabled spaces. The only car park entrance is just off of the roundabout that links the High Street with the B2259 (London Road). Hard standing it cost us £3 for up to 3 hours as we visited in March which is when their Summertime prices apply. You can also use the Ringo app if you do not have any change. Be warned the parking is right next to the Adventure Golf. Once they had seen it, it was all the boys could think about!

Whats at Hotham Park Bognor

There is a lot to do at Hotham Park Bognor Regis:

Free Activities

• Children’s Play Area – There is a good size play area that caters for various different age groups. Harry particularly liked the large wooden climbing frame and Charlie the zip wire. There is also a fenced play area suitable for little ones.
• Green Spaces – It is probably one of the best public open spaces we have visited for ages with lovely mature woodland areas full of specimen trees. Some of the areas have been more recently landscaped parts of the park There are plenty of places to sit and watch the world go by. When we visited the daffodils were just starting to poke up through the grass. It was a really peaceful place so do not forget your picnic rug.
• Alice in Wonderland Trail – Across the park, there are a number of wooden cravings to search out. Including Alice herself, The Queen of Hearts, the white rabbit. And my favourite is the Mad Hatter table. It is such a clever idea and would make an ideal picnic stop as it even has its own little set of chairs.
• Wetland – Next to the cafe there is a gated wetland area with a little wooden walkway for you to explore and some information boards.
• Boating Lake – There is a large oval boating lake on the other side of the cafe. It is too wide for boats that are not remote-controlled but if you have one then it is the perfect place to give it a runout. I would also imagine in the Summer that you can sit and watch others glide around the water. 

Paid For Activities

• Hotham Park Cafe – Is amazing!! They have a full menu of food so much more than your standard cafe the salads sounded good. They also seemed perfectly well set up for brunch. It is popular so be prepared to wait, especially if you want a takeout. Although it does have seating inside and out. You can view Hotham Park cafe menu online.
• Miniature Railway (admission fee) – The Hotham park train, out of season from around March onwards it only runs at weekends and bank holidays. If you live locally then they offer a discounted ticket which will allow you ten rides. As we don’t we brought two adults and two children for £10. On the Hotham Park train you go around the track twice and the boys really enjoyed it. It is a well-looked-after engine with nice carriages. 
• Adventure Golf – The boys love a game of mini golf and as soon as they saw it (right next to the car park) we knew we would be visiting Wildforest Falls. The ticket office is located next to the entrance. A family ticket for four costs £20 and it took us around an hour and a half to go around all 18 holes. They are well done with a good variety of different options and with various animals located around the course, including beavers, a stag and a brown bear. 

The park also has full toilet facilities which are located by Hotham Park House itself – the former home of Sir Richard Hotham. They have an accessible toilet for wheelchair users. The key is a radar key which can be obtained from the park office. The door opens inwards with grab rails. 

To find out further information about the park on the Hotham Park website. 

Related Blog Posts:

• 15 Things to do in Bognor Regis & Felpham for Families
• Littlehampton Harbour Park 
• The best place for crabbing in West Sussex

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