Courtyard Cafe in South Lanarkshire

It's called an animal zoo well a big lack of animals a disgrace charging to see nothing park 1 toddler/baby swing disgrace size of park tearoom ripped tables very shabby I had not been 2 calderglen for years and would NEVER visit again so bad

lovely and helpful staff, who clearly care for all the animals <3 we were there when the coatis were getting their afternoon feed, it was so nice to witness! enclosures are clean and spacious, not overcrowded. send my love to the field mice

Total disgrace trails are still closed after storm eowyn with fallen trees blocking pathways. Its time the powers that be gave themselves a shake and get the park fully accessable. How come Chatelherault in Hamilton is fully functional ? Is Calderglen the poor relation always second best East Kilbride is far larger than Hamilton with a higher population base why leave it at the coo's tail

Good value and the kids love going

Visited the other day, unfortunately the indoors part of the Zoo was shut due to the storm, this was reflected in admission for £2 I think, nice little place to relax and meet some of the characters at this mini zoo. Nice EK has so much to offer this is just one of them on your door step.

Great way to entertain two young kids on a budget.

Great, more Councils should have attractions that are as reasonably priced as this, great for families and affordable.

First time I've walked up the river from the car park/golf course/cafe area. A nice walk, though muddy in places. Not a surprise given the time of year and the weather. A lovely break from having people around.

Small cheap kids loved it worth a visit

Great park land to wander around and a great cafe for a warm up drink . Dog friendly to

It's okay very small, but you get what you pay for at the zoo. The playpark is fantastic, but make sure and wear wellies as its very muddy. Great variety for all ages.

Yes great day out Staff very friendly

Great wee place lovely animals and great service too x very cheap what. A bargain x

Great Park only the mud was everywhere. Nice backyard with food and to drink a cuppa

Always a great way to spend the morning.

Nice selection of animals, expensive cafe

Small zoo with lots of birds and small mammals. Nice for little ones for a short outing. Very cheap entrance fees.

Great place for young families. Can get very busy at weekends or bank holidays.

my nephew loves coming here nice big park plenty to do the little coffee shop is great for a bite to eat or to get a coffee the staff are lovely though out Going to see the animals is always great fun there are plenty of them to see and a seating bit for when you bring a picnic or just fancy a wee seat it's reasonable priced and has a gift shop

The park itself is great for kids and seems fairly well maintained. The zoo is cute and good for the price. The only thing is the cafe has an extremely small indoor area so if the park is busy you may struggle to get sat down indoors

We've been going here for years now, and always enjoy our trip

Great day with the grandkids. Has been extended since last there.

Amazing animals zoo, great trails, with fun swing park, food and exercise to be had by all ages

Good place for small kids but you feel sorry for the animals in rather small cages

Took my granddaughter she loved it.

Went along with my Grandaughter and daughter in law. Very relaxed trip - animals, cafe, playground and walk down to the horseshoe falls. Playground was great for a newly active 20 month girl. Trip down to the horseshoe falls maybe should have been sign as challenging for pushchairs and small children as the steps are more like mantle pieces. There is another route which is all slope and far easier which I was delighted we stumbled upon for our route back.

Lovely location, especially for families with young children. Quiet and peaceful, a good place to chill.

My boyfriend and I visited the Calderglen Zoo on the 3rd of September 2024. We liked to see some animals from Africa and from South America but the place was very dirty, you can see they don't clean much, lots of spiderwebs and dirt on the roof...just not a lot of care put into the presentation of the Zoo. My first impression was that it was very confusing to follow the map and also some of the animal cages look very dirty, you also don't get to see some animals because they're so hidden. Not the best place I would recommend but it's definitely something you would want to see once and that's it. The café was absolutely lovely. We ordered some fries and they were delicious and super hot and fresh and the staff was so lovely and welcoming. I would definitely go back just for the café.

We saw very little animals or birds. They must hide during the day and all come out at night, the fish were visible

Would have been better if the enclosures were all full some were just lying empty and my granddaughter was a bit disappointed but she still enjoyed it

Great place to go with kids and gran kids

Lovely country park to take the kids out to it has a large play area and miniature Zoo to held keep them intertaind. There is a barbacue area and woodland trails that lead you down to the horse shoe waterfall. There is a stream were you can sit or take the kids or dog to to splash about overall this is a good day out for the family. Facilities there is ample parking a cafe withe toilets and or course a stall with ice cream.

Good little indoor bit with lizards and monkeys then a nice outdoor bit with more animals & birds. Not too big kids enjoyed it. Then a outdoor park, there is a cafe and a free carpark.

Brilliant for kids bring a picnic. Loads of walks

Nice Park enjoyed seeing the Meercats ,great park for kids

The animals look well looked after however it’s very small and doesn’t have much to offer for the price to get it.

Great wee day out for the kids and dog 🐕

Fab place! Park is free. Forest walks. Great play area of children of all ages. Wheelchair ♿️ Friendly good for buggies. Large open space for dogs and picnics. Small zoo £2 for children £4 for adults. Cafe on site. Wonderful place. Restrooms on site.

Was at a photography night last week at the zoo,Sam our keeper and guide was brilliant very knowledgeable and happy to answer questions,got up close to the animals we saw and all of them looked happy and settled,I would recommend a visit here for a day out with kids etc ,really enjoyed it, thanks Sam you do a great job

Good for kids as there is a wee zoo.

### Calderglen Country Park Review **Rating: ★★★★☆ (4/5)** Calderglen Country Park, located in East Kilbride near Glasgow, is a delightful escape into nature, offering a variety of activities for all ages. Here's a breakdown of what makes this park a must-visit: **Scenic Beauty: ★★★★☆** The park is a visual treat with its sprawling woodlands, picturesque Calderglen gorge, and the serene River Calder flowing through. The well-maintained gardens and the beautiful nature trails are perfect for leisurely walks and photography enthusiasts. **Wildlife & Nature: ★★★★☆** A highlight of Calderglen is its zoo, which, though small, houses a diverse collection of animals and birds, including meerkats, owls, and exotic reptiles. The zoo provides an educational experience for children and adults alike, promoting awareness of various species. **Facilities: ★★★★☆** The park boasts excellent facilities, including a children’s play area that is well-equipped and safe. The Conservatory, with its tropical plants and fishponds, is a tranquil spot to explore. There’s also a well-stocked gift shop and a charming café offering a range of refreshments and light bites. **Activities: ★★★★☆** For the more active visitors, Calderglen offers a range of activities. There are well-marked walking and cycling paths, making it ideal for fitness enthusiasts. The park also features a golf course and plenty of open spaces for picnics and games. **Accessibility: ★★★☆☆** While the park is generally accessible, some of the trails can be challenging for those with mobility issues. However, there are paved paths and accessible facilities available in certain areas, ensuring that everyone can enjoy the park’s main attractions. **Events & Community: ★★★★☆** Calderglen regularly hosts events and activities, particularly during holidays and weekends. From guided nature walks to family-friendly workshops, there’s always something happening to engage the community and visitors alike. **Conclusion:** Calderglen Country Park is a charming and versatile destination for a day out. Whether you’re seeking a peaceful retreat in nature, an educational trip with children, or an active outdoor adventure, this park offers something for everyone. With a few improvements in accessibility, it could easily earn a full five-star rating.

Great day out and great prices too. Took my nieces and nephew and they enjoyed it too especially the White-Crested Laughingthrush which imitates whistling noises you make. Afterwards we went to the play area which is free and great fun for the kids. Only thing is it gets busy so I would recommend brining a picnic blanket as all the benches were full. We went close to opening time and there was no issue with getting parking in the main car park but it was getting busy just a while later but they also have an overflow car park which is great.

If you have children then this is the perfect place for them. At 72 years old ,not the best place for me. The highlight for me was the small zoo tropical house and gardens.There are multiple play areas for kids which i didnt even venture into.Too much screaming, crying and bad behaviour and that was just me. An awful lot of walking.Going to the small waterfall in the glen is an arduous journey for the elderly which involves a descent on some ridiculously steep steps not for anyone with arthritic knees. River area at falls is not very nice.Water is scummy and dirty. Many dogs swimming in it. Wouldn't recommend it for children.No wonder the river is called the Rotten Calder.In short been to far nicer parks.For example nearby Strathaven Park or Rouken Glen.Courtyard cafe😱 well, there's another story.A shambolic nightmare of a place. As i said the park is great for children😳

Plenty for kids to do and walking trails

Great day out with kids costs nothing to enter park and only small fee to enter indoor zoo. Fantastic for kids

We went as a family of 4, 2 adults & 13yr old and 6yr. Got there for doors opening to the zoo at 10am - tickets were a total of £12 all together! Kids enjoyed seeing the animals and areas are clean, staff are friendly. Cafe is reasonably priced - we however brought a picnic Kids played for ages in the park before we went on one of the trails. Would definitely go again and would recommend for a cheap family day out!

Love it hear. Enjoy visiting the little zoo. The Courtyard Cafe and the park. My children are older, are 14 and 11 and we spent hours there.

This was a great park with a small zoo area. A £4 entrance fee so can't complain at that. There are several walking trails of different distances and terrain. Walking along the river was our choice and how lovely it was to. Nice cafe to finish with. There is a wonderful play park for children, gets very busy PM weekends.

Fantastic place to take the kids. The Zoo is cheap for a family of for it was £12, and there's enough animals both inside and outside, to keep the kids entertained for an hour or so. The play park is also good fun, with a few of the structures suitable for adults to join their children on, like the rope pyramid or giant slides. For the more out-doorsy type the trails around the park are a good way to get the kids started in hiking and orienteering. Overall a good day out for the whole family.

Great play park for the kids. But prices keep going up for the wee zoo not really worth it now, it use to be free!

Really good if you're looking for somewhere to take kids during school holidays plenty play grounds for all ages the small zoo is nice!

Excellent park and zoo with lots of animals, great to visit with kids.

Kids love the zoo which is inexpensive to enter. They also love the play park

Such a great place for a family day out and very reasonable if you are on a budget over the summer

Very clean and well-kept place. The low ticket price is nice. Large parking lot. I will definitely come back here. I had a nice time here with my family.

First time visit. Some very pleasant walks. Will go again.

Lots to do with playground for children, small zoo and lots of walking trails. Great place to take your dog.

Amazing, with something for everyone of every age and ability. What was really great was a disabled car park with a paved pathway suitable for wheelchairs down to the stream and the waterfall. The children's park was very busy, and there was plenty of space for several group games. We had some twenty children in our group and entertained themselves from about noon till just before seven pm. Children are unlikely to get bored here. It seemed that four footed visitors brought to the park were just as reluctant to leave the park as the children. One had a choice of a challenging walk from the waterfall or a more sedate route. All in all the walking trails were a delight, allowing one to leave a main group for peace and solitude screened by ample mixed vegetation of trees and bushes and yet quickly rejoin your group.

Great place to watch coaches getting damaged/stuck. The trees are so overgrown and hang onto the road so much coaches leave damaged The amount of schools that come here everyday. Take it nothing will be done until a window is smashed in and kids covered in glass 👍👍

Perfect for a walk with the family young or old!

Brilliant day out with lots to do. Nice walks, massive play areas for all ages and lovely views. Can get really busy but still enjoyable and no long queues or waits for anything.

Very clean and nice place to spend time with kids. Recommended to visit.

Amazing wee zoo for the money big park aswell free. And fairground attractions next to it .for kids teenagers. A Must go if u have kids .pic nic area in zoo and some outside!

Was nice day out with family. Play areas for kids of all ages. Walking trails, not massively accessible, however this didn't stop us all having a good time.

Lovely zoo great place for a walk

Perfect place for a family day out. Highly recommend

Excellent place for the kids however my day was spent at Torrance House golf course shooting a respectable 91.

The zoo is very small and doesn't take long to get around, it's very clean and they have a nice collection of cute animals. The country park is nice, but if you go on a warm day you'll struggle breathing from the amount of people having BBQs in the open spaces. Lots of hills and uneven paths so make sure you wear good shoes. Only downside is the location which obviously can't be changed, but if you're walking from the train station you'll be knackered before you even get there.

There are several things to do here (at least in the summer). There are sports matches like cricket in summer, and rugby in winter - free to spectate. There is some sort of a fitness centre? (Check first - I didn't investigate it). There is a small but fun zoo (check admission charge) with meerkats, monkeys, fish and laughing thrushes - and other assorted creatures. There is a selection of meandering riverside waymarked walks following the river Calder through mature woodland - in both directions. And waymarked trails nearer the visitor centre, with its cafe. The cafe is pretty much par for the course. Nothing exceptional, but you can sit outside in the courtyard and get a tan. The woodland walks are lovely in spring - with carpets of wild bluebells, celandines, dog mercury, rampions and other native woodland flowers. I'd expect they are pleasant walks in summer or autumn too. Note that it's not easy getting there by public transport - on foot or by car are the easier options. But the country park would make a pleasant enough day out for a family with children. When I was there there was a small fairground ride too, but it was too small for me. I saw some picknickers - and even a small group of young swimmers near one of the waterfalls!

Nice wee park, lots of walks, good slides for the wee ones and peaceful away from the main house/playground

Went on a rainy day so didn’t get the full experience but it was still lovely and we all had fun.

Small family friendly zoo. Not so many animals but grand kids enjoyed it. Skunk and mountain cat were MIA as usual. But good for the price. Was raining when I went so never got chance to use other amenities ie play park

Just visited Calderglen today and was surprised by the increase in prices. Now 4 pounds for adults and 2 pounds for kids. Given a number of animals were not available for viewing. Don't think it is a good value as previous.

Five stars is for park alone. The zoo is very rundown, years ago it was better looked after. I have concerns about the animals. Long tailed tamarind is housed with very little live/fresh vegetation/plants. Quite a few of the plastic variety. Meerkats enclosure also very poor. If this can't be funded to upgrade maybe it should be closed down.

Wet and muddy but still a good day out with grandkids

Beautiful expanse of land with marked walking trails, a zoo for kids and a playground with several fun options. Taking one of the trails was the highlight for me.

Great afternoon out with the young ones to keep them entertained priced well too

I think you need to put some markings on the floor at the zoo I came with my adult handicapable eldest daughter and younger daughter we were walking round inside and had to go out due to either having people shoving past or coming back in the exit door beside the meerkats we like the animals and got some good photos but it was all over and done within half an hour then we returned to car through the exit to car park and there was no real way of knowing how to get anywhere else except to exit would be great to have a map printed as I prefer to park and do some walking rather than trying to find where everything EXCEPT the zoo was on foot and there were quite a few people trying to go in the exit gates. Your emergency pull cords in handicapped toilets should reach to the floor as if somebody collapses that's where they need to reach it from

Visited the zoo today with my granddaughter and had such a nice time, plenty of animals to see both indoors and out in the garden area. Animals looked well cared for and everyone we met that worked there was very friendly and helpful, especially the young girl who is there on College placement, she took some close up videos of the meerkats for us that my granddaughter loves and gave us lots of information about them, so helpful and very much appreciated so please pass on my thanks to her. Overall a good day out with easy parking, lots to see and didn’t cost a fortune!

Nice place but the inside of the zoo was shut so we didn't get to go around everything. I would go back to see it all again though. Lovely walks through the forest as well and good parking.

We come here regularly with our kids and dog. The place is absolutely beautiful and the kids' play park is fantastic. The only complaint is that the coffee and food shop prices are ridiculous n not justifiable. Make and take lunch with you as there are plenty of benches and picnic tables around the whole park.

Good for long walks. Many well sign posted routes. Parking and cafe available. There is also a children's zoo in the park.

Pot holes everywhere broken trees just a mess

Nice place with lots of space and something for everyone...

Lovely park with walks by the river a "zoo" , golf club and cafe. Free parking.

Nice small park for wee family walk

Amazing park with lovely animals

Good cheap family day out here if you were to stay out of the cafe. Zoo onsite is very cheap, small but good value for money. Entry to the park itself is free snd so is the parking. The zoo has an adult £2 admission and kid £1 fee. The park is fairly well equipped to keep the kids entertained. We also went a walk to the "Falls" which never took long to reach but the decent up and down the hill is fairly steep with very oversized steps which could be dangerous for kids and very challenging for the elderly. We went to the cafe where I was £49 for 2 pizzas, 4 drinks and 3 cakes. All in all, good wee spot for a day out. Watch the road leading into it though as it is riddled with large potholes and take a picnic if you want to keep it a cheap day out.

Come here 😄 with my friend last Friday would recommend 😁 it

Great small zoo with extensive grounds and golf course attached

Had my great granddaughter here she enjoyed the small creatures there.The tropical part you enter first was a welcome relief as it was -2'c outside. It was a very cold day and we never hung about too long and spent a short time in the play area outside.Worth a visit. Unfortunately the cafe was closed this afternoon due to plumbing work.

Wee ones loved the zoo and playpark, great walks next to the river all rounded off with a visit to the courtyard cafe , thoroughly good day out

Fantastic Halloween event at the Courtyard Cafe! The atmosphere was amazing - we especially loved the hanging candles homage to the Great Hall at Hogwarts! The food was great and the drinks were fab. The service was brilliant as usual. We love this place.

Bbq area,play area from little to big,cheap zoo,nice cafe,walking trails.greay for family day out.

Great for the kids. Otters worth the visit.

Great experience, beautiful park,with mini zoo.Fantastic for kids, with plenty of play activities. Great walks, for everyone. Fantastic cafe. EV charging,with ample parking.

Nice place to visit with the grandkids

The wee zoo is great to take the kids to visit, all be it expensive for what it is. The kids park is big with different activities for all ages. Its a very busy place so get there a wee bit earlier to get parked. The food court was also very busy, we just had coffee and a mint tea in the seated area outside, there is seating inside and also under a big tent, as well as picnic tables outtside the food court. Dog friendly so remember to pick up after your dog please. The glen is a beautiful walk with your dog and children, I would wear proper shoes or wellies if its been raining as it gets muddy in places. If your an Outlander fan well this is where they filmed part of the episode blood of my blood with Jamie and his son willie. See if you can find the fiming spots. The wee shows were there which was very busy but the kids enjoyed including a climbing frame to keep them amused. Lots to see and do for a couple of hours.

Beautiful country park with a playground for kids and great for walking. Lovely coffee shop with friendly staff. Easy and free parking. On our first visit didn't get a chance to see the zoo as it was really busy hopefully on our next visit we can visit the zoo.

Visited today with my partner and 2 children, for £6 I was pleasantly surprised to find a wide variety of animals in the Zoo such as Monkeys, snakes, finch’s meerkats, chipmunks and prairie dogs to name a few, the kids had a great time interacting with the parrots and learning from the info on the enclosures. The garden area within the zoo is well maintained. We spent around 50 mins in the Zoo. The play park outside although is perhaps in need of some TLC, the kids a great time and no complaints from them. £6 well spent and will be visiting again in the future.