Stonham Barns Park in Mid Suffolk

Great place for food and refreshments and an array of shops including antiques

I recently had a wonderful weekend outing at Stonham Barns Park with my family, including my 8-year-old son and 2-year-old daughter. We took the bus from Ipswich Old Cattle Market bus station on the 116 route to Debenham. The bus was not crowded, and the scenic views along the way made for a pleasant journey. However, since the bus runs every two hours, I highly recommend taking the first bus in the morning and planning to use the last bus for the return trip to maximize our time in the park. Stonham Barns Park has a camping site for caravans and plenty of parking, making it very accessible. We started our day at the kids' amusement park. The park was not too busy during this season, so my children had plenty of opportunities to enjoy the rides, finishing with an awesome dashing car ride that they loved! Although we didn’t have enough time to explore everything, I noticed there are other exciting amusements available, including adventure golf, foot-pool and pirate foot-golf. There’s also an owl and meerkat sanctuary, which I would love to visit next time! We tried both breakfast and lunch at Café 24. The breakfast was delicious, and the lunch was sumptuous and satisfying. After our meal, we explored the small shops in the area, which offered a wide range of items, from garden supplies and antiques to arts, books, vintage treasures, and plenty of fun items for kids. Additionally, there was a village store and other small shops where we could grab drinks and snacks. Overall, it was a great experience to spend quality time with my family in a less crowded atmosphere. I noticed that the park tends to get busier when shows are scheduled, so I’m looking forward to visiting again when there are events happening. Stonham Barns Park is definitely a fantastic spot for a family day out!

If you’re in a wheelchair don’t bother! Our visit started well with a nice lunch in the cafe but after that was a huge disappointment. I use a powered wheelchair and could get into less than a third of the shops. Even the information point had steps. In the 21st century ramps should be a given and doors should be wide enough The shops we did get into were tatty. Oh and…. Where were the barns. I saw lots of metal sheds but no barns. Dreadful.

Nice enough meal.and then good old crazy golf...

Great shops, antiques shops, reclamation yard, industrial furniture repurpose store & cafe.

Bootsales can be great obviously depending on the weather, public toilets are a absolute shambles floor feels like its going to cave in,in some areas, water or pee all on the floors and not maintained properly….however the shopping village is very disappointing besides GG trading cards and collectables who’s a absolute legend and has a great taste in music 😏

Parking is awkward for shopping as it is a bit of a distance, the carpark is also dark in the winter and not a pleasant walk. Toilets are rundown, not the cleanest and smell quite badly. Most of the shops are closed during the week and are crammed in.

Good food friendly staff good service reasonably priced

Great place to mooch around, some shops with really interesting stuff

Unfortunately quite disappointed, very few shops & lunch at the large cafe wasn't very tasty & not good coffee.

Went to swedefest, was very well set out

Popped into Hemmingstone Frames to pick up a couple of items and they NEVER disappoint! Definitely coming back.

Good swedefest event .Excellent facilities . Food was a good price. All staff friendly .

Strange mix of independent shops.

Never again! Visited the Autumn Craft Market. I think there were 8 stalls. The permanent shops are full of toot.

My first visit to Stonham Barns, and I was amazed at the size of the attraction. There was a Car Boot on as well, but I was not visiting all the stalls until I returned back to the car later, but they all cleared off by lunchtime, so did not get a chance. The individual shops which are wooden shed type units, were varied and interesting. The Teapot cafe was a delight, lovely friendly staff, and reasonable prices, which is nice, especially when a family all eat and drink...which can be very expensive. The fair attractions, we're not operating at the time we arrived, but started up after lunchtime. Good rides for all age groups and rock n roll music playing through speakers, to get us in the mood for fun. Unfortunately the Marquee housing the Craft Market, was not very interesting, but the goods on display, mainly candles, wooden items, frames, etc, ideal if you want to start Christmas Shopping. I found the prices a bit expensive. All in all, a nice place, which I will visit again. I was not able to afford the £11.00 per person to see the Owls, but did support the cause by buying a toy one for £4.99. I'm sure the special events coming up will be popular, and parking is free, so I would recommend this place.

We went the wrong time, most of it closes at 4 but we did have a delicious snack!

Nice cafe and shops, lots going on throughout the year.

Always a good car show at Stonham Barns. I go for the American car shows and display my own. Very friendly staff. Only downside is trying to contact them. Pre booking your ticket is slightly cheaper, but they very happily accept you on the day as well.

Pretty amazing place... The shops are fab to look around...pretty unique... The cafe/restaurant is superb. This weekend is the Viking Festival... Looking very entertaining.

I appears to almost all be so called antiques which is ok if that's what you want.

Great Sunday roast and adnams beer. Carboot now open Sundays and Thursday. Lots of antiques

Not many outlets open. Rather quiet. Parking near. Had a drink at cafe & walked around antique outlet.

I have been coming here several times this year for its boot sale, event days, and shopping village. With each of my trips have l have also the delicious cakes and food in the cafe on site. I would highly recommend coming here!

Great shops and things to do with the kids but as a camping site, it was shocking. Electric hook ups all tightly packed together with both tents and caravans. Sewage smell coming from the toilet blocks. Not cleaned regularly and shower water pressure was non existent. We will not be visiting again unfortunately.

Loved it here especially the antiques, free car park and to enter, lots of shops and tea rooms, garden center, crazy golf.

Great little 9 hole footgolf pitch all the family had a good laugh

Lovely place to visit, plenty to see, but the owl sanctuary was too expensive to visit

Nice place to spend a few hours. Plenty of free parking. Lots to see and do. Much improved in the last few years. Lovely fishing lakes. Owl sanctury and meercats well worth seeing. Good variety of craft style shops and excellent cafe. Crazy golf for the kids. Plenty to do school holidays. Boot sale Sundays

The toilets stink as you enter shopping area from car park - you definitely don't feel like eating there or even returning.

Gr8 place for all the family, camping, clamping, funfair, golf shopping, drinking & eating !

Had a stroll round all the different shops, nice friendly people.

Lovely place to visit. The foot golf and mini golf are great fun, the independent businesses are great with so much to offer. We also visited the circus. The food is fresh with quite a good menu, just regular food, nothing fancy. Perfect place for families.

Some interesting shops and pleasant coffee stop.

Visited the Big Bus Show Great venue the weather really helped well organised show

We arrived just before 4pm. Most of the retail units were already closed.

There on Monday August 5th. Specifically for the adventure golf. Really enjoyable it's a pirate themed crazy golf course with captain Jack Sparrow at the entrance great for a photo shot of the grand kids. Great place but takes a bit of time for younger ones. Lots of the shops closed on Mon and Tues. Had lunch at the cafeteria which was really good and value for money staff were friendly and efficient. Service was good and fast. Kids had a great time and would do it again.

Unexpectantly good food and service. Not as cheep as a Greg’s but good quality drinks and food. We will stop there again on route for Suffolk cost

Always a fun day out, mini golf is good and the cafe on-site is lovely, although it's a bit more pricey in comparison to the last couple years.

What a fantastic place lots to do,and lovely people

Played foot golf. Loved it, very enjoyable for all the family. Plus plenty more to domjere than golf A*

Excellent place to visit with a good variety of shops. The bumper cars were a blast and took me and my Adult kids back to our youth

Lovely place tea shop very nice

Only when in the cafe good food but expensive

We had a great time with family and friends! I recommend!

Absolute gem of a campsite in the heart of Suffolk. 1st time stay at the weekend and won't be the last .... stayed in the campervan on touring field .on arrival was greeted with a warm welcome by a lady who informed us it was her 1st day at her new job ... well big commendation to her she showed us personally onto where we could pitch up for the weekend. She said where everything is and where our event was being held as we were there for the vauxfest event. Great site excellent staff brilliant facilities and shops except for the small grocery store on site .not a good experience at all ...

Various shops with antique and collectible items. Many shops are closed during the week. Owl park neat, lots of owls, but it was too hot so no air show

Never been here before and saw while travelling home from Leiston, ..... lots of interesting shops and seconds shops...the reason I gave a 4 was because unfortunately not all were open. At least I managed to pick up some books and hubby bought a picture

Very disappointed as most of the businesses were closed

Interesting visit. Lots of bespoke shops, cafe really good. Owl sanctuary excellent.

Lovely campsite when not busy. We stayed while there weren't any shows on but have been told it gets extremely busy during show weekends which is expected to be honest. Fun fair was on site during our stay which is great for the kids even though a little pricey. Shower blocks and elsan point etc was pretty close to our pitch. Showers take a little time to warm up but we generally use our shower in the tourer anyway. Very friendly and welcoming staff. Will definitely be returning.

Loved it beautiful little shops

We played the 18 hole crazy golf and it was excellent 👌 the kids and the Mrs also enjoyed it. I would definitely visit again

Much bigger and more there then I remember. Plenty of parking and good size car boot sale on certain day/s. Some nice little outlets to look around and a nice good size restaurant where food is good price and well served.

Such a shame , nice enough place but many shops empty, the place could do so much more it has a nice cafe , free large car park just need fresh sellers

Very dissapointing. We called on a wet Monday thinking it would be a good place to kill the day and enjoy lunch at the Cafe 24 but was totally put off by the below par toilets at the entrance plus most of the shops and attractions were closed

Firstly huge thanks to Sandra. Our camping holiday elsewhere was cancelled so we went onto the Stonham Barns website the day before we came to you but it said it was all booked up for electric point pitches for tent camping so we took a shot and called and explained that we needed a last minute booking. Sandra bent over backwards to help us. There were pitches still free with electric points so why the website said you were fully booked I don't know. I explained that one of my daughters is high level ASC (Autism Spectrum Condition) with Hypermobilty which is why we needed a certain kind of space if possible with the electric point which Sandra totally took on board and helped us with. Upon arrival a member of staff from the pottery place happened to be free and showed us where to go and then Sandra made sure we were settled and happy. Everytime I saw Sandra during our stay she was either cleaning the WC and shower facilities to keep them maintained especially due to all the heavy rain and mud people were trekking in as well as asking guests how she could help and telling them how to get hold of her if they needed her. I've worked in customer service for 25 years and honestly I'd hire someone like Sandra in a heartbeat, it's very rare to get someone on staff who cares like that. When the heavy rain came and we had heavy puddles around our tent she and her husband even offered their free time off duty to help us move if we wanted to! Now that's going the extra mile for customer service. The only reason we've not given four stars is because there was limited activities for my SEN daughters needs, as she has special education needs, AKA SEN like most places there is not enough for her to do. The campsite play area was to basic, the fairground was closed, the owl sanctuary does not appeal and the activities in the holiday park did not suit her needs but they did for my other two daughters. If you would like tips and advice on how to improve service for SEN customers I'm full of ideas and happy to be contacted, many places we've been to have asked me to do this as I often have to mention this in the reviews I leave. Good value for money though, the campsite was clean and well organised. Thank you, we'll likely be back next year.

Absolutely lovely place to visit, we are fortunate enough to live only miles away so we visit quite often. Lots of amazing shops with friendly sellers and lovely food / coffee on site. Carboot sales, gardening centre, antiques, toy shop and more 😊 Give it a go you won't reget it 😊

A lovely place to spend an afternoon with a few shops to walk around, a nice cafe and lots of things for the kids to do. Yheybhve added a few more shops, so well worth a few hours of your day!

The shops here are great, from toys, plants, collectables and gift. Something for everyone and at good prices too. The Owl Sanctuary is amazing. The only down side is the price of the rides! Too much for our pockets.

It's got a lot more to see and do from a couple.of years ago.

Great car boot, on site shops are good, toilets could do with an update maybe!

We went to a motorcycle show. Could have done with more stall holders. Hundreds of bikers turned up. Well worth a visit. Avoid on a Monday as most vendors are closed.

An okay place, nothing special.

Great theatre space and barns. Enjoyed Belly Dance workshopd and Hafla (party). There are shops and cafes on site and accommodation too. Well worth a visit for a day or mini break.

Lots to see, good shops and restaurant, obviously the Owl sanctuary is well worth a visit.

We went into the architectural reclamation yard and the antiques centre. They both had interesting items, well worth a visit.

We visited Stonham Barns with our grandchildren aged 4 and 2. We all loved the Owl Sanctuary, the flying displays and the overall care given to the park. We were sadly disappointed that the indoor soft play no longer exists despite being advertised on the totem pole at the entrance and apparently hasn't been there for some time. After nearly an hours drive we had two disappointed children that needed to let off steam before lunch and found that the inflatable cushion was deflated as well and the little fun park was not open possibly due to it being early season? The retail Village with its lovely little shops was impressive.

Nice place went for adventure golf, try not to play after its rained due to the course holding lots of water which make it harder to play but was still very good and had fun

A nice few hours spent wandering around the bird sanctuary. Well kept enclosures and clean. We will certainly return with grandchildren. Highly recommended. Only marked down as needs a few more signs and work being carried out on new enclosures.

A fabulous full day out. Loved the owl sanctuary, entrance price a little steep, but helps towards the upkeep of the birds, so didn't mind! Staff were passionate about the birds which came across. Garden Centre great. Parking wardens friendly and helpful, all in all would definitely recommend a visit.

Love this place. Always find a unique piece or two!

Lovely little walk around - the shops that are there are mostly, if not all, small businesses which have lovely owners and employees. Although we didn’t eat in the cafe it all looked to a really good quality and not overly pricey. I think it could benefit from the rest of the shops filling out or maybe a park for kids to play in - as the activities (foot golf and mini golf) there are more for older children 5+. Looking forward to visiting the owl sanctuary next time as it was a bit on the pricey side for a quick family day out.

We go to a local picture framer. He has a very interesting shop here. Highly recommend him. We have always been happy having a mouch around his shop. Unusual bits and pieces. Stonham Barns Park. Have some great shows at the weekends. A park where you can stay. Highly recommend

Have been there a couple times. Mini golf is fun, although a bit simple in places - a lot of repetition. The range of antique and book shops is amazing, though. Always some great finds there. A good place to go for an afternoon.

Great place to stop off at Good value breakfast with frendly staff

Always an enjoyable visit. Good food and an eclectic assortment of shops combined with plenty of parking.

Plenty of fun to be had especially in good weather

Quite an interesting place with more than it seems facilities. However at my visit which was over Christmas, fewer stalls were open other than an impressive antiques shop the place was literally dead another visitor said. The parking is free and adequate, toilets clean, well signed directions post. Over a warmer season it's definitely a kids heaven.

Very surprised by the amount of antiques to look at! Loads of cool little shops and even a cracking owl sanctuary!

We took the children to see santa and we were really impressed, the value for money was fantastic. The layout was good and lots of deformations, it was time slots so it wasn't too bust. Our children are 12,9 and 1, they all had a good time. The way out afterwards was a little bit of a downer as it leads straight into a pub but no signs to get out, so we had a drink lol The best thing was the santa, he was by far the best we've seen, he was so attentive, interacted well with the children and his outfit looked really good quality. If you have him again next year we will definitely be back.

It's okay but unfortunately for us a large number of outlets were closed the week before Christmas. Will come back again at a weekend. The owl sanctuary looked good. Village store was good as was the old fashioned sweet shop. Plenty of free on site parking too.

Saw santa this year. Lovely place, all staff friendly and enthusiastic for the kids. Plenty of other things to do there too

My 5 year old granddaughter loved her breakfast with Santa and the elves.

stoneham Barnes, sign posted easy to find big car park. Lots of shops and stalls. Antiques gifts, candles, public toilets restaurant cafe/ o. Sanctuary donkey sanctuary fishing ponds caravans sales caravan park just a lovely afternoon to walk around and look at different things before Christmas. Had a lovely roast dinner at the cafe. £9,95 bargain for a full roast dinner. We had turkey. Absolute lovely. We didn't have to book walking. very nice. They found us a table straight away. Clean, tidy, lovely place to have dinner,

Have stayed here and just gone for the day for events. Really good lots to do

Pretty poor selection. Had a power cut and made purchases limited. Felt a bit disjointed.

Known this place since childhood. Definitely alot of recent improvements made to the site and it's more attractive than it use to be. You can see the difference being made. You can holiday here, play golf, go fishing, visit the owl sanctuary, go to the garden centre, visit Bloomfield's fun fair, visit the antique shops and various other independent trades people on site. You have a general store ( small ), post office and other facilities. The car park does need to still be improved but I'm sure it's in the plans somewhere. The owner is making it better that's for sure. Worth a day out, or holiday if you aren't local

Things are improving here ... we're local and have visited many times over the years. On our most recent visit, there was a lot more to see, especially the new enlarged antique centre. Worth a visit if you're in the area.

Went to get our dog groomed. Very good friendly service

Had a great time here looking around all the variety of shops etc. Well worth a visit

Good crazy golf and the Owl Sanctuary was excellent

Unfortunately the prices of some of the places here are crazy and whilst it was ok to have a walk around the site, it puts people off going into the places. Teapot pottery for a pasty is around £4.50 and to buy a takeaway can of coke is around £3.00. The funfair is also expensive. However mini golf is really good and reasonably priced at £7 a person, or you can include footgolf for £12 and they have a half price Halloween deal on at the moment. The Birds of Prey center is also fantastic and highly recommended. Whilst I enjoy Stonham barns park I have rated three stars as there could be more for us to do and a children’s play area, picnic benches and wildlife walking routes with wild flower meadows would encourage people to stay longer.

Went to shopping village. Discovered it after going to a weekend event. Such a nice place to have a wander round. Love Aspal Antiques, such a variety of items.

Never been here before, passed by many times so thought we would finally drop in. Several places were closed, not too surprised as it was midweek out of season. Several interesting small businesses to browse. Would like to come back and visit the owl sanctuary at some point. Worth a visit .

Aspal antiques a great place to buy my models

Really love this place, everything was nice from the staff to the service and obviously the food too!! One thing I noticed is that even with it moderately busy, they had plenty of staff working. Very rare these days!!! There wasn't a wait for anything and always a staff member to meet your needs.

This place was brilliant. Only went for the antique shops but there is a shop which sells dog equipment so bought a car harness. Some shops were not open so perhaps at the weekend it would be even better! Something for everyone here

Stonham barns is a great place to take the little ones and also has a great pottery shop we friendly stuff. Also they have foot golf there and good course to have a walk around

Amazing place to see the birds. Bird show is 10/10