Keswick, Cumbria
The Hutton family have farmed at Springs since 1924, and the tour is a farm safari on an accessible passenger trailer: out to feed the Highland cows, then Herdwick sheep, lambs in season, pygmy goats, KuneKune pigs and the beef herd, with the farmers talking you through it. It runs at 11.45 on Saturdays and Sundays for up to 16 people, takes about an hour and a quarter, and ends with a free drink in the cafe.
At £24.50 an adult and £14.50 a child it is not cheap, and it is booked, not drop-in. But it is a real working farm under a mile's walk from the centre of Keswick, and the tour gets you out among the animals to feed the Highland cows rather than looking over a fence. The cafe and shop, Annie's Pantry, open 10 to 4 except Mondays and Fridays.
What it costs: Farm tour: adults £24.50, under 16s £14.50, under 3s £5. Tour about 75 to 90 minutes, maximum 16 people, includes a drink in the cafe afterwards. Parking free with a tour.
A working farm on the edge of Keswick: a tractor trailer tour past the Highland cows, sheep, pigs and goats, then crafts, face painting and a Santa visit with gifts in the cafe. Only two adults per child fit on the trailer, spare grown-ups wait in the cafe, which in a Keswick December is not the worst job.
Worth knowing: Under 3s limited to one per adult on the trailer.
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