Go Ape is the UK’s number one adventure company. We recently completed their Whinlatter course and bring you our honest review. There are 5 courses in total and each has a range of different obstacles to manoeuvre including rope swings, tunnels, zip wires, Tarzan swings and much more. But, is it worth doing?
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What Is Go Ape?
Go Ape is the UK’s number one adventure company. Their activities include the tree top challenge as well as forest Segway safaris. They have 34 locations around the UK and we opted for Go Ape Whinlatter, which is located within the Lake District, around 15 minutes from Keswick.
How To Book Go Ape
Our friends Callum and Stephany suggested the idea of Go Ape after recently doing one on another trip. We both jumped at the chance. Emma has wanted to do one for years and never found the opportunity to do it.
It cost £27 per person with a discount for booking on a Sunday. We thought this was a reasonable price as it would take around 2-3 hours to make our way around the course and would fill a full afternoon. We recommend you book in advance to guarantee your place. Book over on the Go Ape site, here.
On Arrival
Go Ape doesn’t own the car park at the site. The car park was for all visitors to both Go Ape and Whinlatter Forest. We panicked at this point due to it getting to close to our starting point of 1pm. Callum dropped us off and we went to the kiosk to let them know he was trying to find a parking space. The Go Ape staff are great and are aware that this happens frequently and they would wait for us. Callum did manage to get a space in the car park luckily and came up to meet up at the desk.
Once we had checked in, we got kitted up in our harnesses and were shown the ropes. (HA, get it.) We were taken to a small training area where we were shown how to attach ourselves to each obstacle. This wasn’t too difficult to get the hang of and once the Go Ape staff member cleared us, we moved to another area to give it all a try. The staff member watched us on this bit and also followed our group around the course which put our minds at rest.
Treetop Challenge
That was that, we were off. We started making our way through the course swinging from obstacle to obstacle. From the waiting area, the platforms in the trees didn’t seem so high. Once you’re up there it feels like you’re on top of the world.
Emma, Stephany and Callum all absolutely loved it, but poor Michael hated it. After Ghyll Scrambling the day before and the incident at the waterfall, Michael lost his confidence in attaching himself to the wires and doubted that they were safe every time, he had the fear. He did manage to every obstacle but didn’t enjoy it as much as the others. He still agreed that it was a great experience but he wouldn’t be rushing back! (Emma on the other hand wants to book again!)
There are 5 courses in total and each has a range of different obstacles to manoeuvre including rope swings, tunnels, zip wires, Tarzan swings and much more. Although you’re high up in the trees you are always attached and safe. Kids can also join in at Go Ape, making it a fun, family experience. Kids between 10-15 years old who are 1.4 metres in height can be supervised by one adult.
Is Go Ape Worth Doing?
It was such an amazing few hours and definitely worth doing. We would definitely recommend this for adrenaline junkies and families looking for a different kind of activity to enjoy when visiting the Lake District.
