Cheeky Monkeys Playbarn, Cambridge

I was amazingly impressed by Cheeky Monkeys, and given it was half term and absolutely heaving, that says a lot. Yes, it's a soft play place, so it does all that you'd expect from one of those (big ball pit, slides, three stories of squidgy climby fun), but it's also got a good outside play area with a climb-on combine harvester (not a real one), a sandy area with lots of toy tractors to ride on, several play houses, slides and the like, as well as a soft fruit farm for jammy fun in the Summer (we went in October so not so good for us). There's a good cafe, although they were pretty overwhelmed the day we went, but the sandwiches, baked beans on toast, baked potatoes and the like were all freshly prepared and tasty and (relatively) reasonably priced. There was (I'm always impressed by this) a jug of tap water available for you to help yourself. The staff were clearly run off their feet, but nonetheless pleasant and friendly. We will definitely be back.

We used this play barn regularly until about two years ago. My children have now outgrown it (the soft play area is suitable for up to maybe age 8). It is a fantastic place for younger families, as there is also an outdoor play area, and is very popular for birthday parties. The food is looks quite good ( but the children have only eaten there at birthday parties). We still visit the play barn as it is adjacent to soft fruit fields and we always have an enjoyable couple of hours picking strawberries in the summer months, followed by an ice cream / tea. A great meeting place, with easy parking.