The Water Mill, Calbourne — Attraction in Calbourne

OK - so, let's get the positive out of the way: the water mill is impressive and if you're going to get any value out of the day you need to time your visit to coincide with the demonstration of the working mill.

However for what it costs (one adult with three young children = almost £20) it really doesn't represent value. And you have to pay on top for virtually everything else (like the boats or putting) so you really have to think twice before forking out on this. It looks good from the road, but the looks are deceiving.

As you arrive you are hustled by a gaggle of various birds who are all so 'tame' that they will crowd round you (Peacocks included) but have left their droppings everywhere for you to skip around (if you can). Perhaps they think this makes it seem more authentic, but I reckon they probably want to sell more seed.

You look for things to do - there are various outhouses they call 'museums' however most (apart from the army one) are more like salvage yard. Run down, rusting, badly organised, little signage and cluttered they are more dangerous than interesting to kids.

The pedalos are £5 more for half an hour going up and down a tiny bit of a river that feeds the mill and the golf / putting was obviously setup by someone who'd never played the game before. There's even a windmill which is also run down.

The whole place smacks of lack of care and attention. Much of the tidying is not about budget - it's about desire and elbow-grease.

It could be so much more, but as of June 2013, my...

Calborne Mill was a little bit disappointing, sadly. It holds a lot of promise but lets itself down in too many ways. First, we paid full price to get in even though the mill was broken. Now this would have been fine, we knew the score, if only it hadn't also been deserted. Because it was not operating there was no-one there to explain all the complex and no doubt interesting machinery as there would have been if it had been working, the video presentation wasn't operating, and the sparse labels were wholly insufficient. I've paid for this, no excuse not to keep the guided tour. There are also several buildings housing collections from the past; military, TVs, general bric a brac from the olde worlde days, and an old fire station. Interesting, but basically presented as if someone just bunged a lot of old stuff from people's attics on shelves. You have to pay extra if you want to play the crazy golf, which wouldn't have been so bad if they'd bothered to brush it down in the last year, and removed the leaves from the course. Looked neglected. All very pretty and has potential, but feels thrown together, amateurish and lackadaisical. Might be worth it when the mill is...

What a special place Calbourne Water Mill is. This property is truly worth a visit as one of the key attractions on the island. Visitors can enjoy a good 2-3 hours here, marvelling at the historic 1000 year old working water mill (possibly the oldest in the UK?) together with a small, very well thought out and considerate war museum and a collection of antique rural and farm equipment. There is also a short stretch of canal where you will meet all sorts of friendly water birds and peacocks; you can hire a pedalo; relax in the lovely surroundings with a cream tea or one of the truly scrumptious selection of cakes made with Calbourne Mill's own flour and other home cooked favourites. Prices are very reasonable and the service is first class. Definitely excellent value for money for families of all ages. There are even a few amazing, luxury eco houses and cottages on site if you want to immerse yourself in this delightful, rural retreat for longer. I visited Calbourne this past weekend and would like to thank all the staff for their courtesies, friendliness and for the lovely food. I will be back...