Royal Gunpowder Mills — Attraction in Epping Forest

I had been recommended the Royal Gunpowder Mills by a friend, and with the kids now a slightly bit older we decided it would be worth a try. It's only open to visitors a couple of times a month on a Sunday, and on our visit from 11am to 4pm.

We got there at 11am as it opened, there is a big sign as you come off the main road, but the site is located at the end of the drive once you have driven past all the housing. Car park is a fair size, and the entrance is located to the right once you have got into the car park.

Once you have gone in, it's probably worth getting yourself booked on to the tractor ride. It leaves at specific times. We went straight towards the miniature railway which took us up the site to the gunpowder mill railway. Again, there are some set timings for this, but when we got there we pretty much had the train to ourselves. The railway takes passengers for a ride further up the site, stops and then comes back again. We managed to see the deer as well as bits of the site. The guys running the railway did a fab job at showing us all about the railway, and even let the young 'uns sit in the main cab.

The tractor ride was incredibly informative and really gave a good idea of how big the place truly is (massive!) and how much history is here (loads!) Again you get to see the deer, and lots of the old buildings - lots of areas are covered in greenery where nature has taken over. The kids were also given a sheet of things to look out for on the journey.

At lunch we popped back to the car to get our picnic and sat at the benches next to the play area (obstacle course / zip line). There is an area where you can get a free tea / coffee - as well as toilets if required. Post lunch, we went to create some rockets and had a little competition to see who's rocket could go the furthest - kids enjoyed this! (Well, the adults did too!)

After the rockets, we went to look around the exhibition and armoury. Lots to read here, and kids did do a few little interactive games (mixing the substances at the factory etc.) but they weren't quite so keen to stand and read! The armoury was literally a room full of different guns, rifles etc.

When we came out of the exhibition, we just had time to have another trip on the railway. The volunteers were great and radio'd up to ensure we would catch it on time! Once our second trip on the railway was finished it was closing time... we had been there all day!

We thought the dedication and hard work by the volunteers was great - we even thought about volunteering ourselves, but it's a bit of a journey away! (Although if they ever do a family volunteering day where the kids can get involved, we would certainly...

A visit over the Bank Holiday weekend with our grandsons, 6 and 3, turned out to be an amazing hit. We had done some research but weren’t quite sure what to expect although we had earmarked the 30-minute tractor ride around the site, the rocket-making and the science sessions. On arrival, we found all the staff and volunteers to be friendly, enthusiastic and very efficient. Your entry enables each person to have either a tractor or miniature train ride and there is a booking point near the wonderfully named Rocket Roundabout. This booking system helps you to plan your day and prevents long queues forming and it is nicely done. The ride was very informative although the boys were more interested in spotting deer in what is now a nature reserve than learning about the history of the site which dates back to 1665. Perhaps next time! Many of the buildings are early to mid-20th century, are grade listed and have not been renovated, much of the grounds being returned to nature. The outdoor science sessions by “Professor Nitrate” were utterly brilliant and are, it must be stressed, an absolute must. Combining science, fun experiments and a lot of humour which worked for both children and adults, it was a dazzling display. In fact, the boys insisted on watching the two different sessions twice. The inclusion of this feature is inspired thinking by the RGM team. Similarly entertaining and educational was the rocket making. Fortunately pneumatically and not chemically powered, these also proved very popular with the children [and thus with us!] and the lady supervising was both kind and patient as the boys kept on launching them. Another good idea, well executed. Some time in the Rocket Vault was very informative and interesting, not least because of the volunteer there at the time was very informative indeed. The boys loved the zip line play area and we spent quite a lot of time there. In fact, the whole day just flew past and I don’t think we saw even half of what is on offer. Another trip will thus be planned and we are looking forward to it already. The Gunpowder Mills have only opened again recently following a 2-year closure and, in our opinion, form a very much unknown and underrated gem less than 10 minutes off the M25. We really enjoyed our visit and, as mentioned, will return. All involved are to be congratulated. Highly...

I visited with my two children and another family, on an open day during the summer holidays. There were varied activities for the kids (rocket making/launching, tie dying, slime making and nature crafts) as well as the train that runs further up along the grounds. It was a really nice day out without the extensive crowds that you often find with children’s activities in the holidays! When booking the tickets I noticed that numbers were capped quite low so I can’t imagine it would ever be uncomfortably busy.

Having a mixture of fun activities for children alongside the educational side of the small museum and exhibitions was a good balance. They particularly enjoyed role playing in the village shop with ration books! I would say the open day activities etc are probably most suited for children under 10 (which all of ours were).

We also saw some beautiful deer and the children enjoyed the playground as well. Everything was staffed by volunteers (I think) giving up their time to run it.

Drinks and snacks in the cafe were very well priced - i bought ice lollies for 5 children for barely more than the price you’d pay for one at an ice cream van!! We brought a packed lunch with us as suggested on the website - I don’t think there is much in the way of food other than snacks available in the cafe.

All in all a nice day out, something a bit different and easy to drive...