Review – Bear Creek Adventure Golf at Rivenhall Oaks Golf Centre

We LOVE a game of Mini Golf in this household – it’s not a trip to Alton Towers without a visit to the ‘Extraordinary Golf’ they have there. Up until recently the choice of mini golf in and around Essex has been pretty sparse. However, there has been a handful around now, not least Bear Creek Adventure Golf at Rivenhall Oaks Golf Centre. We had a few hours spare on Saturday morning so thought we’d take a trip to see how Bear Creek Adventure Golf was.

Location

Bear Creek Adventure Golf is part of Rivenhall Oaks Golf Centre which is on the outskirts of Witham in Essex. The Rivenhall Oaks Golf Centre has a new housing development being built outside it, so some of the roads might not match your sat nav. There are signs for Bear Creek Adventure Golf to help though (although I missed one and ended up in a building site!). You’ll see ‘Bear Creek’ as soon as you get into the car park. There is a little hut where you pay, and collect a scorecard, clubs and balls. If the hut is closed (as it was when we arrived), you can pay in the ‘Club Shop’

How much does Bear Creek Adventure Golf Cost?

Bear Creek Adventure Golf has 12 holes, and you don’t have to book – pricing is split into three categories :

Grizzly (adult 14+) – £7.50
Cub (4-13 yrs) – £5.50
Teddy (under 4 yrs) – £2.50

There are discounts for families and groups

Family (2 adults + 2 children or 1 adult + 3 children) £20.00
Group (4 adults) £25.00

It’s open Monday to Friday 10am to 8pm and Saturday and Sunday 10am to 6pm

What’s Bear Creek Adventure Golf like?

Sometimes mini golf courses are tacked on to places as a bit of extra revenue, and left to rot. My first impressions of Bear Creek Adventure Golf is how well kept it is. It looks like it was built (it was finished in Summer 2016). Each hole is very well cared for, and the theming has been well maintained. Most of the holes are relatively straightforward so it’s not overly complicated for little ones to enjoy it. However there are some more interesting holes, where, for example you have to get your ball across ‘Bear Creek’, or another where you have to get the ball under a ‘minecart’ and into the ‘Gold Mine’.

The holes balance the fine line of being difficult enough to keep your interest, but easy enough so they aren’t frustrating. Both myself and Mrs Hakes got a ‘hole in one’ too!

At the end of the course there’s a bear shaped cave with a waterfall, plus there’s a raft that you have to use to cross the ‘creek’. Whilst it’s not a massive course – the 12 holes don’t feel too cramp or on top of each other.

Overall

We had a great time at Bear Creek Adventure Golf. We got there for about 10.30am on Saturday and had the course to ourselves. It was great, because we didn’t feel hurried or rushed to play through. As we were finishing the last few holes, more people were arriving, and it was getting busier. So if you want a more relaxed game, get there early! The 12 holes took us about 45 minutes. The prices are reasonable, and in line with similar places in Essex, and the staff we dealt with were great and very friendly too. If you’re looking for something fun to do in Essex I can’t recommend Bear Creek Adventure Golf enough. Just note that the course is very open, and there’s not much shade – so make sure you’ve got suncream on!