"Let’s go for a weekend away", is what many people may say on a Wednesday night after they have had a full on day at work. Realising a weekend away is exactly what the family needs.
That was the conversation between my wife, Tash, and I after we had put our little one, Charli, to sleep for the night. We were after a weekend away to a place that we hadn’t travelled to before as a family. The location we landed upon was Shepparton.
Our next challenge was that we were after accommodation for ourselves and our newest family member, Max - a 10-week old Labrador puppy! (queue the aww card now)
Immediately our search was pet friendly accommodation in Shepparton. BIG4 Shepparton Park Lane Holiday Park is the place we came across and we were certainly happy with the available accommodation that allow pets. So we booked it in and we were off on the Friday night after work.
After a lengthy drive across the state, which included eating dinner in the car as well (what’s a holiday without a cheeky Macca’s stop?!), we arrived at the holiday park. We had previously phoned ahead to inform the receptionist that we would be checking-in late, to which she explained the process and also went to the extra effort of putting the heater on for us so our cabin was cosy and warm when we arrived.
After a quick unpack, we settled into bed looking to greet the next day. Saturday morning was a cool and crisp one but the sun was out and we were up by 6am. With a toddler and puppy, we certainly where not getting any sort of sleep in! We had breakfast and then decided to tackle the day.
We began the day with a trip into Shepparton, which was a convenient five-minute drive down the highway. We drove around just having a look at what the town had to offer, and one thing we noticed was all the cow statues with different artwork on them. It was certainly something our Charli loved and happily pointed out as we drove past. We stopped off for a coffee and a babycino at BelCibo, before heading to the shops to grab some food for our stay.
We ventured back to the park to explore what was on offer and to just … chill (or at least the version of chill with a toddler and puppy). The BIG4 Shepparton Park Lane Holiday Park had everything we needed to entertain Charli and Max. Our little one certainly enjoyed the jumping cushion! She hadn’t been on one before so this was a new and exciting adventure. After we tired ourselves out on that (or I did after bouncing with an extra 12kgs), we explored the tyre maze and outdoor playground.
By this stage the morning frost had disappeared and Charli was able to run amuck around on the playground. It was great to see the camp kitchen and BBQ area were right next to the playground. After the playground, we moved onto the giant jenga. Charli took some great delight in watching the tower fall over. Needless to say after five or six times of re-building it, Dad was certainly over it, we had a quick look at the games room which would be superb for older kids as it had a pool table and table tennis set up and ready to go.
During lunch Tash and I did some research on things to do in the area. One of the top things was the SPC Kidstown Adventure playground, so we set off after our meal to explore it.
A very popular playground as it was a hive of activity with many families enjoying the winter afternoon sun. It was a fantastic playground, but do note that dogs are not allowed in the park. So Tash and I took it in turns of minding Max out the front. Mind you, he got lots of pats and attention so certainly felt loved. One of the highlights was the massive long tube slides. Charli and I had our fair share of goes on them. With multiple area’s to play on we could have spent the whole afternoon there.
On our way back we decided to stop off at Victoria Park Lake. Iif you know the town, it’s the big lake in the middle of Shepparton. We got to feed the ducks whilst Max wanted to jump in and say hello to them. We continue to walk around the lake which also included some games of hide and seek until, we saw another playground.
After we returned back to the holiday park we were thinking on what to do with dinner. We decided to settle into our cabin and grab some takeaway Thai from Aloi Thai. We got Charli to bed and then decided to just sit and relax on our bed with some reading before hitting the hay.
Sunday morning was another cold and frosty one, but the sun was still shining. Charli and I took Max for a walk around the park before returning for breakfast. After breaky we decided to pack the car and get ready for our departure home. We quickly snuck in another go on the jumping cushion and then went to check out. We grabbed a barista made coffee from the coffee bar located next to reception for the long journey home.
My family enjoyed their Shepparton getaway and whilst it was only a short stay, we will certainly be back again to explore more.
For more details: www.parklaneholidayparks.com.au/shepparton