Fairytale Farm, based in South-West UK, is set to reopen its doors on Saturday 20 June, after exactly three months of closure due to Covid-19.
Owner Nick Laister commented: “We have been busy working on various projects whilst we have been closed, all of which we had started before the lockdown, so we had no choice but to complete them. We are hoping that our visitors will like them.”
“In Fairy Dell you can meet our all-new Weather Fairy and find out how she can magically tell you what the weather is. Designed and built by leading UK sculptor Andrew Blake towards the end of 2019, she has now been revealed for the first time in all her glory.”
The Alfie & Friends Animal Zone, meanwhile, has a new area for the ducks and geese, as well as a unique new turkey house built out of recycled plastic bottles. New arrivals include two peafowl, one male peacock and a peahen.
The highlight among the new attractions is in Jack’s Yard. “We planted some magic beans at Christmas and our visitors will not be able to miss what has grown, right by the entrance to our magical Enchanted Walk. You won’t have seen anything like this before! You can also milk Jack’s cow, Daisy, and if you are lucky, you will hear her go ‘moo’.”
Nick said: “The last three months have been the most difficult since Fairytale Farm opened in 2013. We closed our doors on 21 March, and have not welcomed a single visitor since then. We had no income to pay for feeding our animals, farriers, hay, water and veterinary treatment, as well as all the other essential animal care jobs. We have managed to survive thanks to donations to our GoFundMe campaign by our visitors, local Chipping Norton residents and even people who have never visited us before. It shows how valued the farm is within our community and has given us the incentive to keep going no matter how tough things have been.”
The farm has has had to change the way it operates in line with government guidance and for the foreseeable future we will only be accepting online ticket bookings. There will be a one-way route around the farm, regular hand sanitisers points and protective screens at all tills.