Carlton & Oulton Marshes

Very pleasant easy trail around marshland that is gradually being turned back to it's natural condition.Just spent a lovely couple of hours on Easter Sunday walking the Red Route. Weather wonderful. The car park was pretty full but no problem at all getting tea and cakes at the café.

Beautiful area with free car park, creatively designed playground built into hill, new visitor centre with amazing views which has toilets, cafe and gift shop. Range of walks available with various bird hides and viewing platforms, as well as other things for kids - eg. posts with engraved animals which you could probably create rubbings of if you brought paper and crayons.

This is a lovely bit of countryside that you can really appreciate being in.It is driven by protecting the marshland which is very important as it is a habitat for a lot of wildlife.There are pathways throughout the area, with some more accessible than others if you are on wheels due to disability, but there is plenty to explore either way.The scenery is stunning, and you can never tell what wildlife you will see which makes this a good place to repeat visit. There is also an accessible hide where you can sit and watch wildlife (my Swan pic was taken from this.)The people there are really friendly and they give you a map of the walks, and in my case showed my the best ones for my mobility scooter.There is also a cafe and gift shop, as well as toilets on site at the entrance.The only reason I gave 4 stars instead of 5 is because I think a bit more could be done to increase accessibility, but as far as the feel of the area goes I would give it 5 stars.

Such a wonderful place and only enhanced by the renovation. The new centre has spectacular views from the terrace we've never had before, plus the option to sit and have a cup of tea overlooking the Marshes is just bliss. We love this place, and I'm so glad more people can access it now and love it, with more wheelchair accessible paths, toilets and rest points. Thank you to all the fundraisers, the work has shown!There are regularly updated signs that record the birds that are arriving and departing and have been seen, maps and habitat descriptions, I've added photos as it can be helpful to plan a walk using this information. The staff are knowledgeable and always happy to help you or advise you.It's always a pleasure visiting this reserve, the varied habitats, the multiple different routes, the rare wildlife, no visit is the same. I've been fortunate enough to see Lapwings, Blackcaps, Avocets, Egrets, a Barn Owl, Fieldfare, Chiffchaff, Canada Geese and goslings, Herons, Linnets and so on, including the classic garden birds. Chinese Water Deer and Norfolk Hawkers aren't unusual here, as well as Fen Raft spiders! Every time I see something new, big or small, you just have to keep listening and looking everywhere you go!The cafe and seating areas are wide spread making the covid environment safe, as well as the well-stocked cafe operating from a hatch and sanitising points dotted around. The wooden play park brings lots of joy to the little ones and is made from natural materials while others can sit on the picnic benches nearby. Dogs are allowed but only on leads and only on certain paths due to nesting birds.Accessible toilet and Changing Place is very good, equipped with a hoist, a shower, shower stool, wet room, changing place, a sink that is adjustable with considerate features such as large handled taps and privacy screen inside the room as well. Only issues are the door is very heavy, so if you're alone in a chair it's a bit tricky. Also, the bin is a pedal bin which can be difficult to use for some. Aside from these points, it's the most impressive, equipped accessible toilet I've seen.Thank you for your dedication to this reserve, it really shows and makes it an even more enjoyable place to visit, for us and for the wildlife!

Fantastic walk with the dog and great food at the end . Great place to take the kids also free to enter free parking just ask for small donation in tin

Lovely place for a walk. Saw lots of wildlife. Really nice cafe.

Carlton Marshes is a fantastic place to visit. There's an adventure play park made of natural materials built into a hill. There is a café and toilets and over 20 picnic benches. There are lots of various walks around the marshes. Dogs are allowed on leads.

Lovely walk around the nature reserve. Different length walks to suit everyone. Dogs welcome on leads. Brilliant play area for kids. Lots of picnic benches. Clean toilets & cafe. Highly recommend a visit. Free car park.

Carlton Marshes is a peaceful place to visit.I took 9yo grandson with me and daughter who uses a walker.We watched grandson on the playfield first, which consists of an obstacle course to suit all ages, made of wood.Then we went for a walk. Daughter had no problem using her walker, it was so peaceful, we forgot to take pictures.The toilets are for men and women.But there is a sink and drier in each cubicle.There is a restaurant, but we didn't use it.There is also a gift shop. We did look around it. It was rather expensive, but of good quality.I also saw a notice saying you could hire binoculars.There are posters saying which birds, insects, butterflies, creatures, etc inhabit the marshes and surrounding land.It's a brilliant place.And it's FREE!!

A great free experience walking the trails. Easy to follow and well signed routes. Lots of wildlife to see on the way round aswell as places for the kids to discover.