The Bee Centre

Having recently got bees at our primary school we attended the introduction to beekeeping course a few days ago and I am still absolutely buzzing. The course was totally amazing and full of facts about these fabulous creatures. Kath and Simon are brilliant and explain everything so well. I came home with millions of things to tell the kids and spending hours looking through different hives totally gave me the confidence to look after our hive properly. I loved the 'think like a bee' approach to beekeeping and it really does help in predicting the next steps for the colony. Reading a hive like a book showed that you can work out the health of the animals and how to keep them healthy. I loved the whole day so much and could've have easily spent a week with these fascinating creatures and indeed Kath and Simon! What a privilege. Thanks guys

Encourage anyone whether they are scared of bees or not to take part in the experience, might just change your mindset on bees. Very informative and had answers for all questions asked plus the honey tasted great.

What a perfect way to spend a couple of hours, dressing up as a beekeeper and embarking on a hands-on bee safari, offering a fascinating insight into the world of the honey bee, complete with a honey tasting session and shop to purchase a large range of bee produce including honey, candles and bee equipment.

We did the bee centre experience and it was so good, definitely recommend - Kath and Simon were so informative and lots fun. We got to hear about the bees, benefits of realHoney, meet the bees, and try all the different flavours of honey. A great activity for all!

Belated Christmas present for my bee-mad 7 year old… but the whole family wanted to do it and we are glad we did! Brilliant afternoon despite the British weather. We felt very reassured by the safety levels in terms of overalls, etc. Lots of hands-on experience with the bees and Kathy’s knowledge was phenomenal. Bees are my new favourite animal! After we had a session with Simon tasting different types of honey, which was also really informative and kept us all listening throughout. Friendly and informal atmosphere. Would definitely recommended!

UNBEELIEVABLY GREAT EXPERIENCEStandby for Bee puns...Just visited the Bee Centre, Samlesbury Hall for their Bee Experience as a birthday gift.Why would this not BEE a 5 star rating. From start to finish friendly, helpful and informative experience.Lots to do and see, even if you only have a passing interest in Bees. Up close and personal in full protection is an amazing experience.A really pleasant and very worthwhile experience, which I highly recommend to EVERYONE, so much so I have booked on to the one day beekeeping course next April.Seeing the queen and bees hatching" was a unique unforgettable experience in itself.Finished off with some honey tasting was divine.And forget what you think you know about our fluffy friends.Also: Lots to do for spectators and in the grounds of Samlesbury Hall which is both beautiful and lots to see/do before and after.Another of Lancashire's little gems and really worth the small fee for this experience but pop along to visit anyway.Top class."

Wow what a buzz! the bee experience was throughly enjoyable and informative. Kath and Simon were great and really made the experience. Good for children and adults alike! and their chocolate honey is incredible!!!

Took my mum for a bee experience for Mother's Day and had a wonderful time! The experience was so informative and we learned a lot, Kath was a fountain of knowledge. The bees were on their best behaviour and we even got to see a baby emerging from it's little pod. Simon was hilarious, and very patient with us even though we wanted to try every single honey they had. Both Simon and Kath answered all of my (many) questions, and I even got to play with Meg the dog as an added bonus. 10/10, will come again!

Had an amazing time at The Bee Centre. Kath & Simon CLEARLY love their bees dearly and care so much about what they do that it is infectious. I learned so much about bees and might have been inspired enough to do some research on how I could start keeping my own bees! I highly, highly recommend this experience, it was such fun. And the bees are lovely, docile girls - don't bee worried!

Getting up close and personal to some extraordinary black bees in the heart of Lancashire was a birthday treat from my family. What a treat it was too. Our hosts for the morning were the brilliant Simon and Kath, whose passion for their bee families and hives is infectious. They are clearly motivated to spend time engaging and working with their visitors to promote sustainable pollination.We kicked off with a brief and fun introduction on what to expect, and were kitted out with our trendy bee keeper outfits and wellies. The hives are just a short walk up the lane, where we spent a good while taking the hive apart and watching these extraordinary insects going about their daily buzzyness whilst seemingly mooching around the hive - they work pretty hard it turns out, in all sorts of jobs during their lifetime, from nursing through to disposing of their dead buddies. We even witnessed one little baby bee popping out of it’s birthing pod. We left our little friends to their work, popped the lid back on and headed back for the honey tasting experience. Simon gave us more information about honey made from different nectar sources and ethical production. A lovely way to relax in the Lancashire sunshine. I found the whole experience humbling, and probably one of the best things I’ve done in a long while. Go do it guys, and see for yourself what an amazing contribution bees make to our communities and environment. You won’t be disappointed. Oh, and the gin distillery next door is pretty good too! I’ll be back!