eglinton country park

lots of lovely dog walks and a shallow river for them to swim and paddle on a warm day, nice wee cafe in which dogs are welcome too

Lots of open space and woodlands to walk through. Great kids play area. Cafe. Lots of work going on at present so some areas a bit messy. Will be lovely for a picnic in Summer.

Lovely park to visit. Good for children and free entrance. Park and surroundings well maintained. Excellent playground for children of all ages.

Great place to visit on a nice day, beutifuly laid out with nice short walks, well kept garden areas and fantastic play parks for children of all ages.

I love this park and have returned again and again for over 20 years. I was delighted when the new swing park was built. However due to vandalism and building works I have been disappointed my last 2 visits. I am hoping for 2015 it returns to its usual high standard.

I am a mountain biker, and I try to include this park in as many of my rides as possible. The variety of trails are endless, and it is a secluded place to ride. Sure, in winter, it is muddy and icey, which is how I like it - natural. The reviewer who called it underdeveloped misses the point. There are plenty of "developed" asphalt roads and bike paths that he can use.The children's play area has recently undergone a major expansion and judging by the noiseometer is a great success.There is a cafe, toilets and visitor centre

I really enjoy going for a short walk in the park when the weather is dry and sunny. It's so lovely and so many paths to choose from so you can see different things. I highly recommend the venue especially if you have kids and enjoy taking pictures. They have a wee coffee shop too.

As the description says, this is first & foremost, a country park. It's a very popular area for dog walkers. Even if you want to walk on your own, the paths seem to go on forever, and is very peaceful and relaxing. There is a visitor centre and cafe with toilets on-site, plus a very good children's (& adults) play park . Highly recommended.

I have used the park on a regular basis for years, sometimes several times a day in the summer months, for dog walking, running, cycling, geocaching and to use the children's play areas. Any criticism I have of the park has to be balanced against the fact that it is operated by North Ayrshire Council and budgets have been cut in recent years for all councils.My primary use of the park is for dog walking and it is excellent for this purpose with many paths to explore well away from any roads. Plenty of variety to ensure that routes can be varied to suit from a quick 30 minute outing through the castle ruins and formal gardens to a 2 hour walk taking in most of the areas within the park. There are areas of open grass, woods and moorland. There are deer in the park, so ticks can be a problem. There has been ongoing building work at the park for some years as the original stable block (part of the old meat factory) is slowly converted to flats and houses. It is a bit of an eyesore. This has also reduced the parking available, which can be problematic in busy periods. There is overflow parking but it is on grass and not ideal in wet weather.Some of the paths are in a poor state of repair. The pedestrian entrance to the park from Sourlie roundabout takes a route over the hill with standing stones (this is also one of the circular paths around the park) which has been flooded in several places for most of the previous winters. Not a problem if you're in wellies but prohibitive in running shoes or normal footwear. There are always trees blown down in the winter and some of these haven't been removed since last year, leaving some paths blocked for pushchairs or in a poor state of repair when eventually removed. These could be easily rectified but I suspect budget priorities have meant money has to be spent elsewhere.The play areas are good, particularly the larger one for older children. The facilities at the visitor centre are fairly basic compared to similar parks. There is a small exhibition on the history of the original estate. The cafe is only open from 10:30 to 15:30 in the winter, which means that I rarely use it, although when I have the coffee and cakes have been good and priced as expected for this type of visitor attraction. Toilet facilities are only available when the visitor centre is open.All in all it's a great area for dog walking, running and cycling but is considerably underdeveloped for other visitors when compared to other parks that I regularly visit such as Dean Park in Kilmarnock or Mugdock Park near Milngavie.

Good parking, toilets clean, rangers very helpfull, play area for wee kids and big kids. Cafe has a good choice of cakes.

Run down delapidated and generally run down county estate / food factory site with the foundation and one tower remaining of the former home of the Earl of EglintonUnless you are a particular sucker this is no place to visit

Have visited this park many times. Great walks with the dog, one of the best play parks in Ayrshire and lots of activities throughout the year for all ages groups to participate in. Cafe very reasonably priced with home baking and helpful staff. Takeaway tea and coffee so perfect for the walk. Very beautiful park and free entry !!!

Beautiful walks and well maintained park.We enjoy visiting here throughout the year,plenty to do in the summer.Lots of activities during the summer season.

Our children have enjoyed it here on both of our visits.average sized play area is great for all ages.trampoline is a must(parents included) some nice walks and a very peaceful place.food and coffee are available but we take our own.we try to visit here first on a day out to ayrshire as its a lovely easy drive South to other places in this county.great way to start a family day out.will return here

Nice place to rest and get refreshed after a walk around the beautiful park..soup especially good and choice of sandwiches and snacks good.. Space in the courtyard with picknic benches for families with kids giving a picnic experience ..