This half term week we booked a slot at Clip n Climb Reading, which opened in 2022. The centre is in a converted grain store, with a free car park onsite. We’ve been to Clip n Climb Slough before, which is much smaller, so were very excited to go to a bigger site. Clip n Climb Reading boasts 24 different climbing challenges for anyone aged 4 years and over. These include the ‘Stairway to Heaven’, multiple themed climbing walls, rope ladders and an 8m tall vertical drop slide.
We arrived at the site and checked in at reception where we were given coloured wristbands for our time slot. The centre was very busy and we ended up starting a little later than our booked slot but were still given the full 55 minutes on the climbing challenges. Before starting, the kids were harnessed up and we watched a safety video. Each challenge uses the belay buddy system, which is a full proof safety system that ensures users are connected properly to the belay before they start their climb.
We started on the ‘traditional’ climbing wall style challenges while the kids got used to it. Baby Bear had never been to Clip n Climb before but he very quickly got the hang of it and had absolutely no fear of heights!
Over the course of the hour we moved around trying out different climbing challenges. Some are harder than others.
My kids really enjoyed the climbing challenges where they could race each other to the top on opposite sides. Who doesn’t have competitive siblings?! Some of the walls have timers as well so you can try to beat the clock.
All three kids had a go at the Stairway to Heaven, which is much harder than it looks! Big Sis got the highest, with the boys giving a good effort too.
Clip n Climb is a great way of taking multiple children for a climbing experience, as there aren’t any parent:child ratios, due to the belay buddy system thats used. At traditional climbing venues, I’ve found most have a 1:1 ratio for children under 7 and 1:2 ratio for children aged 7-13. This means I can’t take both the boys on my own as they need an adult each. We do hope to rope in an extra adult so we can visit one soon though.
The Verdict
Clip n Climb Reading was a really fun experience and somewhere we’d definitely visit again. I would recommend booking the first slot or last slot of the day as it does get super busy. The centre was clean and there’s plenty of space to sit and watch. There is a small cafe for drinks and light snacks too.
Facilities Checklist
- Toilets / Disabled Toilet Yes.
- Pushchair / Wheelchair Friendly Yes.
- Dog Friendly No
- Refreshments available Yes, small cafe with drinks and snacks
- Car Park Yes, free.
- Gift Shop Yes, small amount of Clip n Climb merchandise available at reception.
- Baby facilities Yes.
Address: The Grain Store, Bridge Farm, Reading, RG2 9HT
Price Band: ££
Website: https://reading.clipnclimb.co.uk/
Disclaimer: We paid for our own tickets and are in no way affiliated with Clip n Climb. All words, opinions and photos in this review are that of my own.
