Calke Abbey Adventure Playground

Calke Abbey is a 600-acre historic estate with a Baroque mansion left largely unrestored, showing peeling paintwork and abandoned rooms that tell the story of a country house's dramatic 20th-century decline. The walled garden contains a rare surviving auricula theatre, a domed orangery and faded glasshouses. Ancient parkland holds the 'Old Man of Calke' oak tree and a deer park with fallow deer. At Calke Explore, a separate recreation area offers natural play, cycle hire including lessons, and the accessible multi-use Tramway Trail with figure-of-eight routes. The estate has a restaurant, café and kiosk for refreshments, and a second-hand bookshop.