Granary Road

Granary Road is a nice addition to the country "scene" in the neighbourhood but disappointed tremendously in their poor public persona. They are definitely just out to make money and don't care how they treat the public. Granary Road denied access to a group of seniors who had miscalculated the entrance fee. This group was from a local seniors residence and consisted of people with dementia and serious physical ailments and a walk through Granary children's learning area would have been so sweet for them. But NO, you WILL not be admitted was the Granary staff reply. This could have been a chance to do something good for the public but that's not the Granary way apparently.
Not the way country folks treat each other!! Shame on Granary Road!

My 6 year old enjoyed it, however the reason I am only giving it 3 stars is there was no staff in site. They had activities at some of the stations that it said to collect equipment from the staff member but nobody was around so we were not able to do it. I didn't like the fact that there were signs all over that kids were not allowed on the grass. Being that this is an outdoor facility geared towards kids the entire facility should be kid friendly without signs all over saying don't walk on this or don't climb. The bee section is very attractive to kids for climbing however the honeycombs have signs all over saying don't climb. Thought should have been put into this and if you are going to put in something that looks like a great climber then it should be built for climbing as there is nothing for kids to do at that station. Also the "farmer's market" I would not classify as such as there are no actual farmer's there. There is lots of prepared foods but not really anything else and not what one would expect for a farmer's market. The prices are a bit steep especially for adults given that this is for kids. Not sure if we will be back as the cost makes it a bit prohibitive to take the whole family.

Great day out for the family. Yes there is gravel paths so it can be harder to push or pull buggies with small tires. And yes the restaurant isn't completed. Bring your own lunch and save money! Lots to see and do. Definitely worth driving out. We had fun! Only complaint is that adults have to pay $17 to get in when there isn't much for us to do?!

I was thrilled initially that this place would be opening so close to us as I saw it being built this past spring and summer. Unfortunately, it is not what I expected. I will list the disappointments.
-I purchased a seasons pass for my daughter and grand daughter at the end of July (grand daughter had not turned 3 yet so cost was only for her mother). Cost was 60.00 for the season but no one told me the season ended Oct 11. Yesterday we went and as a senior I had to pay 15.00 just to walk with my family.
Since it was not a full season I don't think they should have charged for a full season.

-The market is not like a true farmers market...it is vendors selling ornamental wares, fancy peanuts etc.

- lounge is anything but kid friendly and as this facility is supposed to be family friendly I would have thought there would be more appropriate seating and child friendly menu. Even the foods they had were not 3year old friendly (spaghetti/hotdogs etc) we ended up leaving and going to Boston Pizza.

- there should have been a separate line for those just wanting wrist bands as lines were long due to parents encouraging their children to pay for their gift shop purchases.

Lastly, I think Granary Road rushed their grand opening...the only thing open was the gift shop, play area and a few vendors with tables outside. I went several times after the grand opening and kept phoning to ask when it would be fully operational.

This place is a tremendous disappointment and will not be taking my family there in the future and will not recommend to friends.
Better value is the zoo, corn maze and other children's play centres that do not charge parents for supervising their children.

We had the amazing privilege of visiting Granary Road a few weeks ago. It was awesome! The kids had a fantastic time and the adults enjoyed it thoroughly too. You guys have just gone above and beyond it is truly a phenomenal place for family day trips and field trips for any age. We were blown away at the attention to detail, the information given, the cleanliness (even though we were outside) and how well everything was done. I can't say enough.

I heard many people comment as we went along that it was an amazing place to be at and one lady said she wondered who the genius was behind it. The lemonade stand gentleman filled her in on your family and the history behind Granary Road. I thought that was great that he knew even though he is not directly employed by you. The young man keeping the grounds clean and picking up garbage was also very friendly and helpful. It was a really great day for our family and we couldn't wait to come back again!

So today we ventured to see the new market open. It is also amazing. Having a fresh made breakfast out on a patio with my kids. What a treat! The vendors are all unique and the food quality is out of this world!

Congratulations on creating such an amazing space for families and adults to come to in the south end of the city that is away from the hustle and bustle of city life. It is such a beautiful way to spend the day!

Granary Road has such potential to be an amazing place. At this moment it's just not worth paying 100% for ~65% of the park being ready for guests. We were met with several sections of CAUTION tape on slides and similar sections of the park essentially raising concerns as to why/what happened and why it hadn't been addressed (the tape looked to have been there for some time). The park is still very much in a construction phase as there are also several areas of fresh/dry sod that are still not quite growing on its own and general tidy/completeness of projects is not there, fences were still being built, temporary enclosures for animals and other such items.
The exhibits are interesting, however, the lack of utilization of the mini amphitheaters was perplexing. Such a great potential space for a park representative to talk to guests and answer questions about said area. The bee area, for example, had a beekeepers suit and a mock-up bee box with combs in it that I watched a group of kids literally ransack before scattering in every direction off to the next areas of the park.
The petting zoo for the goats was fantastic as you entered into there enclosure to pet, feed, groom and interact with them. The section above this where the pigs, alpacas, sheep and chickens were has a great park representative there and he would randomly chime in with interesting facts about the animals (He spoke about how he was working with the animals and their diets, I presume he was their handler). He was very pleasant to talk to as well knowledgeable.
We unfortunately only got to see 1/2 of the park and would like to return again, however, for the price of admission I am not 100% sure it will be worth it until we find out if the parks underlying "completeness" is addressed.
To anyone planning to take a stroller/wagon ensure that you are either using a BOB stroller (massive tires) or a wagon with similar tires, anything with small plastic wheels and you will be struggling to make your way through the trails between exhibits as the sharp uncompressed gravel allows for the tires to sink in deep. Great for the look of "rustic trails" but terrible for anyone with tiny humans requiring carting around.
Hope to hear about completeness and maybe we will return one day to see if things have been sorted out with the underlying issues.

Absolutely amazing. Took a chance on a new place and so glad i did. Its a great family day out so much to see and do. My kids absolutely loved all the colors and fun things to do. Every area has a theme and different things to do based on that theme. Will be taking my children there again soon you can guarantee it. Great job

Very disappointing! Were there for opening day---was NOT complete! Should have been warned and offered a discounted rate. Only port o potties, my Electeic scooter kept getting stuck in the rocky pathway. Royal pain! I was Going to treat with lemonade but didn't have cash. Who doesn't accept plastic?? Lot of the material used in benches and slides way too hot for children to play on or adults to sit on. IE ant farm and crop pods. Staff even warned us about the slide at the crop pod. Not much shade. Strollers had a hard time negotiating pathway system too. Not many animals. Only goats at petting zoo. Not very educational as the staff told us to read the sparse signage. There were a few but for the most part signs weren't even up yet. Staff told us that only schools sit in the little theatres and receive an educational talk??? The information that was there on small signs wasn't really great as far as wow information. They told us to come back and see the updates. What the heck? Why open if you aren't ready?? Why charge full fare if you aren't finished?
It's a playground park at best. No inter reaction with pods.
Doesn't surprise me school boards are signed up. They don't mind wasting our money and they signed site unseen right? We too thought it was going to be better as they have advertised it to be
Markets still not open as of today. I felt sorry for people in the line ups! I could go on, but, you get the picture. Go if you must, but justnpirchase a day pass then upgrade after should you still wish too
Of course kids would have fun-//but go repetitively? My grand kids said they don't have to come back There's a difference between kids having fun and the park providing education as promoted.

Lots of fun. Reasonable prices to enter the park and you can bring your own lunch, no going out to the parking lot for our picnic. That was a big bonus. Market was not open at the time but it sure was impressive with the size and scale of the complex. Really great can't wait to come back.