First Out of Town Trip Since the Pandemic
We visited Hiraya Childhood Play Farm, a private, family-owned in Rizal last week. If you’re looking for a clean, safe, and fun family bonding experience, then this is the place to be!
As every family has their own safety precautions and quarantine protocols, we felt very safe at Hiraya Farm. Not only was Hiraya Farm a huge open space giving us city folks so much needed fresh air, but one of its most unique features is that only ONE family is welcomed per day (advanced booking required). What a treat!
We were welcomed by Kuya Dennis and Ate Bheng, who were siblings and were our guides for the day.
Love At First Puddle
After a 2.5 hour ride from our house, we arrived at Hiraya Farm at around 11am. The kids had a lot of pent up energy, so we let them explore the farm first before having lunch.
Mati and Hannah immediately ran across the open field and jumped at the first puddle they saw. Tip: Not required, but bring boots for everyone for more comfort and less squishy shoes in case it rained the night before hehe.
Hiraya PLAY farm indeed
The Farm has a total area of 1.2 hectares, with plenty of room to run about! There were small kubos around the farm – with one especially reserved for overnight guests who wanted the complete farm experience.
Many Firsts at Hiraya Farm: Horseback Riding
Out of our three kids, only Mati had tried to ride a horse before, so it was Hannah and Paul’s first time. At first, I hesitated on either me and Albert riding the horse with the kids because the horse looked very small.
Kuya Dennis assured us that Oxford the horse was a very strong horse who has carried heavier loads of coal and bamboo (10 poles on each side!), and that living on this farm was like a vacation for him.
Hiraya Farm Favorites: Feeding Bruno the Goat and the Bunnies
Probably the longest time the kids spent during an activity was when they were feeding Bruno the goat and the four bunnies!
I loved how quiet and focused Mati and Hannah were, gently feeding the bunnies with the plants that Ate Bheng gave them. After months of being very understanding about why we had to stay inside and cancel trips, it was just heartwarming to see the kids just enjoy and have this special moment.
We also had a lot of fun feeding Bruno the goat! He was jumping up and down when he saw us coming (because he knows it’s meal time na daw). Ate Bheng gave us a bottle full of pellets to pour unto our palm and feed Bruno.
At first I was a bit unsure because Bruno’s jumping might scare the kids, but the kids were troopers!
Lunch Time
There is no food available at Hiraya Farm, so make sure to pack your own lunch. We bought drive through along the way and settled in one of the two huge kubo’s that were prepared for us.
There’s also a separate bathroom with a sink! So clean! We also brought our Bonjour Baby Whale Potty, which proved very handy for kids during our long car ride. Especially during a pandemic, we didn’t want to make any unnecessary stops.
After lunch, the kids went to the small bahay kubo for some pretend play.
Another thing to love about Hiraya Farm is that you don’t have to worry where the kids run off to. One minute, Mati would be in the bahay kubo playing with his siblings, then the next moment he finds a kite flying in the sky and runs off to Kuya Dennis.
(Typing that out, I realize we really do need to get out more when things get better)
This was just the first half of our day trip to Hiraya Farm!
You can check out Part 2 here:
Looks like a very good learning and bonding experience for the kids! Excited to go there too! Been thinking of more enrichment activities so this is just perfect. Thanks for sharing this!! ???
Thank you so much for sharing your experiences. 🙂 I am excited to go there with my family 🙂
Such an enjoyable and relaxing place for kids! Nice article..
Looks like a wonderful place! Thanks for sharing ?
Would like to go there one day! Thanks for sharing:)
What a wonderful and unique experience! Looks like it’s well worth the drive from the city.