With its giant dinosaur standing outside the entrance, Rockshop in Ambleside in the Lake District succeeds in making people stop and look as they walk past. And there’s plenty to look at: peer a little closer, and you’ll see a big pit of polished gems in one window, often filled with excited children during opening hours.
Rockshop first opened in Ambleside in 1995 as a crystal and fossil shop, and has grown since then. Now, it’s part shop, part attraction, with plenty of activities to keep both children and adults interested.
What can you buy at Rockshop in Ambleside?
As the name suggests, rocks are among the key attractions. The shop sells everything from small tumblestones and polished gemstones that you can pick up for a few pounds each, through to impressive fossils and some truly enormous crystals, with some price tags running into the thousands of pounds.
There’s an enormous variety to browse, not just the fossils and stones themselves, but books, gifts and homewares, all fossil and rock-related. Products range from souvenir shop-style purchases to some truly stunning pieces, and you could easily spend a while browsing due to the sheer range.
In addition to the products available to buy, Rockshop Ambleside also offers a variety of experiences for adults and children…
The Dino Den
If you have a child who is a dinosaur fan, book them into the Dino Den experience. Priced at £6 per child and located upstairs, children are given a torch each – it’s dark up there! – and must solve a series of clues to be rewarded with a dinosaur-themed prize to take home. And that’s not the only attraction for the shop’s youngest visitors…
Little Diggers
Little Diggers is also priced at £6 per child, and is aimed at those aged 2-6 (although anyone can take part!) Armed with a variety of kids’ beach spades and forks, children can dig in the sandpits to unearth pyrites and fossils and keep whatever they can fit in the bag they’ve paid for. It’s a great idea as a way to introduce younger children to the world of gemstones and fossils without being overwhelmed.
Make your own jewellery at the Bead Bar
The third activity is the Bead Bar, where you can choose from a huge selected of tiny polished gemstones and beads to create your own item of jewellery. Choose a bracelet (£8), anklet (£12) or phone charm (£12) and select the colours and stones that appeal before you put your creation together.
I imagine this activity is popular with older children and teenagers, although there were also adults getting involved while we were there!
The Gem Pit
The experience that our son chose was the Gem Pit – and I can see why! Buy a small pouch for £6 or a box for £12 from the team, then head over to the enormous pit of polished gemstones in the window. Once there, children remove their shoes and climb right in, and spend as long as they like searching through all the gems for their favourites. Once you’ve been told that you can take home whatever you can fit in your pouch/box, I imagine it’s a pretty difficult task to choose favourites from all of these, and some children were in there for quite a while! There are so many colours, shapes and types of polished stones that just when you think you’ve chosen your favourites, another one starts to stand out… Our son left the shop with a lovely little collection, which made for a nice souvenir of our Lake District holiday.
Is Rockshop Ambleside worth visiting?
Even if you don’t want to take part in any of the activity, Rockshop is worth a visit just for the sheer amount of stuff to see – and the creative ways in which some of the fossils and crystals have been used to create homewares and decorative items. For families, the experiences for different age groups make the place even more appealing, and it’s a great place to while away some time on those inevitable rainy Lake District days.
Find out more about Rockshop here.