WALKING WITH ALPACAS

Why not come and walk with our lovely alpacas.

Walk with alpacas!

Walking with alpacas is great fun and we hope to make it both enjoyable and informative. All of our alpacas are halter trained and whilst here at Spring Farm you will get to meet some of them. All alpacas have their own personalities and come in an amazing 22 different colours (or perhaps more accurately – shades). We will introduce you to our walking team and to other groups of alpacas (and llamas) whilst you are here – including our mums and babies group. In 2024 we have 22 beautiful baby alpacas safely on the ground! Baby alpacas and llamas are called cria and the birthing period is mid May to the end of August.

Cute alpaca crias

We will also educate you all about alpacas, where they came from, and their daily routines. As we are a farm in Higher Level Stewardship, we also pride ourselves on our farm’s biodiversity. We will endeavour to make your walk with our alpacas a veritable “safari” and hopefully you will get to spot some of our other resident British wildlife. Even if not, we can tell you some of the sights you might see “next time” and some of the history of the High Weald and its AONB (Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty). We also take photos of the group walk which we send to you as a momento of your time with us (no charge) via the email address you gave us at the time of booking. This we do via an iCloud link so you can get them in high resolution.

We have reviewed our health and safety protocols and implemented a number of changes to protect you and our staff which you can see below. We will follow these protocols so you can feel as safe as possible here.

PLEASE READ: COVID 19 Risk Assessment for Alpaca Walking

BOOK YOUR VISIT NOW
(Please read Terms and Conditions below before booking)

Prices

£39.95 to walk an alpaca (including VAT).

£19.95 per accompanying person not walking an alpaca (including VAT).

Please note: IF YOU BOOK TO WALK ALPACAS AND YOU WISH TO BOOK FRIENDS TO ACCOMPANY – THE NUMBER ACCOMPANYING CANNOT EXCEED THE NUMBER WALKING ALPACAS. YOU CAN’T JUST BOOK TO ACCOMPANY ALPACAS – THIS OPTION IS ONLY AVAILABLE TO ADD TO A WALKING ALPACA BOOKING.

If you have a voucher then this can be used at checkout – please bring with you on the day just in case of any issues. Every voucher (or eVoucher) has a unique number which you should use as payment at checkout.

The minimum number of walking alpacas on any day must be two as they are herd animals. If you are booking a single walk and no others book for the same time slot we may contact you to re-arrange the date.

VOUCHERS

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO BUY VOUCHERS TO SEND TO SOMEONE OR REDEEM AT A LATER DATE THEN PLEASE FOLLOW THIS LINK BUY VOUCHERS

Please fill in the form below

TERMS AND CONDITIONS (Please read before booking)

All walks must be pre-booked and are available 5 days of the week (we don’t offer walks on Mondays and Thursdays for training purposes) and all year round (subject to availability only excluding Christmas Day and Boxing Day).
Children must be aged 12 years old or over to walk an alpaca on their own. Children aged 8 to 11 may accompany an adult who is walking an alpaca. This is subject to a maximum of one child under 12 accompanying an adult who is walking an alpaca. Unfortunately, children under the age of 8 are not permitted on our walks or the farm. PLEASE NOTE THIS IS TO COMPLY WITH OUR INSURANCE AND THEREFORE CANNOT BE VARIED.
It is important at the time of booking that we know if any of those walking have any health limitations or health issues that we should be aware of. Walking alpacas may not be suitable for all – as it involves walking across undulating fields and you need to use both hands to be in control of the alpaca at all times. It isn’t a suitable activity for anyone who walks very slowly or needs a walking aid. If you need to discuss this, please email us prior to booking. We do reserve the right to ask a guest to stand down from a walk for reasons of health and safety – of both the guest and the alpacas/llamas.
We are often asked if you can walk an alpaca whilst pregnant. We are not medical practitioners and strongly suggest you contact a health professional for advice.
Walking an alpaca allows you to walk YOUR VERY OWN ALPACA for the entirety of the walk. For COVID reasons, we do not allow swapping.
Accompanying a walker entitles you to walk alongside an alpaca walker but not to walk an alpaca yourself. We do not allow sharing.
We normally take a llama (or two) on the walk as well as the alpacas. If you would like to walk a llama please let us know.
Alpacas are herd animals so a minimum of 2 alpacas must be booked for each walk. We normally cater for up to a maximum of 12 walking alpacas/llamas on any given walk.
It is possible to accommodate single walkers but only in conjunction with another group so as to always have a minimum of 2 alpacas walking.
Walks start from the farm yard at midday promptly. We ask that you arrive ten minutes beforehand so we can be good to start at midday. There is sufficient parking for all cars on site.
Sadly, guests arriving after midday cannot join the walk and their booking is therefore cancelled so as not to inconvenience the other guests walking that day. If you think you might be late please make sure you speak to us by phone (house or mobile) in advance of midday and we will do our best to defer the start of the walk for 5/10 minutes so as not to inconvenience other walking guests.
We need at least 48 hours notice if you cancel a walk. If we have less than 48 hours or a “no show”, unfortunately your booking is forfeit. We cannot make exceptions. Please note, the tickets are transferable subject to the transferee bringing proof of the original booking – and you informing us in advance.
If you choose to cancel a walk with 48 hours notice or more, we will refund you your booking in full less the PayPal fee which we are charged on every booking (or issue you a voucher so you can rebook).
We are not an “open farm” and can only offer alpaca walks by prior arrangement.
If you would like us to recommend local places to meet for a coffee/drinks or lunch beforehand/afterwards – please see Local eateries and attractions
Our farm is on clay so sensible footwear is a must (wellies in the Winter, walking boots or trainers in summer) and we strongly recommend long trousers.
Clothing should be appropriate for the conditions but please avoid anything that might flap (we will ask you to tuck it in if it does).
We have stringent bio-security so we will ask you to dip your footwear on arrival.
Our alpacas and llamas are not used to dogs so we have a strict no dog policy on the farm or walk.
Alpacas are like us and won’t be happy to walk in bad weather. If the weather forecast looks bad, we will endeavour to let you know the evening before (via email/text or call – or feel free to contact us) that there is a risk of cancellation. We will make a final decision on the morning of the day in question and again contact you via email/text or call. If we do cancel a walk, we will issue you with an eVoucher for the same value as your booked walk so you can rebook at your leisure (the vouchers have a one year life) subject to availability.
We can cater for educational visits, hen parties or special events – please contact us for details.
Vouchers (and eVouchers) are available (and gift cards) – please contact us for details.
We offer a fabulous one bedroom holiday let if you wanted to stay on a working alpaca farm – just bear in mind it’s for a minimum of a week!
We are fully licenced under The Animal Welfare Regulations 2018. Our current licence from Wealden District Council runs to 13/3/2027.

GETTING TO SPRINGFARM

Our farm gate – please open (it’s manual) and walk/drive in! And then shut it…

Spring Farm is conveniently situated in mid Sussex but convenient for Surrey, Kent and the South East of England. We are a short taxi drive (15 minutes) away from our local station at Haywards Heath. There is a large taxi rank at the station which is normally full unless there are problems with the trains. If you want to book a taxi, we tend to use Station Taxis on 01444 410410 or Cavendish Cars 07946 254028.

Haywards Heath station is approximately 45 minutes from London Victoria/London Bridge making a walk with alpacas an easy option for a day out from London or even Gatwick airport (30 minutes away by car)! There is lots more to do within easy reach of us and we are happy to recommend local pubs, eateries and attractions – so why not make visiting us part of an amazing day or weekend. You might even consider staying at our holiday let: “The Lodge”. Just bear in mind it must be booked for a minimum of a week!

If you are using What3Words, to get to our farm drive, search for:

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If you are travelling here to walk with alpacas by car, and you are using Sat-Nav (postcode TN22 3SA), then you may be directed to Archer’s Cottage/Moyses Farm. Don’t despair, we are slightly off the beaten track! You are on the right road and if you are passing the above farms on the left, keep going and you will find us on your left in about 800 yards. Look out for the following sign and gate. The gate is always kept shut because of alpaca movements – please open and drive/walk in.