23/05/2026
📢 Kusuma Nature Play Area is now open! 📢
Meet a robin, find a fox, follow a grass snake, spot the butterflies, and help a bee in the new free wildlife-themed play 🐍 🦋 🐝
Free to visit, no booking needed. Drop in anytime during Gardens opening times.
Explore the sensory rich play, from the wooden jetty with a slide, to climbing webs and lookout points. Play equipment is themed around species local to the Horniman – look out for the fox den, nest hedge, and robin rocker.
More adventurous visitors can enjoy log steps, timber balance beams, and a den building frame. Younger children will love the collecting table, leaf stools, and finger maze. The play area also includes a basket swing and sensory planting.
After play time, carry on the fun with the new augmented reality trail, Animals Everywhere! Meet a cast of 3D animated animals hiding across the Gardens. It’s free to play, no downloads, adverts or hidden purchases – it opens straight in your browser.
Play mini-games, collect badges, and climb the leaderboard. Will you be able to find all the animals?
Make sure to stop by the new Gardens Cafe, run by Colicci. From breakfast items with your coffee and iced drinks, to sourdough pizzas and gelato, there is something for everyone year-round. Don’t forget to fill your water bottle at the water fountain outside the Cafe.
Dogs are welcome inside the Gardens Cafe. Look out for our treat selection for your furry friends.
Accessible toilets and baby changing facilities can be found to the side of the Gardens Cafe, as well as bike racks.
From here, it is only a short step to the Nature Trail, as we’ve installed new gates directly opposite the Gardens with a ramp to improve accessibility.
These incredible new parts of the Horniman that connect us all with the natural world would not be possible without the Heritage Fund, thanks to National Lottery players, who are our lead funder for Nature + Love.
We also want to thank DCMS, the Wolfson Foundation, Kusuma Trust, The Garfield Weston Foundation, and all the individual and anonymous donors who have made this work possible.
Images: Louisa Rechenbach
