Formby Red Squirrel Reserve

Went to see the red squirrels, parked up at a cost of £7.50 only to find there are no squirrels. Looking at earlier posts there haven’t been any for a while but when we asked the National Trust man on the site he said they were all over. Probably just a ploy to get people to pay extortionate amounts of money to park up.

Didn't see any squirrels, currently signs about lots of squirrels being found dead or sick. Spent most of the time lost walking in circles, not many signs telling you weres what. Ended up lost in the woods trying to get back to the carpark. Carpark was £7.50
Close to the beach. I think its best for walking the dog not really a family activity. Kids were expecting to see some squirrels.

Expensive to park £7.50. Beach pleasant but so many dogs running around off the lead a little unnerving. Squirrel walks through the woods no sighting of the famous squirrels even though fairly quiet. So very disappointing overall

Had a nice walk here on Wednesday afternoon in June full of anticipation at spotting a red squirrel. Unfortunately we were disappointed as we didn't spot a single squirrel of any description. It was £7.50 to park and they have toilets and a refreshment van where you can get a hot drink and a muffin or a bacon sandwhich. The wood is pretty to walk through although it seems kind of man-made because all the trees are planted in straight lines.

Visited today, can’t pay by card at the machines. If you haven’t got £7.5O in coins then only other way to pay is online or phone. Giving there is no phone/internet reception in the area then how are people going to do that. NT have got this wrong

Love this place and have been before. I would like to advise people to bring cash (£7.50) for the car park as it is near impossible to get a signal to download the app to pay. We saw a family give up and get back in the car with a young boy crying as they couldn't pay as they had no cash on them and a young couple arguing over the same thing. Not many people have cash with them these days with most places requesting contactless. We had a £20 note - the ice cream man's minimum purchase (he knew we needed change) was £3 - which is fair enough, it must annoy him. Had a lovely walk on the beach, lovely to see so many families out. Then had a walk in the woods, didn't see any squirrels however we knew we were unlikely to as people were blatantly walking their dogs off the lead - ignoring the keep dogs on leads signs..
Beautiful place, clean toilets. Just be warned about the need for cash for the parking.

We picked a cold January day for a lovely walk through the woods. We had an AA book on walks that guided us through the woods and onto Formby beach. A walk down the beach then a cut through along the dunes eventually took us to the other end of the forest for a good 90 minute walk. No squirrels seen but plenty of bird life in evidence. There are no cafe facilities so bring your own picnic, however there are free toilets. Car parking for the day along the entrance road is £8.50 for non National Trust members. There is a machine that only takes coins, but you can pay by card at the nearby National Trust kiosk.

Lovely walk from Freshfield Merseyrail station to the National Trust reserve. The sand dunes and woods are splendid and well managed. It is an excellent place to visit for a few hours. Great place for a picnic but be warned the only food and drink available was an ice cream van, there is a cafe at the station though if you need something before or after your visit. The walk to the reserve is also interesting as it takes you along the road with amazing houses. Sadly didn’t see any squirrels but a nice time nonetheless.

Get there early as the place can get very busy. It’s a very pleasant walk through the woods and if you are lucky the red squirrels will put in an appearance. It’s also very popular with dog walkers so it does suffer from the odd pile of dog dirt. The picnic area could do with more bins.

I visited here with my family for the first time last weekend and really enjoyed the walk around the forest.
It cost £7.50 for the car park and then free to enter which I think is a fair price to support the National Trust.
We unfortunately didn't see any Red Squirrels but the walk was nice and the kids enjoyed it.
We headed towards the beach which the kids also enjoyed, it's just a shame about all the rubble on the beach that spoils the stunning scenery. I know there is a history related to this which is explained on an information board in the car park, but a shame nonetheless.

We then stopped at the little kiosk for a hot drink before heading back to the car.

I'm definitely going to return again in the near future and hopefully spot some squirrels.