Craigtoun Country Park lies about three kilometres south-west of St Andrews, on land that was once part of the Mount Melville Estate.
Fife County Council bought 47 acres of it in 1947 for £25,000, and it opened as a country park. It is owned by Fife Council and has been run since 2012 by the charity Friends of Craigtoun Park, whose volunteers rescued it from closure and rebuilt it.
The park’s famous feature is a miniature Dutch village built on an island in the middle of the boating lake — a set of small gabled buildings, reached by a bridge, that look exactly like a piece of the Netherlands dropped into Fife.
It was built in the 1920s for the estate’s owner, Dr James Younger of the brewing family, and restored by the Friends. Children find it fascinating, and adults find it inexplicable, which is roughly the correct response.
The boating lake around it has rowing boats in season.
The miniature railway — the Rio Grande Railway, a small train running a circuit round the park, which is one of the two things every child there is queuing for.
The play park — large, modern and well equipped, with a zip line, climbing structures and equipment across age bands.
Crazy golf, trampolines, bouncy castles and go-karts in season.
The Italian Garden, the Dutch Garden, the glasshouses and formal Edwardian planting — the remnant of the estate’s designed landscape, and much better than most people expect from a council country park.
A cypress avenue, woodland walks and running tracks.
Ponds and wildlife.
Something visitors specifically note and appreciate: many activities are free, and the paid ones are charged in small individual amounts.
There is a parking charge and then the park itself is open. The train, boats and some attractions carry a small individual charge; the play park, gardens and walks do not.
For a family, this makes Craigtoun one of the cheapest full days out in Fife, and it explains the consistent warmth of the reviews.
It is worth knowing that this is a volunteer-run charity operation. Fife Council owns the land; the Friends of Craigtoun Park run the attractions, the café and the maintenance, and the park survives because they took it on.
That shows in the standard — the toilets are specifically and repeatedly described as clean, which is the truest measure of how well a park is being looked after.
Parking charged; many activities free, the rest charged individually.
Time: a half day to a full day.
Facilities: café, toilets, picnic areas, shop.
Access: the main paths are surfaced and largely level; the gardens have some slopes.
Season: the park is open year-round; the rides and boats are seasonal, with reduced operation outside summer. Check before travelling.
Dogs: welcome on leads in most of the park.
Mount Melville, about three kilometres south-west of St Andrews, signposted from the town — five minutes by car, or a walk of about forty minutes.
A miniature Dutch-style village built in the 1920s on an island in the boating lake for the estate’s owner, and restored by the park’s volunteers.
No — parking is charged, many activities are free and the rest are charged in small individual amounts. Reviewers rate it one of the better-value family days in Fife.
A large modern play park with a zip line, the miniature railway, boats, crazy golf, trampolines and go-karts.
Fife Council owns it; the charity Friends of Craigtoun Park has operated the amenities since 2012.
About three kilometres south-west — five minutes by car or a forty-minute walk.