The question parents ask most is some version of "what will the children actually do?" The honest answer at Mantin Forest Art Farmstay is: the animals, the water, the horse and the running about, mostly in that order. Here is what a seven-year-old's day looks like.
The animals, at 9am
The farm keeps about 30 kinds of animals: macaws, cockatoos and smaller parrots in the bird area, a flock of swans and geese on the lake, flamingos, spotted deer, rabbits, goats, marmosets and the fish in the lake. The animal compound opens once a day, on the guided morning tour at 9am, when the caretaker walks everyone round for about two and a half hours. That is when the bottle-feeding of the baby goats happens, the rabbits and deer get fed, and a parrot will sit on a shoulder for a photo.
The horse
Horse riding is part of the same walk and is free. Children from eight ride a round or two with the handler; four-to-seven-year-olds sit on the horse for a photo with a parent beside them; riders must be under 80 kg. There is no booking: be on the tour.
The rest of the day
After the tour the lake does the work: kayaks with life jackets, bicycles on the flat paths, the swimming pool, and a sculpture trail of 150-odd statues that children treat as a treasure hunt. Indoors there is a free cinema room in the gallery building, ping pong, board games and, after dinner, open-air karaoke at the cafeteria that the younger ones love more than the adults do. The pantry stays open until midnight for the Milo.
The practical part
Children aged 4 to 10 pay a child rate and under-4s stay free; every room is air-conditioned and ground-floor rooms can be requested for prams and grandparents. Meals are family-style at a shared table, so fussy eaters have choices. Two adults and two children pay from RM720 a night on a weekday, with tea, dinner, breakfast, the tour and every activity included, tax in. Pets cannot come, because the animals roam.