I miss the lovely children’s petting farms in the UK. So it was exciting to find one here in Cyprus. And, as we discovered, the Riverland Bio Farm has plenty to appeal to children of all ages – and adults too.

Riverland Bio Farm is about an hour’s drive from Limassol. You turn off the A1 motorway before reaching Nicosia and head west for Pera. The farm is signposted from Pera and is a few kilometres down the road from the Tamassos ruins. It’s found near the start of the Wonderland drive we discovered a few weeks ago.

Tours of the farm are available during the week, but there are extra activities at weekends. I contacted the farm through their Facebook page to book onto the Saturday activities. We got to the farm at 10am for a €5 organic breakfast, made solely from food grown on their farm. I also bought a bottle of their goats’ milk kefir which I’d first come across in a Sigma bakery in Limassol. It has a pretty sour taste but kefir is a probiotic and is so good for you that it’s worth persevering with.

At 11am the owner of the farm, Vasillis, gave everyone a free tour. The farm is fully organic and their animals are all grass-fed, so no unwanted nasties and antibiotics in the dairy products and meat. The animals were well-cared-for in big pens filled with deep piles of clean hay. We were allowed into one of the pens to make a fuss of the friendly goats.

Goobie loved feeding the adorable lambs and one of the farm helpers showed him how to hold the bottle.

We were shown into the milking area where twenty-odd goats were ready for milking. The goats are microchipped so that each goat’s milk production can be monitored. Vasillis demonstrated how to hand-milk a goat and let people have a try. The whole place was spotlessly clean.

We watched the sheep being fed and met three fluffy cows and a calf. The bull was a bit offended when I tried to stroke him, so we admired from afar!

We fussed the three gorgeous horses and, in the end stable, had a lovely surprise. A litter of one day-old piglets! I’ve never seen piglets so small. We were allowed a quick cuddle.

Outside, Riverland Bio Farm demonstrated what real free-range farming should look like. Happy hens running around large, outdoor pens, and contented pigs wallowing in the mud.

After the farm tour, we were taken on a free 60-minute hike of the Tamassos Canyon. I’d seen amazing photos online of people kayaking down it and it was the main reason why I wanted to visit the farm. Disappointingly, the river in the canyon had almost entirely dried up due to the very dry winter we’ve had. But it was still a pretty walk. After a careful descent into the canyon, we walked alongside the riverbed. There was a good camping spot down there and Vasillis is building a climbing centre among the trees, like a mini Go-Ape.

The path through the canyon crossed and recrossed what was left of the river. Goobie loved finding stepping stones to jump on.

Getting out of the canyon was fun. We pulled ourselves up the steep slope using a rope attached to the trees.

Once back at the farm, everyone enjoyed the extra activities put on at weekends for €1 each. There’s a climbing wall up the side of a barn, archery, pony rides, and a zip-wire. Goobie had such fun – and there were shaded picnic tables for when he wanted a rest and a snack.

Finally, we drove down the road to Tamassos Reservoir for some kayaking. It’s €15 per hour per kayak and Vasillis has life-jackets. Although I’d wanted to kayak through the canyon, the reservoir is calm and beautiful and Goobie was able to have a go with the oars. We resisted tipping the kayak but, if it had been hotter, a refreshing swim after our hike would have been perfect!

We had a great day out at Riverland Bio Farm. Not only was it fun and adventurous, it was great for Goobie to see a working farm – to understand where milk, cheese, meat, fruit and veg come from. And with its impressive ethics, happy animals and dedication to organic food, this was the very best example of a farm to take him to.