Guided alpaca walks just a short drive from Hedge End — lead your own halter-trained alpaca through the Itchen Valley for a two-hour Hampshire day out the whole family will talk about.
If you live in Hedge End, you're closer to a genuinely unusual day out than you might think. Hensting Alpacas' walking field at Itchen Valley Country Park in West End sits just a few minutes off the Botley Road, well within a ten-minute drive of Hedge End Retail Park and Grange Park — no motorway trek required, no early start needed.
Hedge End has grown into one of Hampshire's busiest towns, but the countryside is never far away, and Itchen Valley Country Park is proof of that. Head out past Botley on the Allington Lane side and within minutes the retail parks and roundabouts give way to open meadows, hedgerows and grazing alpacas. It's the kind of contrast that makes the walk feel like a proper escape, even though you'll be home in time for tea.
You'll be paired with your own halter-trained alpaca — we run more than 40 of them, each with its own personality, so our handler will match you with one suited to your group. An experienced member of the team leads the whole session, which runs for around two hours and takes in the fields and woodland paths around the park. You hold the lead yourself, so this is genuinely hands-on rather than a spectator activity, and there's plenty of time to stop, take photos and let your alpaca graze along the way.
Everyone, in practice. Children aged 3 to 12 share a lead with an adult, those 12 to 16 can lead independently with an adult present, and anyone 16 or over walks solo. We also run accessible walks every Wednesday between April and October, with free carer tickets, so it's worth asking if that's useful for your group. Families from Hedge End often combine the walk with a picnic in the park afterwards, since there's plenty of open grassland to make a full afternoon of it.
Walks start from £32 per person, with family packages from £92 and baby-alpaca walks from £54. An extra walker can join for £18, and £4.50 rescheduling insurance means a soggy Hampshire forecast doesn't have to cost you the booking. Gift vouchers are available too, which is a popular choice for Hedge End residents buying for family a few miles down the road. We've been running these walks as a family business for 16 years and are fully BAS-registered, so you're booking with an established local outfit rather than a pop-up experience. Call us on 0333 050 4012 or book online to check availability.