Why do so many people dislike Centre Parcs so much?

@coulditbeme2323 / @SpudGunToo

How mad! I manage an education recruitment business and all of our areas are one.

We have a few private schools and free schools that have longer.

In fairness my son’s SENd school authorises term time holidays so the kids can actually access them, we took him away the week before May half term last year, so I don’t really have to stick to school holidays anyway.

Because it’s not a real forest holiday but it’s Butlins prices without Butlins stuff.

So it’s shit on both ends of the scale.

State schools where we are have two weeks. It is an absolute pain, who wants two weeks off in an English autumn?

I'm not a fan of pine plantations and when they say the camps are in woodlands, it's usually a pine wood which is very boring and sterile ecologically (no undergrowth - just piles of grey needles and darkness, few birds and animals).

And I like being away from other people on my hols.

October half term is one week - or does that rely on my kids being privately educated? 😂

We used to go when the kids were pre-school/primary school and it wasn't bad value for the time of year - we always used to go for a long weekend starting on the Friday of the last day of term before Christmas - we'd pick the kids up and go straight from school so would get there late afternoon.
Haven't been there in pushing twenty years but from what it sounds like the sites need at best a good deep clean and a lot of a makeover but at that time the lodges were OK, there was a reasonable choice of food and nothing was hugely marked up compared to outside the gates.
Are they another one the places trying to catch up for the revenue they lost during covid by not refurbishing the site to save money but also by upping the prices as well?

Most people I know love it, but I can't stand it. Because:

• It's like fake outdoors, and I like hiking and mountains etc.
• I can't stand public swimming pools, they're people soup.
• The restaurants are crap. They seem to a worse version of already shitty chain places at an inflated price.
• The shops are all super expensive.
• The activities are really expensive for what they are - you pay for the convenience of them all being onsite.
• Other than people soup there's nothing to do that doesn't cost money.
• It's caravan standard accomodation at holiday cottage prices.

One type that plans and books holidays with the kids being happy and having fun as their main focus. So they will go to places like CP, Butlins, AI’s with kids clubs etc etc.
Then there’s the other type where the adults plan and book the holiday they want and drag the kids along.

Always booked holidays with dc first in mind.

Most of the time we book Airbnbs that have their own private pool. (Have seen Italian mansions with their own lake complete with Swan pedallos or a desert house in Las Vegas with its own pitch and putt course and lazy river) all for less than the equivalent amount of time in a CPs

We then make sure that there is stuff to do around the area and places to go sightseeing a beach is a plus

It might not be jam packed with children’s activities but dc liked not having to be somewhere for what essentially was a lesson. They preferred a lazy get up and playing in the pool and in the afternoon going to an activity that didn’t require too much queuing up and little to no supervision or someone looking over their shoulder. The idea of being somewhere for the start of a lesson at a certain time sounded like school and not a holiday

Hence the "smiley"

I think that our family are the target audience - we are looking for a short break that has to include two grandmothers, a married couple and an autistic child, all of whom have totally different interests and several of whom need a lot of solitary quiet time across the weekend, and their own familiar food. Having a self-catering cabin (but near places where some people can eat out) with a large variety of activities nearby on a secure site is perfect - there are very few other breaks that would meet the wide and quite rigid variety of requirements in the party.

Or maybe it was related to the dates the poster who stayed there (forget name) on this thread.

Turns out the dead rat in rapids isn’t an isolated incident. Ewww. I’m definitely not going there!

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c3r1g1qzlvvo

I go to Butlin’s and of the two us I’m not the one slagging people off because of their choice of holiday. So I’m glad you’re not the ‘sort of person who goes to Butlin’s’ and I won’t see you there.

I have been and loved it. Albeit it was not expensive as it was not school holidays. Food is not amazing by any standard but you can cook which we did. If you have small children there is so much to do and there is usually one within good travelling distance. It gets very busy and so not everyone hates it !

From what I see on the online groups the 90-95% capacity seems to be mainly made up of it's cult like followers. There are a few very hardcore fans who visit multiple times a year and won't listen to any criticism at all about it. It is very much riding on the coat tails of memories and childhood feelings.

It's a holiday for people who are outsidey, they don't mind a walk as long as it's flat/ on a clear path and there is a coffee shop or a pub at the end of it. They want to be able to walk in their trainers/ flat shoes/ sandals. They want to be able to sleep in the indoors with home comforts. It suits those who like to go on holiday to a resort and want to feel "closer to nature" without having to rough it in the woods in a tent with camping gear. It very much has it's place.

The problem with CP is that it has no like for like rival. There are a couple of Haven's that offer the swimming side of things and manufactured nature. Butlins offers the resort experience but is very run down and has a reputation for a certain clientele.

This has led to complacency. A few of the CP sites have become very run down, with damp, poorly maintained lodges. Sites have expanded but the facilities have not been expanded or had any proper investment. It's year round opening means that there is no proper annual maintenance of everything, instead maintenance is done around guests with parts closed off. CP has always been expensive but nowadays it feels poor value for money. Restaurants are chains and food served is mediocre. Services such as regular housekeeping during your stay have been withdrawn, they have removed the small complimentary toiletries, check in at the basic lodges is later, swimming hours are reduced, some sites are plagued by short staff and restaurant availability/ swimming flumes and slides and activities are reduced.

For the prices charged (especially in school holidays) people can go abroad for cheaper and almost guaranteed weather. Even if staying in the UK for the price of a basic lodge you can get a much higher standard of accommodation elsewhere. For example we tried to get a term time weekend at CP in April 2 bed basic lodge and it was £699. For £500 We got a 2025 caravan lodge on a holiday park with dishwasher, washing machine and tumble dryer, fridge freezer, air fryer, hot tub, coffee machine, access to the swimming pool and onsite facilities and daytime and evening entertainment.

Year's ago SC holiday accomodation was often a but grimy and tatty and it wasn't unusual for my mum to clean when we arrived.

In recent years the standard of private holiday lets has really improved and I haven't had a bad one, even at the budget end of the market, since about 1995.

CPs haven't kept up IMO.

I just looked that one up, loads of things to do offsite as well as on. I like the look of glass blowing excursion!

DD and family were at a CP recently, the week of the glorious weather.

she text me to say that they'd arrived safely but she had spent 2 hours cleaning because the cabin smelled of vomit, especially the sinks and it was generally grimy.

within 24 hrs they were throwing up one after the other - their whole stay ruined. They were due to go to a family wedding straight from there but had to say that they couldn't travel as two of them were still vomiting - son in law was the best man.

so what with the holiday during half term and the cost of attending the wedding, a huge amount of money wasted.

I’ve booked a week camping in uk for 380£

out own tent and stuff next to the beach - driving distance from Loads of other beaches - water park down the road

Centre parcs for the same dates is thousands

we save our money and go Mexico or Asia or soemthing every other year cus the money for centre parcs just isn’t worth it

I like Center Parcs but in Europe.

The one at Allgau is fantastic and a week there at February half term cost less than a weekend at CP Woburn even with eurotunnel, tolls and accommodation on the way.

The European Center Parcs encourage you to get out and about as well, so we've used them as a base for visiting Munich, Amsterdam and Paris.

I’d say it’s more actual snobbery rather than inverted!! A lot of people have said it’s dirty, with crap restaurants, crap facilities, etc.

I’ve only been once, but I can’t see how CP is a hub of refined taste - the comments here have been the opposite? It’s like a big leisure centre.