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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Longleat Center Parcs, taking £600 a night to be on a 24hr building site! Aaagghh

516 replies

Mumblebeebee · 25/07/2017 02:05

We are currently staying at Longleat centre parcs. Having saved for this for a year, it's costing an eye watering £600 a night for 4 nights. Total £2400.

What we weren't told was our villa was opposite a 24 hour construction site. Which, as I type is sounding like smashing bottles being thrown into a bottle bank crossed with several generators running.

I'm fuming, no sleep possible and we have 4 children to entertain tomorrow.

AIBU to have expected Center Parks not to have booked out our villa knowing this. Or at very least warned us.

Any advice? We've called customer services at 2am to be told that extra work was being carried out!

I'm not happy at all.

OP posts:
IshipTomHardysohard · 27/07/2017 01:10

Can we all just stop given op crap about the price!

I've got a boy with asd, no plans to go abroad for a long time. My son drinks only a certain brand or water, crisps, chocolate etc. Then you have the traveling, some kids find that so hard. The change of scenery, the heat. A million ways they might not be able to cope.

Asd kids find change hard, I can see why op went there, even though she is having a rough time. Hope the drilling stops for you op. And your family get to relax and enjoy the rest of your holiday.

toffeeboffin · 27/07/2017 01:27

Just a sec.

They started drilling at midnight?

How the fuck have you not lost your shit already?

Dragonflycushion · 27/07/2017 01:33

The pool at Bluestone is like a toddlers' paddling pool compared with C P.

BreakfastAtSquiffanys · 27/07/2017 05:41

Centre Parc have really got this so wrong.
They should have planned ahead and decided to shut completely for a month in the winter and done all this work then.

ColossalKalamari · 27/07/2017 07:05

heLambShankRedemption£600 a night for Butlins with trees? Saved all year for a 4 day holiday... in the UK?

What a useful, insightful comment.

The op has already explained why she chose this holiday

Igottastartthinkingbee · 27/07/2017 07:10

Wow can't believe this is happening again! Hope you're night wasn't too bad OP and the kids weren't affected. Centre Parcs need their ass kicking.

cluelessnewmum · 27/07/2017 07:21

Well Center Parcs has already got some terrible PR from this thread, with 19 pages of comments and counting - I hope you have told their customer service about that.

Terrible planning that they've got building work during peak season and that they've still let out the lodges next to it. Wow.

You should get a full refund for the whole weekend, no less. It's no fun getting no sleep then spending your waking hours chasing compensation. I would get a 3 day migraine from that sort of disruption rendering the weekend pointless.

Center parcs is meant to be about peace and quiet!

Awful, I'm sorry this has happened to you Flowers

SeetheseeyessogreenIcanstarefo · 27/07/2017 07:48

I wonder if mumsnet, a site for and by parents to make parents lives better is going to take advertising money of cp? After this ops awful experience? I am going away in two weeks I have been looking forward to it for months, I would be devastated if this happened. Luckily I don't think it would the place I am going to has exemplary customers service.

alteredimages · 27/07/2017 08:00

I really hope you managed to get some sleep OP and will be able to enjoy today.

What is management's final offer? I really can't understand why they were making a refund contingent on you leaving immediately. They obviously have zero understanding of how hard it is to book time off work and disappoint children who are already in holiday mode, let alone a child with ASD who struggles with change. Your loss is not purely financial, you are also spending valuable time. This should be taken into consideration.

Have you found out from the council whether they have permission to work through the night? It seems unusual to be starting work at midnight, and normally would not be permitted.

Could the OP or someone else tweet this thread to Center Parcs? It seems that the negative PR on this thread will cost them much more than the cost of OP's holiday in negative publicity, and as it is in AIBU it will not disappear and is indexed and searchable through google so could pop up in searches too.

whyhastherumgone · 27/07/2017 08:16

AS someone who works in marketing, tell guest services that if you don't get at least half a refund back (or whatever you feel is fair personally i would want more) that you'll go to the papers and real life magazines, starting with the daily mail. They love a good holiday horror story but don't usually get them in the UK, and will be especially interested if your son hasn't special needs.

whyhastherumgone · 27/07/2017 08:16

has*

BarbaraofSeville · 27/07/2017 08:43

Terrible planning that they've got building work during peak season and that they've still let out the lodges next to it. Wow

^^ This. How could they get it so wrong? It's bleeding obvious that you do disruptive work in the off season not the most expensive weeks of the year when you are at capacity and can sell the place out three times over at twice the price.

What are they building that's such an emergency that it couldn't wait until November - have people that booked for August been promised some great new facility that's not finished yet?

Full refund and a free equivalent repeat booking is a perfectly reasonable expectation in this case. Your lovely, long anticipated relaxing holiday has been totally ruined. Are there other lodges nearby that have been similarly affected?

alteredimages · 27/07/2017 08:49

What are they building that's such an emergency that it couldn't wait until November - have people that booked for August been promised some great new facility that's not finished yet?

They are advertising new water rides open from 16th August. Still don't think it justifies noisy work through the night though.

skinoncustard · 27/07/2017 09:05

I'm sorry OP but you seem to be a bit accepting of the situation. £2400 of anybody's money is a lot , you are not getting what you paid for . The design of CP is usually a small number of houses grouped together, the noise must be affecting more than one property. Noise travels in the silence ( IYKWIM)
At this rate you will be home and still not have had any resolution.
At the very least I would expect a full refund .

Therealslimshady1 · 27/07/2017 09:12

Outrageously crap customer service from CP!

Hope you get a refund OP, but even more do I hope you all get to enjoy the last few days

FaFoutis · 27/07/2017 09:19

This thread has put me off ever going to CP UK sites.
We went to Belgian CP earlier this year, a couple of the activities were unavailable (we were warned in advance) so they gave us half price extra days in a nearby CP. We didn't even have to complain. (Also it was v.cheap in the first place.)

I hope you get proper recompense OP. We shouldn't let companies get away with treating customers like this.

SeetheseeyessogreenIcanstarefo · 27/07/2017 09:26

. How could they get it so wrong? It's bleeding obvious that you do disruptive work in the off season not the most expensive weeks of the year when you are at capacity and can sell the place out three times over at twice the price

CP have not "got it wrong" they knew full well the noise would be disruptive its bloody building site! They ordered the works I imagine and just decided to bite any bullets like ops complaint,

JustDanceAddict · 27/07/2017 09:26

Bluestone is nothing like CP, sorry. Also you leave the site - we certainly did. We went off season with young teens so certainly not enough to keep everyone happy there.

LadyPenelope68 · 27/07/2017 09:28

The design of CP is usually a small number of houses grouped together, the noise must be affecting more than one property)

This is the thing that unfortunately is making me doubt the severity of the problem. As a regular on the CP Facebook page and their Twitter page, whoever there are major issues, these social media sites are filled with complaints from people experiencing the same problem. I find it very hard to believe that if the issue was as bad as the OP poster is claiming, why are there absolutely NO other complaints/posts, other than those from people in here who are simply adding a link to this thread?

instrifeagain · 27/07/2017 09:40

I'd visit the neighbouring lodges, to ask how they are coping. A joint complaint may have more effect.

SnickersWasAHorse · 27/07/2017 09:54

Well I hope you get some compensation for this op. Shocking.

Articu · 27/07/2017 10:01

I'd be really upset. I'm rubbish at sleeping through noise.

SeetheseeyessogreenIcanstarefo · 27/07/2017 10:14

I'd visit the neighbouring lodges, to ask how they are coping. A joint complaint may have more effect.

^^ I agree.

My neighbour and i had massive issues with the house between us and only after a year did we join forces, I had no idea she had issues.

lady maybe they are trying to muddle through and make the best of it?Also another poster came on here to say they had been down to CP customer service

SpaghettiMeatballs · 27/07/2017 11:04

This is such a shame OP when you've looked forward to a break.

I can't believe they aren't taking it more seriously especially as you are a loyal customer.

myusernamewhichisthis · 27/07/2017 11:25

well i was looking at cp for a brek with dd in oct. this has put me RIGHT off.
ill go with forest holidays instead.

way to go cp. terrible.