to ask for opinions of Centre Parcs v Butlins

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Hi all, plans for 1/2 term have changed (tradesmen in meaning we have to go!). Looking at Centre Parcs (Longleat, been before, know what you get) but it’s £1200 for a two bed lodge for me, partner, 3yr old and 1 yr old.

Butlins (never been) in Minehead is £400 for a Silver Apartment. Two bedrooms.

Seems like you get a lot more for your money at Butlins, but which is better for a 4 day break? Any advice gratefully received.

I love Center Parcs. I HATE Butlins. We went in the feb half term. It was stupidly busy. Had to queue for 1.5hrs to get a seat in the evening venues. Swimming pool was standing room only...one out, one in. Restaurant was noisy and crazy. Couldn’t wait to get home....never going back! I’d choose CP any day!

Butlins does what it does well. Avoid Bognor beach though- it’s grim, rubbish and plastic casings. I’ve never spent out on centreparcs as not convinced how weather proof it is. I’d get a nice quality independent site somewhere with a pool and playground, should find this for £400-500 in May half term.

You can often buy passes to get into the shows early and get good seats at Butlins. At Skegness they are called b-line passes. Can't recall if Minehead has them.

We just came back from Longleat CP with a 3.5 and 1.5 year old and although it was nice there was hardly anything for them to do other than swim (which one loved and the other did not) and paid activities. There is one tiny playground and some tiny faded soft play zones in the cafes. Other than that it's about walking around/cycling in the forest which I would not pay £1200 for!!! Yes Butlins is a bit of a different class (sorry but it is!!) but at my kids age I know (from two other friends who just went with kids same age as mine) that hands down we should have gone to Butlins instead. When the kids are older CP will be the better choice x

Apologies if someone has said it already but how about haven? We have always enjoyed them. There is one near minehead which is really nice. Small and remote but good pool and rock and fossil hunting on the beach!

TrumpsFerret, the Haven park near Minehead is called Donniford Bay. We went a couple of years ago with the DC and had a lovely time. Will second what a few pp up thread said regarding good days out nearby, we did West Somerset Railway and Dunster Castle. Other flagship Haven resorts like Devon Cliffs are also good and we have been to a few Parkdean’s aswell.
There will always be comments about CP being MC and Butlins/Haven/Parkdean being WC but I honestly think it is what you make of it. We always upgrade the accommodation to the nicest we can afford, we find the Haven swimming facilities are clean and well maintained (Pontins is a different story though!), and we spend the money we have saved by not going somewhere really expensive like CP on days out to local attractions and we also have NT membership so we will use this if there is an NT site nearby.
The DC love the evening discos and Caberet shows, they are the highlight of their holiday tbh. They love being allowed to stay up later than normal and meet the characters. Yes it is a bit cheesy but once I’ve had a couple of glasses of wine I don’t really care.
My DM used to work at Longleat CP when I was a child so we had discounted weekend breaks there. I would say that it is definitely more geared up for tweens/teens. I had a look at how much a week break would be and it was eyewateringly expensive and wouldn’t spend that much with young DC as I don’t think they would get much out of it.

OK OP, so I am probably similar to you, I'm definitely more in the CP cohort but I look at these caravan holiday parks and think, but they're so cheap, would it not be worth giving it a try?

I think for you for half term when you have to be out the house, now is not the time to try a butlins holiday park, do that for a weekend for a couple of night, that's what I plan to do before commiting to a few days.

@mummysherlock We did dunster too, such a lovely day out. I think there is some agreement that you can use Butlins at minehead if you are a guest at doniford, but you'd need to check OP!

For your age Kids definitely Butlins.

Centre Parcs!

We love Butlins. We don’t do the evening entertainment or many of the paid activities , just accommodation, swimming pool, beach and relax. Kids love it, it’s a break. There are some ‘chavs’ and some ‘non-chavs’ in my experience but never any trouble. Getting a caravan is quieter than the chalet accommodation. But if you don’t mind basic, look for the Sun holiday codes.

Butlins everytime. Minehead Butlins is fabulous. Never had an issue with cleanliness and great value for money.

Another one for Butlins

Every time I go to Centre Parcs we have a great time but I come away feeling absolutely fleeced.

Butlins is much better value and we enjoy having the option to go to the evening shows and the kids definitely prefer it.

Don't know about butlins but have been to haven and centre parcs.
Haven-
Screaming kids
Shouty/ineffective parents
Busy in holidays
Vile overpriced food
Mostly free activities

Centre Parcs
Screaming kids
Braying/simpering ineffective parents
Busy in holidays
Vile overpriced food
Overpriced activities

I would say the answer depends on YOU and what you like and are bothered by, not the places themselves.

Butlins will have a significant contingent of people smoking/vaping and drinking from mid-morning, plus talking loudly and sometimes using bad language. There is a large tattoo and over-weight count in the pool. It depends if this horrifies you or not whether you will enjoy a holiday there.

Some people clearly enter into all of the above - fine, it is their holiday and they should enjoy themselves as they choose. You might not enter into the above, but be able to tolerate it without it spoiling your holiday and recognise the good things about Butlins like the large pools, fairground rides, improved accommodation and good value (outside school hols mainly). However, if you're someone who will feel upset about seeing people vaping or behaving in a rather 'vulgar' manner at the evening disco, or will feel upset that your children see it, it's probably not for you.

The evenings I think are what set the 2 apart. Butlins has lots of evening entertainment - shows, discos, bars open. Not everyone goes but lots of people choose Butlins for the entertainment. Lots of people who go to CP don't want entertainment in the evening and shudder at the idea of early evening children's discos with a bit of agadoo or other action dances. Instead they want a meal at the lodge or perhaps in a restaurant,mfollowed by children in bed and then a nice glass of wine in the living room or outside - it's not about communal activity in the evening, or at all to be honest, although obviously lots of people are there most of the time.

Butlins is trying to be a bit more upmarket. If you look at the website you don't see people vaping or boozing but nice families enjoying an ice cream together. However, they know their market and still offer instalment plans to pay for the holiday with low deposits, cheap not-updated accommodation and entertainment which appeals to some groups, along with the more fancy and pricier newer accommodation and range of restaurants to attract those with money to spend.

In the end, you could have a great time at Butlins and do it for less cash IF you are aware there is a more mixed clientele and you aren't bothered about it. If you will be phased because you are either totally engulfed in a middle class bubble at home, that you've never seen how others like to spend their time, or if you're upwardly mobile and tend to look down on your roots a bit, it's probably not for you. But if you are able to take it for what it is and the people too, accepting there will be a wider range (and actually it might be quite good for children to see that too) you can have a great time.

Oh, and I don't think CP is quite as exclusive as some people imagine. Yes it might be pricey but I think you'll find there are quite a lot of non-middle class markers there too amongst the people. There are plenty of working class people with plenty of money to spend. But perhaps they aren't the markers which are quite so loud, so people aren't so bothered about them!

Just back from Skegness Butlin's. 4th year in a row.

We go because it's great for the kids.

I will admit though the clientele are very mixed. 50 % make the residents of the Chatsworth Estate (Shameless, not the fancy house in Derbyshire) look classy. The other 50% are grandparents, big families, working and middle class. We are a working class, blended family of 6 with age range of 6 to 16.

Great for disabled people too, as its all on one level (one bar has lifts to get in) so you do see a lot of families with a member who is disabled. I noticed the pool has a hoist too. Lots of room to manoeuvre even the biggest wheelchair or bigger pushchair.

Its not a cheap holiday though unless you do self catering, but even then the sweets and drinks and toys - costs a fortune.

It's a good bit of fun though and everyone is just getting on with their own holiday, most people are pleasant and the really rough types are easy enough to avoid as it's a big enough place.

Been to both. Centre parcs is a lot more upmarket but lovely with the wildlife and surroundings. But eating out and the cost of additional activities is insane.

Butlins is what I would call more cheap and cheerful. But there's loads of free entertainment and you can venture off site easily.

At your kids age they'd probably enjoy butlins more imo.

I'd be looking at other options... we absolutely love CP but wouldn't pay the money in the holidays.

Hoseasons

Forest holidays

Bluestone (prob still quite pricey)

Or just get an Airbnb somewhere lovely and go for trips with the kids.

Butlins is what I would call more cheap and cheerfull
It’s not cheap in the summer holidays, we are paying £1700 mon- fri.

Butlins - much easier. Don't go for the basic dining & accommodation though as it's grim. The premium dining plan is fine though and the higher end accommodation (still cheaper than center parcs!)

We normally do very swish hols abroad due to hubby working in travel industry and I'd still choose butlins over cp ! Just make sure you do premium dining and the best accommodation type that you can afford.

I’m going to Butlins Minehead in October. I went last year and my DD loved it. We did pay for a dining plan and but not for any extra activities. As DD is young we are not interested in evening activities and/or drinking. I didn’t see the massive amount of chavs others are talking about.

I love both

I am a bit of a snob, but I might actually swing towards Butlins over CP. Go for their best accommodation, and it will still be cheaper than CP. It will be near a beach and a town. You can do their activities and use the pool. You don’t need to do the Butlins evening entertainment. Go out into town or self cater.

Again, it depends on how affected you are by the presence if other people who might be holidayIng differently to you.

If you stay in the better accommodation at Butlins, you can essentially enjoy much of what CP has for far less (certainly out of school hols - not so much in school hols - as others say, Butlins isn't cheap in school holidays) - there are good pools, activities you can sign up for (more cheaply than CP) plus beaches instead of forests.

I dont think it's the resorts themselves people object to.....and they keep spending large amounts to keep them up to today's standards - Bognor Butlins has just opened a £40m pool! What lots of people are t keen on is the group of people who behave differently to them - the drinking from mid-morning, shouting at or ignoring the kids, being a bit loud, smoking or vaping.

Most people at Butlins won't be doing these things, but some people will.

The way I look at it, is they are enjoying their holiday in the way they choose to. Very rarely if ever has it had any major impact on me and my family and our enjoyment at all.....so I don't let it spoil the destination for us, even though we might not do those things. I'd like to think I'm a bit more robust and my children are becoming a bit more robust than that.....and I actually do think there's a lot if value in seeing everyone isn't living in exactly the same way.

But for some people, the fact there are some people vaping or feeding their kids chips and fruit shoots rather than organic carrots upsets them, and they feel they can't be in a place with such people even if the facilities and holiday could be great. Holidays are precious and you do have to spend them where you are comfortable, and I think some people can be comfortable in a broader range of place than others. Some are very narrow.

And I dont think it just comes down to cost. Butlins in summer holidays is expensive - lots of people are surprised because they assume it must be cheap. But it isn't. Realise that lots of those people staying there who seem different might actually have plenty of money and Bultins is their choice rather than CP and they could quite likely afford CP. Some CP goers like to look down their noses at Butlins holiday makers assuming it's all they can afford - it often isn't. Some will also have holidays abroad or multiple other holidays during the year. Some of it is a cultural choice not a money thing. All of us can think of holidays we wouldn't go on by choice but which might be hugely expensive.

Don't make the mistake of thinking the middle class have expensive holidays and the working class cheap holidays. Lots of working class people have well paid jobs and like to spend lots of holidays or go away with family who pay for them all. The choice of expensive holiday is cultural and about choice and taste, not just price.