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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Center Parcs

55 replies

pleasestoprainingplease · 14/09/2021 10:51

So holiday is creeping up on us and we've never been before. Why can't I find any prices for the activities (I've heard can be very expensive) online. I might be able to see when I eventually can book them but that's not for a couple of weeks and I'm trying to figure out how much to put aside for activities alone!

AIBU for wanting to know the prices before I look and then maybe I won't tell the kids everything that's there and pre select some I would be happy to pay for before telling them their choices.

I'm probably being unreasonable even booking CP Confused

OP posts:
toomuchlaundry · 14/09/2021 14:19

Do all of them have a train (it's a land train by the way)?

How old are the DC? Activities are cheaper the younger they are

notapizzaeater · 14/09/2021 14:26

Sherwood doesn't have a train.

When booking activities that only have a small gap in the middle make sure you can actually get to the other one quickly. We struggled getting one side to the other quickly.

You can buy the fire logs for about £1 from b and m, home bargains etc

Original poster
pleasestoprainingplease · 14/09/2021 14:26

It was £500 Mom-fri and I've spent more on caravans I thought the swimming pool would be bonus points and the face we can cycle safely and go for long walks in woods and have a lovely big space to live in would make the money seem more bearable.

Kids will be 6 and 10. So the expensive end then 😂

OP posts:
SummerHouse · 14/09/2021 14:39

The fire logs are for your cabin op. They all have a kind of fire pit with guard. The logs are fake versions of actual wood in a bag. You set light to the bag and hey presto, you have a roaring fire. It's possibly my favourite thing! As PP mentioned, available for a quid each at b and m.

Landlubber2019 · 14/09/2021 14:48

We took the kids annually to Sherwood before they started school, we would often book bowling and maybe 1 other activity, but we took scooters and spent the week scootering, feeding ducks and visiting the various parks. We took our own food from supermarket and fire packs!

toomuchlaundry · 14/09/2021 14:50

@pleasestoprainingplease teenagers are even more expensive! We've been going to CP since DS was tiny. Toddler activities were very cheap compared to now. Haven't been to Sherwood or since COVID, but it is DS's favourite holiday destination. He would always choose that over anywhere else. Loved the pool

ElephantOfRisk · 14/09/2021 14:50

I've mainly gone to Whinfell Forest as it's our closest but we did do Sherwood one year too. Apart from the last few years, we would go at least once a year and sometimes for part of our summer holidays instead of going abroad. DC have gone since babies and honestly, i doubt there is an activity or service we haven't done. You just cut your cloth to what you can afford. Sherwood has a nice beach and young kids don't care if it's raining. Decent jackets and footwear and you'll be fine. I remember sherwood being relatively compact and flat. Whinfell is a little more "challenging" Grin. Take some bird food and you can watch birds and other wildlife from the inside. I think the swans or maybe geese? and ducks were pretty active round the cabins at Sherwood. You can obviously replicate a similar holiday more cheaply I think, but it's the fact it's all in one place and relatively car free that is the big advantage. We did a "twin centre" when at sherwood and also stayed at the Forest Holidays lodges nearby. The standard of those was far higher than CP but relatively few things on site so we went out and about more including getting the train into Nottingham and also did dirt buggy type things fairly locally.

NigelSlatersXmasTaters · 14/09/2021 14:54

Even in winter we've never bothered with the fire.

Don't spend a fortune on activities. Swimming is fine and cycling. Is badger watch channel on the tv still a thing?

stripedbananas · 14/09/2021 14:57

We went to Longleat. Not an actual train per se but a sort of train with no tracks that went around the parc to take people to various locations.

Roselilly36 · 14/09/2021 15:05

CP is fab, you will have a great time. If they’re any activities you want to do, book them before you go, as they get booked up quick. The Parc Market is good, but expensive, so take food with you. Elveden is our favourite CP. Have a lovely time.

EmmaStone · 14/09/2021 15:09

IME you don't want to overbook activities anyway - otherwise it gets a bit stressful making sure you're where you're supposed to be and always clock-watching (plus very expensive!). I don't think the activity prices are particularly uncompetitive, only if you're doing loads every day.

The spa and creche package is great - it's your holiday too, so why not (although my eldest - who is now 16 - still complains about being left there when she was about 5 lol)?

We always sleep like the dead when at CP - I think it's doing so much. DS would quite happily go around the rapids constantly all day given the chance - in fact CP has been an Xmas present to him for a few years as it's his favourite place in the world.

Horizons83 · 14/09/2021 15:16

The pool at Sherwood is great, my favourite I think. Book in a few of the pool sessions, maybe choose one or two more activities each, and I expect that will be fine.

These are the logs you need:

www.bmstores.co.uk/products/quickflame-firelog-309325

Just got back from CP last night and I am very sad that I'm not still there!

Calmdown14 · 14/09/2021 15:42

How old are your kids? Honestly, they will be knackered after the pool and might not need much else.
You can take your own bikes or scooters.
The woodland trail thing with the ranger was nice and relaxing if they still do that.
The play parks are great.
Assuming you can still arrive before gate opening time. Much nicer to do the check in, park up and have a wander/ play rather than sitting in a big queue.
Take all your own food, little BBQ, marshmallows etc.
Download some wildlife spotting sheets.
You can spend a fortune but you really don't have to

WiddlinDiddlin · 14/09/2021 15:53

I went to Sherwood in April, I really like it.

Theres a wood burner in the cabin, it takes special woodburner logs which you can buy all over the place but are available for a small mortgage from the on site store.

We did cross bow target stuff and laser shooting which would be suitable for older kids but not smalls (they have similar smaller kid stuff though), and had our nails done at the spa, we don't actually use the pool at all (both disabled, wheelchair users, the faffing involved makes it Un-Fun).

There is lots to do and the site is pretty big to walk around, the beach seemed very popular presumably as thats free!

dameofdilemma · 14/09/2021 16:00

In a regular school holiday its a bit crazy busy and popular activities have to be booked well in advance.

The saving grace has always been the swimming but if that also has to be booked in advance and is time limited, its probably a bit expensive for what it is.
Non school hols fine. School hols, we’ve decided not to. A lot of places are struggling generally when its busy in school hols at the mo due to staff shortages. Not the best time to do CP IMO.

SummerHouse · 14/09/2021 16:07

@Landlubber2019

We took the kids annually to Sherwood before they started school, we would often book bowling and maybe 1 other activity, but we took scooters and spent the week scootering, feeding ducks and visiting the various parks. We took our own food from supermarket and fire packs!
Assuming you are not actually me, I would probably have seen you there. I miss it so much!
Weedsorwishes · 14/09/2021 16:23

We've only been to the lakes one but it's great! We go most summers. Some of the activities can be very expensive so choose carefully.

We hire bikes so the children can go off and explore for an hour or so that fills a morning.

Swimming is free but you have to book a slot. We did one just before lunch then grabbed a quick takeaway lunch from the onsite shop the lakes one does hot snacks eg sausage rolls and then one just before tea and organised a takeaway delivery for when we got back to the lodge. The Chinese was great.

We also do boat hire. A 6 seater electric boat was around £25 for half an hour so on the expensive side but it was good . Cheaper boats are the double kayak which was £11 for 2 people for 30 mins so absolute bargain!

The playarea is great too and fills a morning or afternoon

Weedsorwishes · 14/09/2021 16:25

Also we bought squirrel food and bird food from the shop so that was an activity in itself putting food out and seeing what wildlife came.

Also we took a disposable BBQ far cheaper than on site shop and then the on site shop sells these little trays of chocolate which you melt and dip marshmallows etc in to that was a nice activity after dinner one night.

Also cheaper activities which we didn't try were table tennis I seem to recall was quite reasonable and squash courts etc. Also bowling seemed a pretty similar price to at home but we didn't do that

NigelSlatersXmasTaters · 14/09/2021 16:30

"the on site shop sells these little trays of chocolate which you melt and dip marshmallows etc"

Get these in home bargains before you go! In fact, get everything in home bargains before you go.

GertrudePerkinsPaperyThing · 14/09/2021 16:45

Land train is only Longleat because it’s so big.

The fire is one of the best bits! You can get cheaper logs like the one a pp has linked to.

I love the bbq rack behind the lodge and the smell of other people’s bbqs as we cycle back in the pm. We don’t bother with dinner out but sometimes lunch.

GertrudePerkinsPaperyThing · 14/09/2021 16:47

Yy to squirrel/ bird/ deer food too, bought before you go.

Almost the worst thing you can do is book too many activities as it’s so lovely there. I’m often guilty of this though.

AnnaSW1 · 14/09/2021 18:21

I agree with not booking too much. The swimming knackers them. You can book four long swimming slots for a Mon-Fri stay now.

Newrunner29 · 14/09/2021 18:22

After reading this i booked a wee in January, super excited to hear swimming for longer is back! So thanks for making thread and reminding me!

Newrunner29 · 14/09/2021 18:24

@Lelliebellieboo

Also, you can only swim twice during a 5 day break and swimming has to be pre-booked
They have extended it to 4× 3 hour sessions for q 4 night break
Peabody25 · 14/09/2021 18:29

You can also take food into the swimming place (or could pre-covid) which saves buying lunch and snacks. We just usually buy drinks.

There's loads of slides in the swimming bit so you can easily spend your three hours each day. I'd do breakfast in the lodge, swim, come back for lunch, then cycle/walk/ play park in the afternoon then back for tea/ eat out/ have a look in shops. There's a brilliant pick and mix place and a toy shop.

Definitely take your food with you as the supermarket on site is expensive,

Cheaper activities there's a treasure hunt you can do on bikes, and pedaloes on the lake.

The pancake house is brill and not too expensive if you just went for dessert one day.