To be worried about Butlins?!

[Burlee]

I’ve booked a few nights at Butlins in May - I used to go as a kid.

Last night I saw on their website that part of the pool in closed which was the main thing we were going for so I checked the trip advisor reviews to see if anyone mentioned it - OMG the reviews!! They were so bad they were actually funny! One person saying that the people who go there are tough as toast and it’s not unusual for parents to be calling their kids “little cunt” etc - kids running around absolutely feral, people queuing for 6pm entertainment from 2pm - everywhere smells of urine - half the rides don’t work - the accommodation is like a run down council flat - WTF have I done!

Anyone been recently and can tell me it’s not this bad?

We’ve been once to Bognor for a tots week, and once to Skegness in a standard (non holiday) week. There was a lot of swearing and smoking at Skegness together with a fair few badly behaved (school aged) kids - I don’t know whether this is down to the location or the fact that tots week has a gentler vibe. Your kids will have a brilliant time though so I’d focus on that.

I've only been to Bognor. My kids love it. The pool is fantastic, better than CP.

We stay in the hotel, not the chalets and the food is fine, it's not Michelin but usually something I can eat and I am fussy.

It's also not a cheap holiday.

I can't speak for Skegness but it is a great place for people watching.

Not everyone*

Why do you keep going back if you think its awful?
We must have very different ideas of what incredibly cheap is its far from my idea of cheap.

@Burlee are you going term time, or half term?

@Screwballs eww. I don't go on the adult weekends and tend to stay in caravans.

A lot of snobby replies here.
OP call Butlin's and let them know your daughter is autistic, I believe they can give guests with additional needs a different wrist band which means you can skip the queue, in the fairground definitely and I think for shows too.

I've been regularly to Bognor for years and don't relate to your description . It's a fun place and the staff are brilliant . Just make sure you know exactly when the 'plan my day' site opens for bookings so you can get the shows you want. Since Covid and booking I haven't seen anyone queue excessively - maybe start up to an hour before if it's the headline show but if you're not bothered about a front row seat it's not necessary

The main factor would be whether the pool (which you say is the main reason for going) will be open. If it will then I'd prob make the best of it, but if it is still closed I'd cancel.

We go to Skegness as an extended family holiday every year (8 weeks to go til ours!) - definitely not my favourite destination 😂 but it’s very affordable and have never seen ants/bugs and rooms have always been clean. We go for the gold apartments with disabled access, and they’ve always been okay. Swimming pool changing rooms are NAFF, but we’ve learnt to take warm stuff to throw over us til we get back. Pools themselves are nice and clean. Some ‘quirky’ parenting but normally that’s later in the evening and we tend to head back after dinner and play board games etc. Dreaming of the day I talk everyone into trying something else one day 😏

**edited to say after reading all these comments, I’m now firmly committed to trying another Butlins site as clearly we’ve chosen the worst!

Just cancel.
It's not what it was and there is absolutely nothing there you can't do elsewhere.
Your dd will have a wonderful break in a gorgeous b and b somewhere next to the sea, pottering around with buckets and spades etc.

Wow that would be dull as ditch water compared to Butlin's to be honest

I go to Pontins Sand Bay regularly, as FWB has a preference for it. The food isn’t the most appealing but it’s edible, and if you avoid the cheapest “unrefurbished” rooms we’ve found it clean and serviceable - and certainly cheap.

More sequence dancing and line dancing than I would like but hey ho. Most visitors well over 50.

Unless your extremely well off of course and can afford to take the hit.

Cancel. Forget the disco.

@NewbieT

True from what people have said!

How can anywhere else compare to loud day swearing and drinking, bed bugs, mouldy mattresses, fag buts left in room, smell of urine, murky water 🤣.... Very exciting indeed... Especially for a timid 4 year old..

We been skeg and Bognor and had a great time. There's so much to do and the kids have a ball. Yes some of the customers are a bit rough and ready but we've never seen any trouble etc.

It wss absolutely nothing like that ime,but hey this is mumsnet.

We've been to the one in Bognor twice, once just after Covid and once last summer. It's fine, the pool is really good (the big flume queue gets a bit ridiculous but my DC aren't bothered about the flume). The fair is ok, although not all free, soft play is massive although not really anywhere to sit unless you're getting things from the food outlets there, and the shows are good if you're into that sort of thing. It's not a glamorous holiday, but the DC are keen to go again. It's worth paying extra for better accommodation, and downloading the app to book activities in advance of your visit as they fill up quickly.

You can get bands that let you queue jump from guest services if your DC struggles with queues due to autism - we only found this out at the end of the first time.

We've been for the past 2 years. It is not somewhere that would be my usual choice but Stephen Mulhern was on and my daughter loves him so we booked a weekend. It was a lot better than I thought and we had such a nice time we booked for 4 nights the following year as my daughter was desperate to go back. Same as anywhere you get a mixture of families but on the whole I found most to be very pleqsant and polite. The first time we stayed in a room near the fairground which I wouldn't again as there was no where to sit together and it was a bit tired and dated. The second time we booked an apartment on the other side and it was really nice. I believe the pool is broken as in November the pump and pipe broke under the main pool so they have just got the flumes, rapids and baby pool open while they refurb it all. I think they are having the circus open instead.

@x2boys because it seems patchy and no consistency of standards.

Fine if the clientele want to get pissed and scream insults to each other before lunch but.... Why doesn't butlins have good clean accommodation?

They had bed bug issues last year I think as well as general reports of poor accmd and facilities. People pay a lot of hard earned money for this and because they are owned in some huge faceless conglomerate the complaints process isn't very good. See old threads.

I looked into a long time ago as we saw the one in Minehead but I decided at most only a day ticket due to lack of customer care and extortionate prices.

We couldn't afford it.

Op would be much better off looking at many other options open to her, probably taking her dd abroad and somewhere else decent for cheaper, excellent quality accommodation and if she needs entertainment then entertainment.

Don’t go.

When we went to Centerparcs there were plenty of scum there.

I haven't been to the Skegness one but I've been to the bognor one. It was really nice. The apartment we stayed in was a bit dated but fine. The hotel is meant to be nicer. The actual park and entertainment was really good... everywhere was clean. I even saw some middle class people 😂

We went last year and I don't get either the hate or the love for it.

It was fine. We went for a weekend.

Accommodation was clean imo (but then I'm not the type to go pulling beds out or taking close up photos of the bathroom sealant like some do 😂). BUT very outdated and tatty. If you're fussy, have very expensive tastes or compare it to a 'high end' holiday park like Bluestone, you'll hate it. It was somewhere to sleep, nothing more.

Foodhall was also fine. Certainly nowhere I'd go for a 'nice meal' but it was plentiful and varied enough and 3 dc (aged 14-5) love a buffet restaurant so were happy to fill their plates with it.

We saw one brilliant show and a couple of average ones. Youngest enjoyed the Peppa Pig show and the rides. Two teens enjoyed the arcade and go carts and being allowed a sneaky half pint of larger in the chaos that is the evening venue.

We enjoyed overall but it's not somewhere I'd spend more than a couple of nights at or £££ on.

I got eaten by bed bugs at Skegness Butlins

So did I about 20 years ago so not really relevant to todays standards there I hope !