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?

Butlins tends to be great or shit like most holiday parks tbh. You either have an amazing time or you never stop moaning about it. I’d always pay for the best accommodation you can or private rent a caravan on Skegness site.

Yes part of the pool is shut I’m sure it was a burst pipe or something. It was all over Facebook before Christmas people where mad rightly so because they where not getting money off when something was shut which is part of the huge selling point.

Skegness is Skegness it’s always going to be, it’s skegvagas for a reason. It’s easy to get to via train, coach and cheap. However they do have some really good gluten free eateries not far from the clock tower for donuts and what not.

We used to have our own holiday accommodation a bit further up the road but sold it (caravan before we get onto second homes) because we where just done with shitty nappies on the beach and the stink of weed everywhere and the more and more hen and stag dos appearing. Plus same ole knock off crap on fanny island.

We have loved it every time. Only thing is we always got a stomach bug. The last time we had to go home early. Think it cos it is so busy are more likely to catch things. Next time taking hand gel and keeping distance.

I wouldn't touch center Parks with a barge either!!

"always got a stomach bug" 😂😂.

If people stopped going they would rightly go bust or get their act together.

How hard is to at least check for bed bugs, mould and so on.

It is easier to pop across the chanel and get a lovely camp site with all these pools and discos in France or Belgium or the Netherlands. There will always be the odd moan but how does butlins get away with it!

It’s the water. I had to drink bottled water in skeggy/ingoldmells even though it’s still Anglian water like at home. Always gave me the shits 😂

We did a week in the summer holiday last year and had a great time. We were in a private caravan rather then butlins accommodation and this meant no dining plan and no booking shows which I was worried about.

I think we managed to see everything and there were some amazing shows.
I was also worried about the time of behaviour described but the children have so much fun you end up focusing on that.

I know people who go and they love it but I wouldn't touch it with a barge pole.

My friend used to clean at one in the summer holidays and the stories of how people left the accommodation was sickening. The worst was discovering someone had taken a shit in a frying pan and put it in a cupboard.

Dd and family went to the Minehead one for a friends/extended-family get together. She was dubious in advance about the ‘rough’ factor, but in fact found it fine, especially for all their young children. Though admittedly that was in summer and they did have very good weather for enjoying the lovely beach.

Minehead was awful…the pool was grim, a ring of dirt, and god knows what, literally created a ring just above the water.
Everything is just so dirty too 😩

You should see what hotel cleaners have to deal with...

I would prefer not to go away then go to butlins 🤣

I know it’s not quite the same however I went on an adults only weekend to butlins in Minehead. we stayed in the basic accommodation and it was fine, the carpets had mysterious stains which we chose to ignore. The entertainment was good, we found the site to be fairly clean, the staff were absolutely lovely and the food was very good! If you can upgrade to the apartments do. We made friends and visited their apartments they were so so much better in terms of cleanliness and space. Our rooms were run down, but again fine. Negatives were the other holiday makers - they were rough as rats, the pool although good fun was freezing (again this was an adults only weekend - maybe they thought we could take the cold!) and on the last night there was a fire and the alarms went off so we all got to stand in the freezing cold for an hour (not butlins fault I know) at 3am. I remember thinking thank Christ there’s no kids here the poor things would have frozen.

We went to Bognor a few years running when DD was small (10-15 years ago).

Most of the accommodation had been upgraded since then.

You're never going to find it overrun with little Henriettas and Sebastians, with mummies and daddies quaffing Barolo, but it’s a lot of fun for younger kids and that makes it a good break for parents imo.

If your DD is quieter, they certainly used to do lots of low key day time activities…crafting, magic shows, scavenger hunts etc and the staff were always lovely.

Tripadviser can be a useful but it is also to be taken with the a pinch of salt. Everywhere has some bad reviews and if you focuss on the bad ones you'll never go anywhere.

Haven't been to Butlins since I was a kid, however we do go to Haven(The one we go to use to be Butlins). My kids love it there and so do we cause if they are happy, then as parents we can relax and enjoy ourselves. Of course it has many bad reviews like many places but we always enjoy it. I'd go and give it a chance. If anywhere has 4 stars plus on tripadviser I'm willing to give it a chance. Some people just love to moan.

They might come home with a new vocabulary though

skegness butlins a year ago was great for me and dd. we stayed in the silver hotel rooms. the people we met were all nice, just ordinary other parents having a nice few days with their children. room was basic but comfortable enough and clean. staff were very helpful. for the kids disco, there's no queues as those shows are on a stage in the middle of what I can only describe as a shopping centre, so you just find a table (if you can), or stand to the sides and kids dance on the dance floor in front of the stage. there's kids shows on that stage as well- peppa pig, etc. the only thing that was long to queue for was the meet and greet with the peppa pig characters. the queuing shows, we got into every night. we paid VIP to guarantee getting into the shows, as it was masked singer, but honestly didn't need to. i don't know why people queue from 2pm, but maybe they're just worried about missing a specific show. there's plenty of other shows on at the same time, in the red coat bar, which doesn't need queuing for, and they repeat the main shows through the week, if you miss anything. there's also a puppet show you don't need to queue for. i did go in term time though- not sure what the holidays are like. mid week was very quiet, the weekend busier, as expected. pool was amazing, me and dd both loved it- great slides, plenty of changing room cubicles. only hard bit is finding a locker near where you get changed. which part do they say is closed? it's a massive pool with lots of parts, so if it's just one part, it may be okay. i loved butlins as a parent to a three year old- small enough to get around and enough going on for dd to never be bored, and for me to have to head space whilst she danced, watched shows, went to soft play etc. it's not somewhere i'd go as an adult without DC, but just right for the kids. it's right on the beach as well. if you're worried about shows and getting into soft play, make sure you download the app and a few weeks before going, you can book onto everything you want to do, in advance. would recommend booking the soft play and crafts, as they fill up fast. but people also don't show up to things a lot so you can get in.

We’re going in February for the Justin fletcher experience … worried now

I’ve only been to the adults onlj weekends but my friend took her little boy recently and said it was horrendous, they only stayed one night it was that bad, the apparentment was filthy and huge queues for the children’s entertainment. If you’re set on going I would prebook as much as you can and take some detol wipes!

I’d save your money. Wait & book somewhere nicer for next year. It sounds awful.

I've been to a middle class family festival with plenty of white linen dressed Sebastians and Henriettas, and honestly give me some working class Milos and Chardonnays any day. The aforementioned are feral- I find working class parents in general, are more likely to actually parent and keep their children from acting out, than the well-off parents too anxious about their extension being put up, to pay any attention to their miniature Spartacus wannabees. I put my then baby dd into a soft play designed specifically for under 2s at a festival and she was overrun by some Boden dressed arsehole older kids, turning it into a wrestling arena, whilst the parents just looked on, sipping sparkling wine in their smocks. I later came across them on the festival's Instagram page, with thousands of followers, showing off their perfect beige parenting life. Much preferred our week at butlins, everyone in tracksuits, but keeping their kids close by and paying attention to them.

Fucking hilarious and so true 😂

I've been to Butlins (bognor) and to Centre parcs and the clientele seemed pretty much identical to me.

(I wouldn't go back to either - sticking to hiring cottages or camping on little campsites from now on. I just don't like holiday park type things)

Not useful for this time but we’ve always had really lovely holidays at the Parkdean sites in Dorset. None of the above in sight when we went. Might be an alternative option for the future.

We had a really cheap deal to the tots event at bognor - like you we had our reservations and decided up front if it was dire we'd just go for the day and head home as we had paid roughly what we would have spent on a day out. However DC loved it and we were happy that they were happy. We were in the absolute basic accommodation that looked hideous from the outside but was warm and clean. Overall we had a great time and would defo go again if we found a bargain deal.