To think nipping to Tesco at center parcs is no biggie?

[GreatBrickMoose]

four adults /2 cars going to center parcs in a few weeks. Original plan is for us to get their early and go swimming etc then at checkin time, one car goes to lodge with children and luggage and second car goes to Tesco to get click and collect.

my partner thinks this is a bad idea and that getting out and then back in to center parcs on day 1 will be stressful and chaotic.

my sister has tried to mitigate this by booking early checkin but he’s unconvinced.

the alternative suggestions are one car arrives later and comes straight from Tesco (so miss morning fun) or we go to Tesco very early and have food in car for a few hours (sister is worried about food spoiling with this option).

wwyd? I’ve not been to centerparcs before so not sure how chaotic day 1 is. He has but not for a long time. . is it really THAT busy outside of half term in winter?

yabu- he’s right you should rethink.
yanbu- tell him to shush.

I'm paying less for a fortnight in Spain than a week at centre parcs 🤣

Yes! This!

Just take the food shop with you, use ice packs and cool bags.

center parcs is £600 for the week for us. I’d be impressed if you could get two family’s on holiday for that in Spain. Maybe I am looking in wrong places.

We just go to the onsite supermarket. It’s not always the cheapest but I don’t find it outrageous - certainly not enough to warrant messing around packing food or losing time out of the holiday.

I’ve had to queue at a Dutch one.

Did someone say Tesco deliver to the lodges? I hope not! The cars are manic on changeover day let alone vans blocking the way!

I wouldn't do this. Absolutely not. It's quite a performance getting in and getting settled. The last thing you want to do is go out again. Take some shopping with you and top up at the parc market for milk and fresh things.

Not at the one we’re going to.

I worked in CP and people did it all the time, no hassle at all. Not sure what your dh is expecting, queues, masses of security? None of which happened in the one I worked in.

Your update is sensible op. If you've never been it's best to check out the size of the fridge first before you buy a week's shopping. As others have pointed out the 'freezer' is very small.
Last time we went (Elveden) I was impressed with the upgraded Parcmarket and the prices were reasonable.

Is it true that you have to pay for all the activities offered on site?

I’ve just come back from a weekend at centre parcs. I arrived about 5 so not sure what it’s like earlier but it took almost an hour to get in. Once I got to the lodge, and unpacked my bags, I had to move my car to the main carpark which was not close to where the accommodation was.

That was fine for us as we all brought food and weren’t leaving again but I would definitely would not fancy trekking back to the car, getting stuck in a queue again, unpacking the car and then parking it probably even further away the second time and then trekking back to the lodge. Bring food with you and just get cool bags/bins for perishables. Then once you’re there you can relax and enjoy.

Why??

No. Most, yes. Some cheap, some not. But others are free including the waterpark/swimming pool

Great Brick?! as in , Great Brickhill, given you are going to Woburn?
the big Asda is better than Tesco by far , given the location ;)

Hang on - can you not park outside your cabin? I'm disabled and this has just got me panicking 😳😯

Crikey what an excellent plan and duly noted - a trip to Tesco’s during a visit to centre parks with an hour long queue to get back in. That could shave 3 hours off the endurance test that is having to be at Centre Parks. Come to think of it I might be tempted to need to go for top up shops each day too. In fact I’d probably be tempted to go and do other peoples Tesco shopping for them if I ever find myself at Centre Parks ever again.

You can if you've told them you've got a disability and need to, and are in an accessible lodge. But otherwise no

@Flatleak There were no accessible lodges available :( Oh no.... Are we talking a long walk?

Depends where you are located. You can drive your car up to the lodge to unpack, but then you return it till the last day when you can bring it in again to pack.

Presumably you have enough mobility to get around the village, so hopefully you can get to the car park/back as it's usually by the village centre. So depends how far your lodge is from that.

@Flatleak I use a mobility scooter when not in my car. That's good that you can load/unload next to the lodge though. That's a relief as scooters aren't great for manoeuvring luggage etc.
Thanks

You can hire a buggy thing, a bit like a golf cart, otherwise there is a transport shuttle I think. We have always managed to book very close to the centre so as not to need that.

You’ve taken the words right out of my mouth! I should think breaking out of Colditz was easier. What a palaver.

For an hour?