Back from Center Parcs Longleat - tips for anyone else going and also questions about Elvedon

[IlanaK]

We are back from a midweek break at Longleat. Thank you to everyon who gave us tips. I thought i would pass on my tips for others who are going.

Firstly, although they tell you it is very hilly, you won't get an idea of HOW hilly until you are actually there. Very hilly is a total understatement. We rented bikes with a trailer for the kids and it almost killed me cycling to our villa the first day as we were right on the far side away from the plaza. We did not use the bikes again after that and just used the land train (which was very good - every 20 minutes). I would not get a villa that far away again.

Second, we really didn't need to book any extra activites for the kids. The swimming area with the slides, etc was sooo amazing that they could have spent all day there. And the indoor and outdoor play areas were excellent. As all of that was free, we could have saved money by not booking other stuff.

I was very glad to have brought out own food for many meals. The resteraunts were not great - especially for the kids - too much chicken nuggets etc. We had a great adult only meal at the INdian place though. And the pnacake house was also very very good.

Make sure you allow time for swimming on the day you arrive and the day you leave - it is definately worth it!

Hope this helps other and also, we are now looking at booking Elvedon for next year so if anyone had been there, we would love to hear about it. Is the plaza undercover there like at Longleat?

haven't been to Elveden personally but my sister used to go there all the time and everything is all together in the middle, no major hills and the plaza is undercover.

When we go to Longleat, we always ask for a villa at the top. Some people prefer to be at the bottom because they get all the wildlife/peace and quiet etc.

The hills become even more problematic once the kids start cycling themselves. I couldn't watch dd and ds (5 and 4) because I was convinced they were going to break all the bones in their bodies when they went down some of those hills.

Elvedon is flat

Plaza is undercover and is relatvly new as it was rebuild post the firse that happened about 3 years ago.

We went in September and have booked to go again next September .I said if I was going I would only stay in the same Villa .Five up from the Plaza (you can really appreciate this Ilanak ) What a fab time we had .

OH and I said I would NEVER and I mean NEVER get on a bike again . TOO hilly .

Elvedon much flatter, and convenient that the kids clubs are central. Aqua Sana is a bit of a hike on foot, but overall much easier to cycle round. There is no land train though!

Thanks everyone. I think we will definately book to go next year to Elvedon. Has anyone stayed in the exclusive accomadation? Is it worth the extra money?

We stayed in exclusive and friend who had stayed in cheaper said there wasnt alot of difference the furniture was a bit more comfy thats all .

But the exlusive has its own hot tub in the garden plus steam room and sauna. Thats what attracted me. Also, it says you have your own car parking at the villa. But the price difference is huge. I am just not sure it is worth it.

I think you only get your own parking if you are in a VIP villa (so not your bog standard exclusive villa). There are also comfort plus villas which are more expensive than comfort but less than executive and have a dvd player, towels.

I like the idea of the executive and think it would probably work better in winter (to have all the added stuff) but for us, if we had to pay that price, it would rule it out as a holiday option.

Ah, you are confusing executive and exclusive. We stayed in executive this time. Very nice too. What I am talking about is exclusive. It is the most expensive they have. They only come in 4 bedrooms and they have all the extras like the hot tub, sauna (we had that in executive) and steam room. They are on two floors and are set in one area of the park only and have their own parking. They really are a lot more expensive than the executive, so not sure if they were worth it.

I have vouchers for centreparcs that I want to use for this year. I want to go to Longleat as really want to do Longleat Zoo thingie on one of the days, probably on the way home. But as Lottie has Down's syndrome and not walking and we'll have a baby with us by then, would longleat be a really bad idea for us do you think?

Just a quick thing. We picked Longleat so we could go to the safari park, but it is closed all winter! So check your dates carefully!

Although Longleat is very hilly, there is a landtrain you can take around. However, you cannot take a pushchair on it unfolded. This was a total pain. It did have a ramp for wheelchair access though. You can stay at a villa right near the pool, but the park is very spread out. SO if you are near the plaza/pool area, then you are far away from the sports centrer and time out children's clubs and sauna.

thomcat, I think longleat is popular with those who find walking difficult because of the landtrain (when we have been out of season, we have seen many special needs school trips). If you went there, I would request a villa near the pool so that the only reason you would need the train would be for the sports area.

I can't remember if you have a blue badge/registered disabled, but if you do and you speak to center parcs, they will let you park your car next to your villa so that you can drive around if you need to.

We saw lots of disabled badge holders with their cars right at their villas so you can definately arrange that. The whole place was really accessible too - lots of ramps and everything.

TC you just need a letter from your GP in order to be allowed to have your car on site. I did it when I went ot Longleat and was 7 months pg. Quite a few cars on site in comparison with Elveden.

Great, thanks everyone.