Center Parcs, Butlins and Haven

[PixieAndProsecco]

I know similar threads have been done before but I wanted more up to date responses.

This summer I am considering taking my 2DS on holiday myself (DH does not have any leave or rest days over summer and I am tied to summer as I teach).

Previously we have went abroad, both with DH and with my family, however with this being the first year that I am summer holidaying solo with them I don't feel comfortable enough doing that. I could go with my parents again but I am finding my DM more difficult to deal with over a prolonged period of time and would rather avoid that (and some sunny coast as a result).

I will have a 12, almost 13, year old and 6 year old DS by the time summer comes (the age gap does make it harder).

We do go for small mid-week breaks to Haven Haggerston Castle (proximity to home and Northumberland is beautiful), so I am fully aware of what to expect at a Haven but this is also an easier amount of time to fill with activities and not somewhere I'd want to go again (we're going at Easter).

I would be looking for a week/ten days at the beginning of July and have considered doing X amount of days in one place and Y in the other. We are travelling from the central belt of Scotland and I am looking further in to England and Wales, due to prices being cheaper with it still being term time there.

I have searched high and low using mumsnet, independent blogs, Instagram, YouTube etc to try and get a better sense of what is out there but I want some honest opinions.

So far I've looked at Sherwood Forest and Whinfell Center Parcs (Sherwood is £200-£300 cheaper due to being further from Scotland and Scottish school holidays), Bluestone in Wales, Haven Primrose Valley, Haven Hafan y Mor and Butlins Skegness.

Has anyone been? Any of those that stand out above the rest? Any to avoid? Any others to consider?

We loved the iow, DH is a teacher so stuck in holidays too. We did this one

www.awayresorts.co.uk/parks/isle-of-wight/whitecliff-bay/

You need to get out and about a bit during the day though. Beach is fab but very tide dependent.

Oh just seen about the hot tub, you can get them on that site, not cheap though...

All are fine, we did them all annually as a child, but CP is definitely my favourite. The pools are better, first allows lovely walls that are fun and engaging for kids without having to pay anything!

I am. I am also unwell, suffering an anxiety and depression fuelled relapse brought on by numerous factors (including the imposter syndrome I regularly feel as a result of my anxiety).
I cannot go in to the kitchen without considering picking up a knife and SH.

**I am waiting to see my GP, I do not have suicidal thoughts and I will be fine but things are incredibly overwhelming at the minute.

If my grammar in this post is that much of an issue to you then I apologise. However, it is not something I am overly concerned with at the minute (all things considered) and has absolutely no bearing on my ability to teach, it is not present in my teaching, it has never been brought up as a cause for concern with SMT or HMI and is in no way indicative of the my education.

Sorry!

I've been to hafan y mor and our family loves it! Bluestone is close to me so have been on day trips. It's perfect and has a theme park down the road (oakwood) folly farm in the other direction, heatherton and manor park. Also Tenby is very close by.

Been to Hagen y mor, was ok, variable accommodation including very nice lodges but ours (dm booked it) was tired. Pool was nice and kids liked the activities laid on.

Can confirm that the pool at CP Sherwood is back to being unlimited. My kids spend their time when we go going between the pool, coffee shop, sweet shop and pool again.

We’ve done Whinfell and Sherwood Centre Parcs. Whinfell off the A66 was nice but doesn’t have the feel of other CPs as it was originally an Oasis holiday park. Definitely nice though, but we were there 15 years ago. Hilly, as I remember, from cycling round it. Sherwood is semi-local to us and is also nice but a few years since we’ve been. If you’re looking for cheaper than Centre Parcs and are willing to sacrifice the swimming pool, have you thought of Forest Holidays? We’re just back from the Sherwood Pines Forest Holidays: log cabin villa, hot tub, activity centre with archery etc, visitor centre with cabin-delivery takeaway meals, sit-in cafe, pottery painting. The site is smaller and quieter than CP but is co-located within a walkable (10 - 15 mins) distance to Sherwood Pines forestry commission for kids trails, mountain bike tracks, cycle hire, Go Ape. Also, Clumber Park National Trust is just a short drive away (within 15 mins). www.forestholidays.co.uk/locations/nottinghamshire/sherwood-forest/?utm_source=google-business-listing&utm_campaign=website-button

I'm just back from a break at Bluestone.
You would want to go off park a bit more than other places but it's all quite drivable. The pool is fun with water slides etc but not a swimming pool. There are loads of activities but they are all extra and eye wateringly expensive.
Tenby is lovely nearby, and there are animal parks ( Folly Farm, Manor Park) for days out.

Haven's Primrose Valley site is ideally located for exploring the Yorkshire Coast with Bridlington, Filey & Scarborough in easy reach plus Whitby a bit further away.
However it's absolutely huge & the facilities (pool, club etc etc) are nowhere near big enough to accommodate everyone. There's quite a few detailed reviews on TripAdvisor.
Great if you just want a base though.

Landal are nice, v similar to Center Parcs but tend to have fewer things to do. Watch out for WiFi, not all their lodges have it and I presume your kids will want it!

Just going to answer based on your original question OP. CP Sherwood Forest is lovely. As with all CP they're expensive as everything is extra but the site is lovely and clean.
Haven at Skegness is a new site - previously another holiday park which I understand has had very good reviews previously. Haven are just finishing the rebranding now and we are going for the first time in may this year.

Butlins Skegness.... by far the best in terms of things to do for the kids imo. Definitely the worst in terms of accommodation but swings and roundabouts I guess. The kids loved it so for that I couldn't knock it.

Just with you mentioning Northumberland, this was my favourite holiday ever. We hired a cottage for a week and did Cragside NT, Hadrian’s Wall - Chesters and Housesteads Forts, Seahouses, Lindesfarne, Warkworth Castle, Alnwick Castle. Absolutely beautiful. Hope you find a nice break for your family.

Butlins skeggy are having a new fairground and skypark built.

I have been to Butlins Bluestone, various Havens and Center parcs. Butlins is the most rough and ready. now our children are beyond the tots stage we wouldn't go there again. Center parcs and bluestone have great daytime activities but nothing really in the evening. That's where places like Haven come in to their own in the evenings if your kids like that sort of thing. It really depends on what your kids would prioritise

We love Northumberland and have visited Haggerston twice now (both since the refurbishment in 2019ish).
We're going again this Easter for 4 nights. On previous visits we have went to Alnwich Castle, the Northumberland Zoo, Bamburgh Castle and beach plus other various beaches.
This year I want to try Lindesfarne and Holy Island.

In terms of entertainment definitely something during the day. At night time the youngest is very over stimulated by the shows and has an incredibly short attention span when not enjoying something. That being said if he finds something he enjoys he loves it.
Eldest DC is now at the "too cool for anything" stage or early teenhood.

We did stay at a Landal in Scotland last summer for a 4 night break (it had no activities but did have a small swimming pool and outdoor play area) but DC enjoyed a dip in the hot tub after dinner followed by games and a film.

I'm thinking that the Landal or Forest holidays at Darwin Forest (Landal) or Sherwood (Forest) might be the best.
Has anyone stayed at either?
Googling is a nightmare as you tend to only get bad reviews.

Forest Holidays are nice, but DS always preferred CP.

The setting for most Forest Holidays locations are usually beautiful, but there isn't much in the way of organised activities and what there is is based around the outdoors again so may or may not be of interest. Great if you all like walking.

I've never been to CP for a full week, either the long weekend or Mon - Fri and that's usually more than enough. DS always loved it, but activities other than the pool are pricey.

Haven/Butlins might be good if you want to use it as a base and explore the local area

No way! Definitely not Skegness 🤣 butlins is great for wall to wall entertainment but whether the older one enjoys it depends on personality. I know a 12/13 year old girl who would love it but another who would think it's super cringe.

We’ve done both haven hafan y mor and Lakeland a few times. Dcs love them both, hafan y mor has the best pool, which is handy for rainy days. Both have aerial adventure and climbing walls (for two age groups) but with the older one, there was a height of age restriction before dc can go on without an adult, so unless your older dc reaches that, if might be tricky to juggle.
we’re only an hour 15 away from hafan y mor, so don’t tend to leave the site when we stay there as the local attractions are all ones we can do any time, but you’ve got gorgeous black rock sands beach nearby, (greenacres haven has direct access to this beach, it’s ten mins away from Pwllheli, but is a smaller park with fewer facilities / beautiful though), then Anglesey with its attractions an hour away, Caernarfon castle if you like the history, also a huge indoor soft play / adventure centre type place for all ages , a few steam railway routes nearby… slightly further afield you’ve got adventure park Snowdonia for surfing, zip world forest at betws or velocity zip line at Bethesda

we love Lakeland as a base for the Lake District, tend to do a couple of days on site, but also explore, walks, boat tours on the lakes etc.

last year we stayed at Sandybrook, which is the smaller sister site to the Darwin one. Absolutely fabulous site, lovely lodges, great location for exploring the Peak District, their website had so many links to local attractions, local pubs to eat at etc. we would have preferred Darwin, but only booked it the week before so they only had space at Sandybrook. We definitely want to try Darwin next.

Hope this helps, happy to answer questions on any of them if I can help more, good luck choosing. Sorry you’ve had to justify your decisions over and over, when you just wanted opinions on the options you put forward.

I would advise against Butlins if your youngest gets overstimulated easily. My 2 couldn't sleep, I turned into a shrieking sharpie and we left early.
CP they always loved but as others have said, not for a whole week.
With your 6yo being so full on this isn't going to be a rest for you so how about making it a change?
In your shoes I'd plan a driving route south stopping at Band Bs or premier inns moving from one attraction or activity to another. Mis up the things you do so that there are things with a nod to both. Get the 12/13yo to come up with some ideas , googling things he'd like to see and the sorts of things he'd like to do.
Eg: a snow dome trip where youngest can sledge and eldest can have a ski or board lesson. Fossil hunting (good for both) . Museum trip. Cadbury world. Yorkshire moors, a seaside day with amusements and sandcastles. Seal watching. Leisure centre with swimming (for younger) and climbing wall for elder son.
Have a couple of nights and a full day in the middle at a place you can all just potter and recharge.

I know it isn't what you asked for but when I had a pair of 13 and 8 it worked well for us.

Sorry, should have said dcs are now 15, 13 and 8, so we’ve been doing these types of holidays since the older two were toddlers so experienced them at a range of their ages

Bluestone is wonderful and I would recommend it but I'm just wondering how you'll manage activities etc with just one adult? Many we found needed one per child so if my daughter was on the fairy hunt for example, my husband would go and I'd stay with our son. With the age gap they might not want to do the same activities?

I think if you are going for a week plus then a haven site would be better
If you choose one of the larger sites then there is plenty of entertainment, arcades, a pool etc then pop to local beaches and attractions as well.
I have done both sherwood CP and Butlins Skegness with similar ages. I would do a max of 4 nights at either. CP is a little dull for me especially if you're not swimming. I love Butlins but prefer the Minehead one as it's near some nice places to visit such AF exmoor, dunster castle, the steam railway. The accommodation is only an issue if you book anything silver or below. We have stayed in the seaside apartments and the lakeside lodges and they are lovely. Also recommend the dine around or premium dining plans for minimum hassle.

Thank you so much.
I had considered doing something like this but, bar the obvious tourist type places (take Blackpool tower or Chester Zoo for example) and beaches, I don't really know what "days out" there are that would keep us entertained for such a long period of time.

I also wouldn't know where to stay as I'd want to avoid constantly using hotels as it would then give the option for self catering.

We have been to CP loads of times and at the age your son is now they loved (and still do) bike rides. The cars only being on site on change over days means it felt really safe for them riding around without us.

We always play badminton which costs £12.75 for 45 minutes but you can play for 30 minutes for £9.25. These are Woburn early July prices, we usually go to Elveden but have been to all of them except Longleat. Bowling is £24.50-£38 depending on when you want to bowl, American Pool is £10 per hour and football pool basically a teeny pitch with footballs but you play pool is £12 for 30 minutes.

Mine have done so many different activities over the years and always swimming every day, slides, wave pool and the rapids. We never go off site, we just stay in the CP bubble. We eat out once a day usually our evening meal. Re feeling body conscious mine have worn rash vests in the swimming pool, helps keep them warm in the rapids too.