Best Centre Parcs tips for a first family stay at Sherwood

[Blendedmumof4]

Help me out with your best centre parcs hacks. We have never been, but taking our family of 6 (kids are 16, 12, 12 and 6) for 4 days Mon-Fri. We have prebooked some activities for my youngest who has a birthday whilst there. I am planning to eat in most if not all nights, to keep costs down, but I would like any tips or tricks from those that have been lots! Planning to arrive before check in time to use the pool and have packed a separate swim bag...what else do I need to know? We are visiting sherwood. Thanks

Not been to Sherwood but when we’ve been to others there’s never enough baking trays and the freezer section is tiny. So if you’re planning to cook take a few extra kitchen bits and don’t rely on frozen food.

we take an airer too to dry out towels and swimwear - otherwise you end up with it over all your radiators/bathroom!

changeover days are very busy so maybe take a ready meal/take something easy, or book something now.

swimming change spaces are small unless you can split up a bit. So take a couple of bags so you can divide up. And don’t take unnecessary stuff. There’s coat hooks etc outside the main changing areas which is helpful.

Airfryer (I mean for food, hadn’t considered frying our swimming gear) and as much money as you can muster.

Get there as early as you can on the Monday and stay as late as you want (up til midnight) on the Friday to really make the most of your break,

Plan your week before you go - so decide what activities everyone is doing, get them booked and then plan when you’ll be in the pool around that.

Definitely plan for a walk or cycle around the forest at some point, that is really lovely to do.

If you decide to eat out it’s expensive. We are big fans of the pancake house, but it’s not cheap for relatively small meal.

The onsite supermarket is a Nisa, quite expensive. Take with you what you can to keep costs down, but remember you won’t get in the accommodation particularly early and freezer space is tiny - so maybe consider getting your fresh food there.

You need your own towels for the swimming pool.

Enjoy!

Go to the supermarket before you go and definitely get enough food so you don’t have to go to the shop on the first day because it can take hours. I take a M&S family lasagna, freeze it at home and pack it at the bottom of an insulated shopping bag and put milk and things like that in there. That keeps the other things chilled and then you can eat the lasagna when it’s defrosted.

Take twenty packets of biscuits.
Take some rope or thick elastic to fashion a clothes line.
You need dishwasher tablets.

I have the absolute best childhood memories of doing this at Sherwood. Based on my memories-

Make sure you cycle to the club house on an evening and get a bit tipsy so the cycle home is hilarious. The kids will love cycling at nighttime as it’s so unusual.

Definitely do the night swimming and make them go in the plunge pool before the rapids 😂

Do archery if you can afford it it’s a lot of fun, as is the crazy golf.

Breakfast at the Pancake House one day followed by a BBQ back at the chalet. And get a log for the fire at night.

Make sure you watch some films with popcorn. Take all your own food though as the CP supermarket is super expensive.

Thanks all these are fab tips!!

Second the tips above.
Would also add bird seed, washing up liquid, loo roll, fire logs & matches as things to take.
Weirdly we didn’t have scissors in the kitchen on our recent trip.
If you forget anything then the parc market is really well stocked with coop stuff but it’s expensive. They have a great hot food counter where you can pick up pastries or sausage rolls for lunch.
Also take your own booze as it’s around £6.50 a pint or £9 for a glass of wine in the bars & restaurants. If you do decide to eat out then your kids will love the pancake house. They do sweet and savoury ones so we went for lunch one day. Cafe rouge also do a nice lunch time menu which includes a drink for £12.95.
Prebook any activities your kids will want to do as many sell out. We had no problem getting crazy golf, bowling or pool on the day though.

There’s a Tesco quite nearby in ollerton if you need to stop for groceries just before getting there.

If you are using bicycles to get around, take some plastic bags and elastic bands. If it looks like rain, you can fix them over the saddles and then they stay dry - all the bike parks are out in the open.
Also backpacks for everyone makes carrying stuff around whilst cycling much easier.

Yes the bakery is great!! Lovely baguettes too in parc market.

loo rolls! You’ll need to take them. Usually get left one per loo.

Unsalted peanuts for the badgers

About a million pounds if I remember rightly. We nicknamed the on-site shop ‘Harrods’ as it was so expensive.

Take a roll of bin bags with you. We also ate at funny times so that we could hit the swimming pool around 12.30/1 when it was marginally quieter.

As already said, the shop is very expensive so plan to get most food elsewhere!
Have a barbeque one day. I think bikes are a must, if you're not taking your own, hire them for the duration - we used them every single time we left the lodge. Also, we took board games for the evenings.

A Weber go anywhere bbq fits perfectly in the bbq station outside. Saved us a fortune in eating out and kids loved it . So much easier to cook on than the foil ones they sell in the shop. Also took our own crackle logs for the fireplace.

Where do you buy the logs from?

Make sure you cycle to the club house on an evening and get a bit tipsy so the cycle home is hilarious. The kids will love cycling at nighttime as it’s so unusual.

I have fond memories of cycling back to the cabin slightly the worse for wear.

We've had some brilliant times at Sherwood, the first when DS P1 was a baby 30 years ago. We went with my parents for their 50th anniversary and then last year we were there with DC and their partners.

The tips haven't changed really.
Parking is difficult on day one because on changeover day there are two lots of guests.
Take a picnic for the first lunch. Get to the pool asap and find some chairs. Relax while the kids disappear for 75 trips up and down the rapids. One of you skips out half an hour before they open the gates and takes the car to the cabin to unload.
We always eat out but during the day buy sandwiches from the supermarket rather than buy the food in the pool.
Pre book bikes, restaurants and any other activities. Restaurants get booked up months ahead.

I bought mine from Costco. But just had a look and you can get them from home bargains, supermarkets and B&Q . Loads cheaper than buying them from the park market. Center parks sell 1kg instant light fire logs. Big K would be a good brand or duraflame 👍

If you are used to cycling I wouldn't bother taking bikes which I know sounds bonkers. A bike ride around the entire park would only take 20 minutes max and you have to contend with getting constantly annoyed with people who can barely ride a bike wobbling about all over the road and not telling their children how to cycle properly either, it's an accident waiting to happen. If you are not used to cycling then I suppose it's a good place to practise. Everywhere is easily walkable.

If you are going to eat out at all, make sure you pre book as often not able to accommodate walk ins or not great meal times left.

Also, study the map before hand so you know where your lodge is. Easy to drive past and then stuck in one way system.

Thank you! I’ll have a look! I was scared to get the wrong ones! We have a b and q so hopefully they will have some.

To be fair the restaurants are not as busy as they once were - deposits are no longer needed either. I think people have cottoned on that the food is overpriced & rubbish!
The dozing duck was busy when we went but the others not so much so.

There is a track that goes between CP and Sherwood Pines to avoid cycling on the road. Sherwood pines has some fab cycling routes of varying difficulty. We did a 5 mile east route one day & a 8.5mile moderate route the next. Great fun for people who want a longer bike ride than just the park. Also beautiful in the forest. It’s free too. Track is just by the exit on the left after security.

Also cook a bolognese or lasagne to cook on the first night, arrive early, do a £12.95 lunch deal in one of the restaurants for lunch while you wait to get in your lodge, or go swimming and have a pack up, then you just need to heat up your bolognese in the evening. Take your own disposable BBQ & logs, toilet paper & dishwasher tablets plus rucksack for cycling.