When you are back
- Overall opinions from you and others in the family. We went to Skegness myself, my DIL, 2 teenage sons and my 2 grandchildren (2 and 3)
We had a lovely time we were really impressed with the food and accommodation and will happily admit much nicer than we had anticipated. The only thing which was I think a shame (and I am happy to be told by Butlins that this was not the case) is that we were all pretty sure they knew who we were and why we were there.
- Describe your accommodation
We stayed in a 3 bed gold apartment with a double and 2 twins rooms. The apartment was close to the sea and about a 5/10 min walk from the central complex . I imagine a lovely place to be in Summer but not so much when you needed to go out early for breakfast in the middle of winter! When we arrived the apartment was sparkling clean and a nice touch we found 2 small bottles of wine and glasses set out on the table, further investigation by the ds' discovered a fridge full of wine, beer and a selection of soft drinks and biscuits and crisps on the work top .I am not sure if all visitors got this treatment or if the wine was a clue to our being sent by MN!
- Describe your dining experiences
We had a premium Dining plan and had a choice of two restaurants the Yacht Club and the Deck and we visited both. There was a wider selection at The Deck and it was much bigger. The food was mainly self service and there was a wide selection with something for everyone and as much as you liked which was a great advantage when you have teens who can eat for England! The desserts were amazing and having previously stayed at CP and several of the Disneyland Paris hotels all agreed this was the best food we had had anywhere.
- Did your break meet or exceed your expectations?
It certainly exceeded our expectations according to our booking form the holiday with dining would have cost a little short of £950 and this was all inclusive bar a snack at lunchtime, we had bought bread ,biscuits and other snacks with us so didn't need to buy anything onsite although there was a well stocked shop and several restaurants and take aways. everywhere was clean . Some of the chalets near the centre are looked a bit run down but to a certain extent we put this down to the fact that the weather was awful and could make anywhere look a bit depressing!
- What activities have the kids enjoyed?
The teens did archery which they enjoyed they were too old for the club type activities and a bit disappointed that they had to join a family session with a lot of quite young children and their Mums but it was good value compared with other places at £5 for a full hour. The little ones had their faces painted and this too was very reasonable and very well done and the girls doing it were really friendly .
- What activities/entertainment did you enjoy as a family?
We watched some shows in the central area though these were really for the little ones, we didn't get to see the panto, the queue was huge when we got there but there was so much else going on that no one was disappointed. Despite the cold we spent sometime on the fairground which was enjoyed by all and quite quiet so no need to queue for anything.
- Was there anything that surprised you about your break/Butlins
It was not as busy as I expected but I am not sure the park was at full capacity it didn't appear that there were visitors in all the apartments and I am not sure I would have liked it so much packed to the rafters in mid summer!
How would you rate/ describe...
- Food 10/10 The food was excellent could not fault it and was very impressed at how quickly tables were cleared and with the friendly staff in the restaurants.
9/10 The one thing we were disappointed with was the tiny bathroom .I also think an apartment which sleeps 6 needed an additional toilet. It was no fun having to vacate the shower at short notice because you have two small people who need the loo 'right now'! There was a huge cupboard which could easily have been used for an extra loo. Also the plugs in the bedrooms are in odd places in fact bar the plug for the tv there were none in the main bedroom at all I wonder if this is because the room layouts have been changed We had Housekeeping service and our apartment was cleaned each morning by the time we returned from breakfast.
As mentioned above the boys enjoyed archery, Dgd enjoyed dancing with Angelina Ballerina. There really was something for everyone. We went and looked at the pool but didn't go swimming as we had a variety of coughs,colds etc but the pool are looked very clean and those in the pool certainly seemed to be having a good time.
The little enjoyed several shows , they were a nice length not too long that they started to get restless . Mike the Knight was certainly a favourite with our small people!
Additionally the smalls visited Santa and received a present and watched a short show first, this was in a special venue and we received timed tickets so no long queues.
I didn't see very many Red Coats about but those we did see were friendly and chatty, staff in the restaurants were lovely. The only disappointment staff wise were those at the drive through check in but will talk more about that later
This was really all about the children and most of what we did was for them . The teens went off for a wander a few times and seemed to find plenty to occupy themselves but again were more than happy to do stuff with the little ones
- Things to do for children
There is so much for little ones it was hard to fit it all in .There were a few 'delightful' children around but no more than we have experienced anywhere else we have been.
One of the things we really enjoyed together as a family was the dining experience with so much choice all in one place it was so much nicer than a restaurant with a limited selection where there always seems to be someone who doesn't like anything there is to offer. We spent a lot of time exploring, the beach was lovely and I imagine many summer visitors spend a good deal of their time there!
- Would you return/ try out another Butlins resort?
The teens were undecided but I would definitely visit again with the younger members of the family
- What did you think about the value for money – especially compared to other family holidays?
It was excellent value and far more reasonable than a comparable break elsewhere a week before Christmas we came back nicely rested in time for the festivities. Having everything included was a bonus, Apart from face painting and archery we didn't pay out for anything except a few souvenirs and the shops were nicely set out and there were some lovely gifts alongside the expected seaside stuff and yes we bought home some rock!
As I said at the beginning we became more convinced for several reasons that some of the staff knew who we were . The worst part of our stay was check in. it is done though a drive through and it was very poorly lit especially when at this time of year the majority of guests arrived in the dark. The staff (who I accept were probably freezing) seemed overwhelmed and not really sure what they were doing. Having waited in a queue you suddenly come across signs saying you need to be in a particular queue depending on your surname by the time you saw it several cars were not in the right queues and it was a bit of a fiasco. When we got to the front our booking papers were not there and we were directed with an arm wave to gold reception which we couldn't find in the dark and the ground was quite rough in places and I went over on my ankle. The following day we saw 2 other people trip in the same area .Once we got to reception our booking form was waiting and it was fairly obvious they knew from that why we were there, the lady who checked us in was very helpful and informative far more so than the ones on the other check in had been. The drinks in our apartment were another clue and also whilst our room was cleaned early each morning the other ones in our block did not seem to be done until much later in the day. I also think (and I am happy to be corrected) that when our key was swiped at meals this tipped them off to. A couple of the people who checked our key called a manager and on our second visit to The deck when the swipe machine wasn't working we were waved through whilst everyone else had to give their name and be checked off a list!
Before we left I did read the other reviews and some of the points raised by other reviewers had been rectified so nice to know Butlins are taking notice!
The only thing that really bugged me was the smoking right outside the doors to the main complex. I felt that no smoking beyond a certain point signs at the edge of the main area would have improved the area for everyone not just asthmatics like me!
Finally I would just like to thank MN and Butlins for this opportunity. Getting the chance to do this at the end of what has not been the easiest of years for our family was just wonderful.