Whinfell center parcs

[Lovejesus]

Going to whinfell in a few weeks. Have never been to center parcs before. Any tips? Best restaurants? Anything we need to bring apart from obvious holiday items? Thanx

I got back from there last week - second time I've been. Depends who you're going with/how old your children are I guess. Restaurants are a bit over-priced I think - the cafe (relatively cheap last year) is undergoing refurbishment at the moment but that might be a good idea for lunches/snacks. I took stuff to do our own evening meals (dd is 4) - supermarket on-site is good and not stupidly expensive.

First time I went I was very stressed by the first evening - the change-over days (Mon/Fri) are quite regimented (e.g. when you can take your car on-site, times for bike hire, etc) - don't fight the system, go with it, it does work.

Both times I've put dd in the TimeOut Club for a couple of hours the first morning (Tue/Sat) to get a bit of peace and relax into the holiday - would definitely recommend doing that. All the activities are fab and there's loads to choose from but you can end up paying a fortune if you're not careful. I only pre-booked a couple of things and then just booked stuff on-site as we went along depending on weather forecast etc.

Best tip - take loo roll - the stuff provided there is awful. And the pool is great, and free!

The Indian restaurant is meant to be good - don't know for sure though as it was booked out before we got there so do book if you fancy it.

Don't get takeaways - Indian is not prepared at nice restaurant, you'd be better buying stuff from the supermarket.

Cafe Rouge is nice and reasonably priced, wasn't overly impressed by Bella Italia but its ok.

Spa is nice if you get a chance to go. Don't do the treasure hunt, complete rip off. Panto is nice if your kids are into that sort of thing. Oh if you book something and your kids don't fancy it they will let you swap for something else.

Swimming pool is very quiet on Friday afternoon/evening.

Check out the badger cam !

Found this really useful thanx. Im going with my husband and 3 year old. Need to get restaurant booked. What time is pool open to?

Hello! We're Whinfell veterans - been there 10 times & 11th visit booked for November. We all love it!

Changeover day is busy. If you can, go in well before 3pm cos the queues can be a bit long & if you have younger kids it can be a boring wait. We travel from north Wales & we have now started to stop overnight in a Travelodge on the eve of the holiday as we're then an hour away. Better if you can have a £10 room!

We also so a bit of a shop in the Morrisons in Penrith. Basics like butter, milk, bread, bacon, crisps, cheese etc. Things you'd buy for a quick lunch. I take the small cereals boxes with me for the kids breakfast.

So we arrive about 11am. Park up & then go for a walk & have a quick lunch at the Sports Plaza as they have good offers on there. If its nice & sunny we grap a sandwich meal from morrisons & eat int he park there.

The barriers open at 3pm (or is it 3:30!?) & only then you can drive to the lodge to unload the car.

Pool is open till 9pm. Great for 3 yr olds & the water is lush! Its like sitting in a warm bath!

If you planning on eating in the Indian/italian you need to book. The do get busy round teatimes as then the kids need feeding....they are a bit quieter later on but not by much!

Do you know which lodge you're staying at???

Great. Thanx. Never thought bout some of stuff b4. Think it's the Original style executive. The 2 storey ones. U stayed in them b4? Please tell me they r ok?! Lol

I've stayed in the comfort lodges & they're the cheapest & they're more than ok!!! So I think you'll be fine!