Centre Parcs or Forest Holidays?

[finduspancakes]

We are looking at going away for 4 nights at the end of September with our 4 month old.

Forest Holidays Golden Oak cabin in Sherwood Forest and Centre Parcs New Woodland Style Lodge at either Sherwood Forest or Elvden Foret are both coming in at a similar price.

Which one would be better?

Forest includes a private hot tub but less activities than Centre Parcs, although we will mostly be using the pool there and not much else as we will have the baby.

I went to elvden (without a baby) lovely. Going to Center Parcs longleat next week with a 7 month old and think it'll be great. Artificial beach, booked in for 2 swim sessions with little un (8 quid each) and the water park there is lush.

How old can they do the swimming lessons from?

0 to 6 months (tiny turtles), 6 months to 2 years (tadpoles), 2 years plus (froglets). We're booked into tadpoles, maximum 11 per class, one adult can go in with the child and other/s can watch. Get a free toy and certificate. For an extra 4 quid they'll take a photo.

Oh that sounds good.

DH is worried that CP will be too crowded. Would that be the case, mid week, during term time?

If you are not going to do activities, I wouldn't bother to go to center parc, I would go to a nice hotel with a pool.

Center parc is much better for older children, not babies

It was quiet out of school holidays - I'm a bit nervous about how crowded it will be next week! But looking forward to taking little one for walks under trees and in a bicycle carrier!

I went to sherwood with forest holidays and thought it was great. We used the hot tub loads and hired mountain bikes (with a baby trailer). We thought it was brilliant. I'd highly recommend it.

We were in Longleat 2 weeks ago and while it was busy, it was not crowded. The pool had plenty of people in it so a long, exercise type swim wasn't an option at certain times, but enjoying the pool certainly wasn't a problem. We had no problems cycling around any time. The only night we had a problem that we wanted to eat out was Thursday night (hadn't booked and it's a night before changeover - so should have expected that, and we could have gotten food in a couple of places just not Hucks or the Spanish place). Any activities we wanted to do, we could do (and we didn't pre book any of them).

Personally, I preferred Sherwood as a location (Longleat is hilly and doesn't have a raft flume in the pool), but there wasn't much in the difference overall. Very pleasant, and I think we'll be going back again in another 2 years (we don't like to repeat things every year).

We go to Elveden every year since children were babies, and love it (we only live 40 mins drive away) if you want to go out and about, Bury St Edmunds is a nice town, with a lovely park in the Abbey Gardens x

I've just come back from a weekend at Center Parcs Sherwood Forest and can highly recommend it. My son is 4 now, but we first took him when he was 6 months old and found it good for babies too. The swimming pool is open for babies only for an hour every morning, 9-10am I think, so that is a nice quiet time. We've always been in the middle of August, and even then I wouldn't say it is overcrowded.

Center Parcs is easier with a baby than Forest Holidays, if only because you have facilities (restaurants, baby pool etc) on your doorstep rather than having to leave site to go and find things to do. I've been a long-term CP visitor with my kids and we tried the Deerpark forest site in Cornwall this year for a change and found it didn't really compare to Center Parcs. It was lovely but I don't think we'll go back.

I am in Sherwood Forest now, staying with Forest Holidays in a 3 bed Golden Oak with hot tub. The site is lovely, accom fab, only a 5 min walk to Sherwood Pines Forest Park which has a really nice family feel. Yes its true there isnt much to do, but we have three teens and they havent missed a pool yet! We have also been to CP at Elevedon 3 times and love it there too!