Butlins Skegness Tips/Advice Required Please

darkovo

Hi all, I'm looking to book Skegness Butlins, 2 adults + 2 children for 4 nights in a school holiday so is bound to be busy! I've read quite a bit both good and bad, so would like a definitive helpful list of things that will help me on the holiday. I haven't been before but in theory sounds like the best place for price/things to do & location for us.

Please answer the following if you can.....

1. Apartment & sleeping
Is Gold really better than Silver in terms on cleanliness, beds, thin walls, location of room?

Is it best to stay on the top floor so noisy stompers above don't keep you awake (can you even request to)?

What should I take? towels are obviously recommended, TV is probably small and a bit rubbish so need other things to do while kids are sleeping.

2. Onsite food
I can't figure out that if I go for the Silver self catering do you get any food at all eg breakfast? Or do people buy a food package extra so get breakfast, lunch, evening meal? Or Gold package - does this include all food?
Also do you get to eat at all food restaurants? How much extra are you looking at?
I suppose what I'm asking is if I went for a Silver Self Catering apartment, what about the food! Eating costs loads anyway so if its easier & possibly cheaper to go for one of the included food options then please advise.

3. Onsite entertainment
I hear the fair is a bit rubbish/small, we'll probably try it once though! What about the other things kids can do?

The club, do you really have to queue for ages to get a set of seats? And if so what is the best strategy? How clean is it? Is the dancing part in the middle, so can you let kids dance about and keep an eye on them?

Is the Swimming Pool heated and inside, also cleanliness keeps coming up in reviews, possible cause of infections/stomach bugs?

Activities mainly for the kids - do you book before you go or hope there's enough places available when you get there? What is worth doing?

For adults - are the Spa treatment and similar things worth it?

4. Offsite things to do
We'd want to go to the beach and see Skeggy, is the beach far/easy to get to without car? Or is there a better beach nearby we should drive to?

How far and what else is there where we could have a bit of fun not far from the resort?

If we wanted to eat offsite and be entertained on the night are there any good places and how far away are they?

5. Booking/arriving
Can you request the area you are going to stay in over the phone or after booking online? Or is it worth talking to staff on arrival with regard to expectations, like don't try and put me in a rundown room or old block?


If there's anything else you can add then great, everyone has their own opinion but I'm ideally after simple statements, also hoping no one adds a pointless comment like "don't bother going" or "i think this other holiday park is better".

Many thanks and sorry for all the questions

dmg24

The first thing I would say is to give Butlins more credit - it sounds like you are expecting colditz!

1. Apartment & sleeping
Is Gold really better than Silver in terms on cleanliness, beds, thin walls, location of room?

Is it best to stay on the top floor so noisy stompers above don't keep you awake (can you even request to)?

What should I take? towels are obviously recommended, TV is probably small and a bit rubbish so need other things to do while kids are sleeping.

For the items you have listed, Gold and Silver are no different. The primary difference is that the Gold living area is slightly better, there is a larger tv and towels are provided. Also the Gold restaurant is much better.

You can request top floor but if your children are small it is not advisable. The stairs go into the centre of the apartment, so they do try to give these to families with older children or adult only groups.

2. Onsite food
I can't figure out that if I go for the Silver self catering do you get any food at all eg breakfast? Or do people buy a food package extra so get breakfast, lunch, evening meal? Or Gold package - does this include all food?
Also do you get to eat at all food restaurants? How much extra are you looking at?
I suppose what I'm asking is if I went for a Silver Self Catering apartment, what about the food! Eating costs loads anyway so if its easier & possibly cheaper to go for one of the included food options then please advise.

Self catering means exactly that - you make your own food! If you want meals provided go for a half board option, which includes breakfast and evening meal.

3. Onsite entertainment
I hear the fair is a bit rubbish/small, we'll probably try it once though! What about the other things kids can do?

The club, do you really have to queue for ages to get a set of seats? And if so what is the best strategy? How clean is it? Is the dancing part in the middle, so can you let kids dance about and keep an eye on them?

Is the Swimming Pool heated and inside, also cleanliness keeps coming up in reviews, possible cause of infections/stomach bugs?

Activities mainly for the kids - do you book before you go or hope there's enough places available when you get there? What is worth doing?

For adults - are the Spa treatment and similar things worth it?

The fair is not very big. If you want something bigger go down the road to Ingoldmells. The evening entertainment does get busy, but there are several different venues so as long as you get there in good time you should be fine.

I have never had a problem with pool cleanliness. I used to swim everyday and never caught anything.

You cannot book the activities before you go - most are designed so that everyone can join in.

The spa gets very good reviews.

4. Offsite things to do
We'd want to go to the beach and see Skeggy, is the beach far/easy to get to without car? Or is there a better beach nearby we should drive to?

How far and what else is there where we could have a bit of fun not far from the resort?

If we wanted to eat offsite and be entertained on the night are there any good places and how far away are they?

There are buses that run from outside the main entrance every fifteen minutes - maybe more in main season, I can't remember. You can go to Skeg or Ingoldmells on the bus (opposite directions), or you can walk to Ingoldmells also.

There is a seal sanctuary on the seafront that is well worth a visit.

The beach at Skeg is clean, but gets very busy.

You can find places to eat in Skeg or Ingoldmells. There is a nice Chinese on the way into Skeg, can't remember the name but it is near the library. The best thing to do here is ask the local staff - not the Reds, but the older staff in Guest Services.

5. Booking/arriving
Can you request the area you are going to stay in over the phone or after booking online? Or is it worth talking to staff on arrival with regard to expectations, like don't try and put me in a rundown room or old block?

All of the silver and gold blocks were built at the same time. Accom is allocated prior to arrival, and the allocationists only take note of specific requests, such as 'ground floor' or a specific block (though these are not guaranteed). People only tend to request specific blocks when they are repeat guests, there really is nothing between them.

System

have a look on the skegness seal sanctuary site sometimes they have vouchers on there, i think you have a realistic expectation of what to expect .

hyltonlad

we go to butlins every year we all love it if you dont fancy loads of stompers try booking a private caravan it is all self catering but there is a morrisons in skegness just follow the road to skegness its beside the railway station its much cheaper than the camp shop
hyltonlad

darkovo

Thanks for the replies, so far some good stuff.

I'm a realist so don't mean for it to sound like I'm expecting Colditz but if I'm spending a lot of money going to a place that is rundown and can't get a decent meal or entertainment is rubbish I might as well stay at home, so just trying to get real views on what to expect. The views so far are really good so hope others are the same.

Yeah I could do a Caravan option so will look into that also, I presume this isn't booked through the main butlins number/website though.

Thanks again and keep replying

hyltonlad

a lot of the caravans are run private just do a search for butlins skegness caravans there loads .what sort of entertainment are you looking for it will help you if you check out the butlins website.
hyltonlad

nuttyp

You could also try fantasy island, which is the largest caravan park/fair/ market in inglodmells. They also rent out caravans.

Butlins to be fair, is great, but if your after luxury then mybe not. A holiday is what you make it, and money doesnt always mean it will be the best.
A caravan over a chalet is sometimes cheaper, and the half board option is limited in times you can each, what the menu is that day. If you self cater, you decide when and what time, and is usually cheaper. Just up the road is the linga longa cafe and that is really nice, its on the road to skeg.

The pool is excellent, we often get day passes to go in there, there is also a small fair the vast majority are free rides. There is or there was the last time we were there a cinema too.

Have a nice time

hyltonlad

some of us should get a job with skegness tourist imfomation i lol i mean me

FiFi_Mad_Mum

darkovo wrote: »

Please answer the following if you can.....

1. Apartment & sleeping
Is Gold really better than Silver in terms on cleanliness, beds, thin walls, location of room?
Is it best to stay on the top floor so noisy stompers above don't keep you awake (can you even request to)?
What should I take? towels are obviously recommended, TV is probably small and a bit rubbish so need other things to do while kids are sleeping.

We have stayed in silver and it was perfectly fine and I don't know if we were just lucky but we never heard our neighbours, you are hardly in it after all, it is just somewhere to crash at the end of the day. Butlins do caravan hire, check here: www.butlinsskegnesscaravans.com prices seemed good compared to there apartments. Butlins Skegness give you a choice of half board but you can still book an apartment with kitchen and living room, I would say go for this as it nice to have somewhere to sit apart from your bed.

2. Onsite food
I can't figure out that if I go for the Silver self catering do you get any food at all eg breakfast? Or do people buy a food package extra so get breakfast, lunch, evening meal? Or Gold package - does this include all food?
Also do you get to eat at all food restaurants? How much extra are you looking at?
I suppose what I'm asking is if I went for a Silver Self Catering apartment, what about the food! Eating costs loads anyway so if its easier & possibly cheaper to go for one of the included food options then please advise.

Look at the difference between self catering and half board and work out if you think it is worth it, or if you could feed the family for less. There is a set menu everyday with a choice of about 10 (I think) different items, e.g. salad to meat and three veg. We found that we were eating like pigs in the morning because we could and we were stuffed for the rest of the day.

3. Onsite entertainment
I hear the fair is a bit rubbish/small, we'll probably try it once though! What about the other things kids can do?

There are two funfairs, Bob's world which is mainly inside and aimed at kids up to about 8 and has about 4/5 little rides. There is a larger funfair outside with a couple of small rides and 4/5 larger rides and dodgems and a carousel, it is perfectly adequate considering everywhere else you would have to pay extra for this. You can also play tennis or snooker/pool, or if they are little there is a soft play area, all included. There are go-karts for an additional charge. You can buy a combined package for £10 which gets you a cinema ticket (Odeon Cinema onsite), a game of Laser Quest, a game of pool and a game of bowling.

The club, do you really have to queue for ages to get a set of seats? And if so what is the best strategy? How clean is it? Is the dancing part in the middle, so can you let kids dance about and keep an eye on them?

We don't really bother about the clubs, we sometimes pop in and out. There is entertainment all day in the Skyline (big tent) and that is where the kids will enjoy seeing all there favourite characters, small kids enjoy the Billy Butlin puppet shows. The Skyline is also where lots of fruit machines are all designed to part you with your cash.

Is the Swimming Pool heated and inside, also cleanliness keeps coming up in reviews, possible cause of infections/stomach bugs?

The swimming pool is better than some local authority pools and has lots of slides. The only problem I have with cleanliness is when people take a aqua nappy off and leave it lying, but Butlins cannot be blamed for that.

Activities mainly for the kids - do you book before you go or hope there's enough places available when you get there? What is worth doing?

You have got to have a go at archery or fencing (not just for the kids and included in the price) but you have to go to the sports pavilion about 9 and book it, there are also lots of football activities.

For adults - are the Spa treatment and similar things worth it?

Unfortunately haven't tried the spa - yet!

4. Offsite things to do
We'd want to go to the beach and see Skeggy, is the beach far/easy to get to without car? Or is there a better beach nearby we should drive to?

There is beach access from the camp.

How far and what else is there where we could have a bit of fun not far from the resort?

If you like bargains, take a wander up to Ingoldmells market. If you have a petrol head in the family there is Banger Racing nearby on a Thursday night, although we have been 3 times to Butlins and keep forgetting to go.

If we wanted to eat offsite and be entertained on the night are there any good places and how far away are they?

We go to Wetherspoons in Skeggy if we want a cheap meal, sorry don't know about evening entertainment.

5. Booking/arriving
If there's anything else you can add then great, everyone has their own opinion but I'm ideally after simple statements, also hoping no one adds a pointless comment like "don't bother going" or "i think this other holiday park is better".
Many thanks and sorry for all the questions

Everyones idea of a holiday is different and if you are used to 5 star full board holidays lying in the sun, then this isn't it, but if you want to keep your little ones happy then Butlins should do it.

HTH FiFi

hyltonlad

i wil try and list the good things and the bad things
entertainment x factor/britains got talent yes its free but its packed karioke on a few times a week good sound system younger kids are well catered for to with thomas and friend cartoon network and bob the builder and loads more.
day time sports 1st class but archery and fencing has to be booked
the fair free but not a lot on bad thing theres a charge for the go karts
sky line pavilion great atmosphere bad thing lots to spend money on
snooker ,darts,tenis and table tennis free
eating out we find the sun and moon ok priced and nice food and good service bad the fish and chip takeaway there stuff is like cardboard
there supermarket is to expensive but as i said theres a morrisons just along the road the petrol there is cheapish compared to other places.
out and about we only get as far as ingomelds market kids find to much to do on site.we find it about the same price if we stop in a private caravan as any other company,s park but dont spend as much because theres so much on site and dont need to go out and aboutthe park is cleen and well maintained.
hope this helps hyltonlad

darkovo

Yeah for the price and with my now real expectations we are surely still going, will do Self Catering and at least go offsite if onsite stuff gets too busy.
Thanks again for the replies