Center Parcs & Butlins

blue_monkey_2

pinkmami wrote: »

I also live in the countryside (on a small holding in fact) and I'm surrounded by trees & fields & we love CP. For the very reason you mentioned in your post - the other place is CHAVVY!!!! Good enough reason for me!

A "holiday" means many different reasons. You may not like to sit in & chat but to others who may lead busy lives they like to take the quality time to "stay in & chat" as it could be the only chance they get.

Exactly, a holiday is a holiday for each and every individual. I know someone who spends 6k a year on a holiday to sit around a pool ALL DAY while their kids play in the pool. My husband knows someone who got their kids private swimming lessons so they could be in the pool all day while they just lazed around a pool at a villa and hey did not have to keep an eye on them. ALL DAY. OMG, how boring.

Loads of places are chavvy now really thanks to cheap package holidays, Spain, Cyprus, Tenerife - even Florida (thanks to Tesco Clubcard and Virgin!!) however, you need to get yourself a good timeshare and then you need only to mingle with the chavs for a minimal amount of time. There were no chavs at Disney's Kidani Village or Hilton Grand Vacation Clubs. We were probably the chavviest ones there in all fairness!!

But Butlins is my KIDS holiday, their choice of a holiday. Life is not just about us - that would be selfish. It would not be my choice but they aboslutely love it there so we go, they need a holiday too. I'll get 16 years of them choosing 'chavvy holidays' once a year and then they'll be off doing their own thing and we'll be off to more exotic places on tours again and maximising our timeshare by using the bank. We had years of miserable holidays with my parents and my hubby too - my kids are certainly not going to say the same about us, they will have holidays to remember forever.

However, I cannot say I'll be going to Centre Parks anytime soon. I do think I'd go out of my mind with boredom there.

jodie114

lol i know its silly but theres one reason we all love cp here *and we have been butlins gold members* and thats the swimming pool - opens all day till late and nothing in butlins come close! expensive swimming, but it sways us that way every time!

Rachie_B

you are not comparing like with like !
Butlins and Center Parcs are worlds apart

we have been to and like both

I would not / do not pay fullprice for either ,we can only holiday in school holidays when prices for both are stupidly high!

so we use the SUN cheap deals for Butlins and only book Center Parcs with another family and share the cost,or book when our school holidays are different to others making that week half the price!

If you bring your own bikes / groceries and book the cheaper activities or just use the pool,walks,cycle etc then Center Parcs doesn't have to cost you a fortune once there

ditto for Butlins,we self cater and do not buy any of the touristy tat whilst there!

thelawnet

Rachie_B wrote: »

you are not comparing like with like !
Butlins and Center Parcs are worlds apart

we have been to and like both

I wasn't really saying Center Parcs is bad, it was more that Butlins isn't! A lot of people go to Center Parcs, which is just a middle class Butlins because they think Butlins must be terrible. It wasn't.

We spent £459 for our room for 3 nights at Center Parcs, £72 for 3 bikes, £100 for High ropes, £150 for massage for 2, and then food and drink on top of that, must have cost us £1k. We spent a week in The Gambia for 4 in the Christmas holidays, that didn't cost much more, or you could spend 3 nights in the Canaries in a 5* for that....

If you bring your own bikes / groceries and book the cheaper activities or just use the pool,walks,cycle etc then Center Parcs doesn't have to cost you a fortune once there

The pool is nice, so was the playground, but the walking and cycling is pretty poor tbh.
Last time we went to Center Parcs we just went in the pool, this time we decided to do it 'properly' and book lots of activities. Turns out that it's just an expensive swimming pool really.

I had a look at the cost of Moonfleet Manor, a posh family hotel in Dorset for Easter weekend:

With a long weekend ahead of you let us take care of you and your children with fun, food and a full Easter weekend packed with things to do or not as the case maybe, the choice is yours.
The break starts on Good Friday, either set off the day before or arrive after lunch and we will welcome you to a family afternoon tea with Hot Cross buns and Easter cake.

St Georges day - On Saturday we have a fun magic show and children’s party with fancy dress, knights and dragons can collide, on top of all the fun activities the Creche team will have laid on in the day time. For grown ups we have a wine tasting masterclass to warm you up to some of our favourites ready for a lovely dinner with Chef Tony in our restaurant.
Easter Sunday the day of rest! If you do manage a lie in – well done, for the rest of us let’s get wrapped up after breakfast and go on the all New ‘Toddle waddle ‘– certificates for all those who complete this mini hike! Later in the day, families will be challenged to the Great Egg race, whose egg can go the furthest and survive? Easter Egg hunt and the Easter bunny will be there too of course and that will be capped off with story telling and popcorn – what a day!

Finally, Easter Monday, lets burn off some more energy with a grand finale – The Swimming Gala, an hour of mayhem before the sad but inevitable farewell. That journey home might be one of the quietest yet!

£690 for dinner, bed and breakfast for 3 nights for 2 adults with 2 kids under 11 free - Center Parcs want £779 for the most basic villa with nothing included, you're looking at another £100 for a decent dinner and about £40 for breakfast.

The prices are just crazy, but they seem to be doing ok in spite of it.

Rachie_B

yup there are always people that will pay the stupidly high prices ( which amazes me as I wouldn't for any park / site in the UK !)

£150 for a couples massage?!!! eek!

thelawnet

Rachie_B wrote: »

yup there are always people that will pay the stupidly high prices ( which amazes me as I wouldn't for any park / site in the UK !)

£150 for a couples massage?!!! eek!

£125 for the massage, plus babysitter.

Two therapists for an hour, for massage £60/hour is fairly standard, go to a posh spa and you'll pay more than that.