Center Parcs, Whinfell Forest (Center Parcs)

Member Name: danensis

Product:	Center Parcs
Date:	30/11/04 (12057 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Easy to book, Wildlife

Disadvantages: Expensive, Poor pool hygiene

We have just got back from Whinfell Forest. We stayed at Longleat in July, but have not been to Sherwood for about ten years.

The drive-through check-in was very slow, and that was at about mid-day, so heaven knows what it is like at busy times. We thought there might have been a fast lane for those who had pre-registered. Also we had a disabled member in our party but its still a long way from the disabled parking to the village centre. Needless to say few of the cars in the disabled area had blue badges on display!

We thought the swimming area very disjointed, one of the things we liked about other Center Parcs was the way you could get from one area to the other without leaving the water. To get to the outside hot pool you had to leg it across several yards of open air in the freezing cold. Indeed the overall impression was that it had been designed very much for appearance rather than function. Water flowed from area to area but you couldn't move with it. There were waterfalls all over the place, but they didn't appear to serve any useful purpose.

We thought the pool hygiene was very poor. Every pool had a grey "bathtub ring" of grease around it, and there was silt in many of the corners. In some pools the build up of scale was so bad that there were different coloured moulds growing on it. Similarly the changing cubicle floors were very dirty, hairballs in the corners and that sort of thing, and not helped by punters wandering around the wet side in outdoor shoes.

We thought the "canyon ride" was a poor substitute for a jungle river or wildwater rapids. Part of the fun of the rapids is bumping into and avoiding other people, its part of the companionship. The so-called "rapids" at Whinfell are a sort of circle of moving water, half the jets in which weren't working. And talking of things not working half the place is a building site. The Italian restaurant was not even open (supposed to be late 2004 - not got a lot of time left!). I thought the temperature in the swiming area was a degree or two on the cold side, especially in the main pool. I had to leave early on a couple of occasions because I was too cold, despite some vigorous swimming. The main pool is also a lot smaller than at the other sites, and there are no hand holds at the deep end, so don't swim there expecting to stop.

We had a disabled villa, which had the usual disabled toilet accessories and shower, though how someone in a wheelchair is expected to operate a pedal bin I'm not quite sure. It also had a vibrating bed, which our son thought was great fun. However we found the heating was not as good as at Sherwood and had to keep turning it up. In the end, despite a notice telling us not to try and reprogram it, I did so, and got it a little better. We were also singularly unimpressed with our "double bed" being two single beds pushed together, with a double sheet on top, and a very lumpy join down the middle. Not too much togetherness there!

All the lighting in the villa was "mood" lighting. There was no proper light in the kitchen area, so you couldn't see to prepare food, and needless to say the light under the cooker hood wasn't working. Similarly if you wanted to sit and read, there was nowhere that you could get a light on your book.

We liked the BadgerCam - the first night we turned it on at dusk, and there were the badgers, setting off on patrol. Then a few minutes later two came out and started playing. We never saw them again the whole weekend!

We also saw the red squirrels, both around the Lakeside Inn and behind our villa (in Badger Wood). There was plenty of bird life, especially when we put out a little wild bird food.

I also wondered how a disabled person would get on in the World of Water, as there seemed to be a lot of often unnecessary steps, for example one jacuzzi had steps up to an elevated platform before the steps down into the pool. Our disabled guest was mobile, but got very out of breath climbing the umpteen steps to the flumes. The flumes were very good, we have no complaints there, and the queues were not too long, except on the last morning.

We ate in the Lakeside Inn, which was very noisy, as was the Indian restaurant, which was very good, but ridiculously expensive. The "more form than function" style was repeated there, with silly dishes that were incredibly difficult to eat from. As usual all the staff were very friendly.

Our other main complaint (and we don't always moan) is that there was nowhere to sit down when waiting for people in the village square. There were only two benches in the whole place, and one of them was occupied by cuddly toys, which got unceremoniously dumped when we needed to sit down. We were also unimpressed that smoking was not discouraged in the covered areas.

I don't think we will be going to Whinfell Forest again.

Summary: