Family fun, Safe, clean, good value (Butlins (Skegness))

Member Name: Mojo24

Product:	Butlins (Skegness)
Date:	07/07/08 (378 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Most things are free, staff great

Disadvantages: Some chavs, smoking teenagers

Just come back from a family holiday at Butlin's Skegness and thought a review was in order. Not done dooyoo.com for a while, so stick with me!

We are a family of four, including a four-year old and a baby. I used to go to Butlin's in the late 80s/early 90's as a teenager with my parents and siblings, and things have changed a lot.

The first thing I will say is, if you plan on taking a pram, try and book a ground floor apartment. We went up and down the stairs at least twice a day and it was ok, but would've been easier had we not been on the first floor.

The apartment (we had a silver one), was clean, well laid out, well equipped and comfortable. It had a tv, fridge, cooker, microwave, kettle and toaster. We had a shower room (no bath), and the double bedroom had plenty of room for the travel cot. The only bad thing I'll say about the apartment was the sound insulation was awful. You could hear every step from the floor above, and they went to bed a lot later than we did. Apart from that, thumbs up for the accommodation.

The facilities are great. The pool was a bit cold, but there was ample changing (we went term-time mid-week however, probably a different story during the holidays), and there was plenty of swimming space. The queues were short for the slides, and it was clean in general. Thumbs up for the pool.

The funfair (both the main one, and a smaller Bob the Builder kiddies one) were great. The ride operators were friendly, the rides were in good repair and clean. You have to pay for the bigger rides (such as the go-karts) but we just didn't bother with them, and there are plenty of free ones to keep the kids busy. The toddler soft play is clean and of a good size. Overall, the facilities are good. Thumbs up again.

The entertainment was good. The daytime entertainment in the Skyline is solely for kids and families, and mainly for the younger ones. There are character shows and Skyline Gang sing and dance sessions, as well as a puppet theatre and character photo shoots. One thing I will say for Butlins is that the orgainisation is spot on. The shows all started at the exact time the programme said they would, and there was no dissappointing the young ones. My child's favourite was a dance along with Angelina Ballerina. It was puke-worthy, but she loved it. The night-time entertainment was not as good. The two shows we saw, either scared my children, or went on too long. Having said that, there was plenty of seating in the clubs, and it wasn't too noisy. Overall, day-time entertainment was first-class, night-times consisted of tv and bed.

We went half board, as per previous years. However, this year was a self-service buffet style, which was fine if you have more than one adult in your party, a bit trickier if you are on your own with small kids. Anyway, the food was hot, there was a good choice. Drinks and food are unlimited, seating was ample, queues were short, and trays are cleared away very quickly. There was jar food, and a microwave, for babies, which was fab. Thumbs up for the food.

The staff were superb. I remember going in previous years and some of the staff were disinterested at best! This year, I could not fault one member right from the Redcoats, through to the door hosts and the domestics. Big improvement. Maybe Butlins are paying more these days? Thumbs up for them.

A big winner for me as a parent was the lack of commercialisation. As a family we frequent other UK holiday parks, and find that they are always pushing products, or paid for events, or merchandising on the children, trying to get them to use pester power on us. Thankfully, there was none of that at Butlins, even though we did see advertising for some quite expensive kiddie-orientated events, none of it was pushed by the entertainment staff, and I didn't have to say no to my child and feel guilty about it. Fantastic.

The amusements are everywhere and you can't avoid spending money on them. However, the token cash-in is a free for all, and the prizes are pathetic. Don't bother, just go on the 2p slot machines, or the instant win Arabrian derby. Loads of fun.

We went into Skegness one day on the bus. It leaves from just outside the gates and are about every 15 minutes. However, it does get very busy and you have to fold the buggy up if it gets full. It took about 10 minutes to get to Skeggy town centre, and was easy to make the return journey as you catch the bus from opposite where it drops you off. It was easy to get back in to the complex, just showing your key card to the security staff.

There were some very chavvy people there. That's something you can't avoid. Its not as bad as some places we go to regularly - the higher prices keep out the really chavvy people. Butlins is not the sort of place you go to get cultured or inspired anyway, more of a blow out for the children, in a pretty safe environment. I don't think I'd rush back if I didn't have children, but as a family its great.

Overall 8 out of 10 for this holiday. Although after five days away with the hubby and two kids, I think I need a relaxing weekend away on my own now!

Summary: Uncultured - but who cares when everything is this fun?