I used to come to Center Parcs Whinfell Forest when I was much younger, and it used to be owned by Oasis, until Center Parcs bought it.

In recent times I've been here twice with my boyfriend as it's cheap and there's lots to do. It is aimed more at families with children, but that didn't stop us having fun!

We stay in the apartments and have a view backing into the forest and they're very nice. The bed's have some sort of posh mattress on them (they have a leaflet in the room incase you want to order one!) and they're the most comfy beds I have ever slept in! It is all open plan, except the bathroom obviously but it's lovely. The TV is on a stand which spins so you can watch TV in bed or on the sofa's, and there is a DVD player and a stereo. In the corner near the balcony is a small dining room table, and there is table and chairs on your balcony which looks into forest.
Often during the day the ducks and rabbits play around the back of the apartments, so take some bread to throw down at them and you soon have a gathering of ducks, birds and rabbits eating the bread! When walking around near the apartments there are always loads of rabbits and ducks about, it's very nice.

So, on with center parcs itself. Inside the big 'dome' known as the village center there are shops and restaurants in one half, and the other half is taken up by the swimming pool, also known as the subtropical swimming paradise! It's huge inside, lots of different pools from wave pools to baby pools with toys, there is 2 spa pools, slow rapids, fast outdoor rapids and near the top is a lane pool. There is also a poolside cafe so you can get food and a cuppa! The pool is free and you can spend as long as you want in there.

Another favourite of mine is the Aqua Sauna spa. For as little as £25 at twilight spa time, you can be in the world of spa for 3 hours. It's so very relaxing and nice. I was a bit intimidated at first but I was soon into the swing of things! You get a robe and towel on the way in, and the changing room is very posh however it is mostly open plan on benches with frosted glass, but there is a locakable room in the corner incase you're too shy! There's lots of lockers too, and some nice showers with complimentary elemis shampoo's, conditioners and body washes! Inside the spa itself, well, you'll need more than 3 hours to try everything out put it that way! There's lots of relaxing chairs, loungers and sofa's about to leave youe robe/towels and books on, or to fall asleep on! There's lovely relaxing ambient music playing. Near the entrance roman footbath, you put your feet on and press the start button and it fills up with hot water before the bubbles commence, very nice for aching feet! Then there are alot of steam rooms! The turkish one is very hot and humid, inside each steam rooms there are white hoses so you can hose down the seats and the floor (which gets very hot in the hot rooms!). There is a sign outside talking about that steam room and the recommended time you should spend in there etc, but I personally can only last about 5 minutes in the Turkish one. Outside the turkish one there is a bowl with crushed ice and some clean flannels to cool yourself down with. There is also a shower which has different settings such as 'tropical rain.' There are also water coolers and plastic cups about to keep you hydrated! My favourite steam room is the Japanese Salt room, very nice comfy chairs and not too hot. This is next to the zen garden, it's small but you can walk around in it and it's nicely kept. There is also an outdoor pool, which is really nice when it's cold and getting dark outside! Next to this is the hydrotherapy pool which has huge taps which spray water fast and you can stand under them. Back inside there is a Tyrolean sauna, which is the one most people associate with as a sauna. Wooden and different levels, in the corner is a big bucket and spoon so you can put water on the coals. Outside of this is the crushed ice fountain, it feels nice to put ice on your face afterwards! There is also an Indian Steam blossom room which has a menthal feel to the air so if you're feeling a bit stuffy, you won't after that one! There is also a Herbal Greek room and another steam room which I've forgotten the name of... so lots of steam rooms to try out here!
There are also some water beds. Warning, if you get on them you won't want to get off, they're so relaxing!

Back outside in the forest you're at the sports plaza. Here there is a Starbucks, Ice cream palour, a bar which also serves food, and lots of pool tables including american pool upstairs. You also book your sports activities here, and there is table tennis, badminton, soft tennis, a gym, dance & fitness studio squash courts, basketball, rollerblading... basically everything to do with sport! On change over days this is quite busy with people getting coffee's and playing pool and table tennis waiting for check in time, but any other time it's not bad at all.

So as you can see, your break at Center Parcs can be as relaxing or as action packed as you choose, there's so much to do you'll never get bored.

Look out for good late special offers on the website. In September we booked a mid week break for only £180 for November, I think it was 25% off using a certain code. I understand it's extremely expensive during school holidays!