Center Parcs: A great way to spend a week on a holiday in the UK (Center Parcs Whinfell Forest)

Member Name: mrjoegoodwin

Product:	Center Parcs Whinfell Forest
Date:	30/07/09 (221 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Wide range of activities, good accommodation, free pool access, no cars on site

Disadvantages: Can be expensive if you pack your day with activities!

Organising a holiday for my extended family, which numbers around 20 people with ages from 3 to 63, can sometimes be a challenge...to put it mildly! Finding somewhere that everyone can agree on, afford, and enjoy without wanting to throttle each other at the end of the holiday is never easy, but thank the lord for the creators of Center Parcs, because they have come up with the answer to our prayers!

Initially starting as a single resort in Holland in 1968, Center Parcs came to the UK in 1987, with their first site at Sherwood Forest, on the outskirts of Nottingham. The site at Whinfell Forest in Cumbria, is the most recent to be added to the portfolio, and used to be an 'Oasis' resort, until Center Parcs took over ownership and rebranded the site.

So, what can you expect from a Center Parcs holiday? Well, it's really up to you to make the most from your time there, and there are so many things to do that time can certainly escape from you if you aren't careful! When booking accommodation, these come in the form of woodland villas that are situated amongst the trees and bushes of Whinfell Forest, and range in price from reasonable (Comfort, Comfort Plus) to expensive (the luxury villas). The basic Comfort accommodation should suit most people, and provides you with a main living area with dining table, sofas, television (don't watch TV when you're there though, spoils the holiday!), bathroom, separate toilet(s) and a number of bedrooms, depending on the size of the villa you booked. Each villa is part of a colour coded section of the park, so you might find yourself in the Red section, villa number 97. It may sound complicated, but with the excellent sign posting and helpful staff, it's quite difficult to lose yourself in Center Parcs, and even if you do take a wrong turning, there are normally several other routes to take you back 'home'.

Included in the accommodation price is access to the excellent covered pool and indoor water play areas that dominate the centre of the park. It would be easy to spend every day in the pool on the slides, wave machine and family friendly areas, and the only downside to the pool is the sheer popularity of it with guests - unsurprising, as it's effectively free for the duration of your stay.

Around the Center Parcs site are a wide range of activities going on throughout each day during the week, and this is where the beauty of the holiday really kicks in, as there is genuinely something for everyone's interests here. Sports are very well covered, with tennis courts, a gym, lawn bowls, badminton and many more to choose from. During the summer, Center Parcs run tournaments for some of the aforementioned sports, and this can be a fun way to have a bit of competition between your group and some of the other guests. Sports bookings generally are typically for 1 hour, and are reasonably priced at about £5 per hour for most activities, comparable to sports centres around the country, and worth the money as generally the facilities are excellent.

For those feeling less energetic, there are several spa, sauna, massage and relaxation activities to help you unwind at the end (or the start!) of a busy week. At first glance, these sessions can look quite expensive, but if a few hours away from the hustle and bustle of an activity holiday is what you need, then it's probably money well spent!

Some of the outdoor activities include paintballing, quad biking (some of which are done outside the Center Parcs site boundary), archery, and the Action Challenge, a series of climbs, swings, bridges and jumps that take place in a specially constructed course, way above your head up in the trees of the forest. Not for the members of your party who are scared of heights, but great fun to watch from below!

As the Center Parcs site is situated in the middle of the forest, there are some activities that encourage you to explore your surroundings and understand more about the natural environment in which you are situated. Unique to the Whinfell Forest site is the Squirrel Session, a great family activity that teaches children (and adults!) all about the red squirrel, and with the help of the brilliant park rangers, you should be able to spot a couple of red squirrels yourself when walking around the site.

Activities can be booked before your week starts, either using the website, or over the phone, or if you arrive at Center Parcs and fancy the look of something as you are wandering round, there are booking centres dotted around that let you book activities whilst you are there.

I would strongly advise either taking a bike/bikes to Center Parcs if you have them at home, or at least renting them while you are there. Cars are only allowed on the main complex when loading/unloading vehicles at the start/end of your trip, otherwise they have to stay in the car park, situated near the main entrance to the site. Because the forest is quite large in acreage, walking around the whole site, or walking between activity locations can take quite a long time, so by hiring bikes or bringing them with you, you should save a lot of time, and keep fit in the process!

In terms of eating and drinking, Center Parcs caters for your needs quite well, although it's in their interest to make a tidy profit where possible, so whilst there are several different themed restaurants and dining areas, the prices are expensive if trying to feed a large group. What I would recommend, from my 3 trips to Center Parcs, is to do a big supermarket shop and take as much food/drink with you at the start of the week, and try to self-cater for breakfast/lunch/dinner where possible. We tended to eat out once during the week, usually at the end of the holiday, when we also had our 'award ceremony', a silly family tradition where each member of the group gets a prize at the end of the week for something they have 'achieved' during their stay. Although expensive, the food in the restaurants is normally very good, and it's nice to not feel the need to cook for yourself all the time. There is a mini supermarket on site which will cater for any bread/milk essentials that you may need to top up with, but again, I wouldn't want to get a large shop from here.

If you're looking for a holiday in the UK, and have lots of different types of people in your group to please, then Center Parcs at Whinfell Forest is a great option to consider. From the picturesque drive to the site through the Lake District, to the hustle and bustle of the daily activities on site, there is always something to look forward to at Center Parcs!

Summary: Something for all the family