When we went to Center Parcs Longleat

A long time ago I was selected to be a Center Parcs Blogger. If you follow the blog you will see that we have been taking part in monthly various challenges since last year, from designing a Water Ride to planting some sunflower seeds. As part of the package, I got to take the DG family to Center Parcs Longleat to give the Center Parcs experience our full and considered opinion.

We set off on a beautiful day: the sun shone almost all the way to Wiltshire, although with Stonehenge in sight, we were beset with ‘adverse’ weather. This was the story of our weekend weather-wise: colder than usual for the time of year and a little bit dramatically wet at times. But we are, above all, British, so we just got on with it whilst complaining bitterly about the weather.

Check in- all in-car- was extremely efficient and we were able to drive to our villa to unload. The villa- a 3-bedroom- was well-appointed. Clean, tidy and very well-laid out, what the rooms lacked in space they made up for in thoughtfully-designed storage, and still fitted everything that you would need. Frankly we have stayed in many hotels that are far less well-kitted-out. There were hairdryers in each room- portentious as it turned out. There was a TV in the Master Bed. There was natural light- courtesy of a light-well- in the bathroom. There was a neat little kitchen with cupboard space for the bits we brought with us. There was  a fireplace that we could use, and a generous L-shaped sofa to sprawl on whilst we watched DVDs. It was fantastic to have a ‘guest’ loo and good sized boot room in which to store wellies, shoes, bike helmets, scooters and pushchairs. My favourite feature was the giant blackboard, which bore a welcome message, and which got a lot of use during our stay.

Almost immediately I bailed on DH and the children to spend time in the Spa. He likewise abandoned the children to their Godmother- and fellow blogger- Lisa, whose family were with us in a nearby villa as part of the Center Parcs Blogger package, so he could park the car in the vast car-park and collect our reserved bikes. Subsequently mine turned out to be too large, so we returned the following day to the largest store of bikes I have ever seen in my life and mine was exchanged within minutes and without any fuss, for a better size. Both bikes had trailers for The Girls and they saw plenty of mileage across the site over the weekend. Although I had read about the large  Center Parcs sites online, it’s only when you actually get there that you realise how long it takes to get from A to B. This cannot be underestimated if you are booking activities in advance on the site- I would strongly advise that you don’t book things back-to-back unless you are certain that it is in the same location. Of course at Longleat there is a wonderful Land Train which takes the strain from your legs but still takes time to get around the circuit.

After the Spa, we headed to Huck’s for a family meal at The Plaza- home to most of the restaurants and the pool complex. The food was great- particularly the kids’ all-you-can-eat buffet, which allowed them to eat pasta with chips if they wanted and then dash off and play in the kids area whilst we explored the cocktail menu.

We spent a very comfortable night in soft warm beds, waking to bird song and an unnatural quiet- surrounded by woodland trees, there’s very little noise which is disconcerting to us city folk. We pedaled down to The Plaza with great excitement. As did half the site. The pool was very busy very quickly.And if I am honest, it was a bit of a mix: we loved the outdoor pool, some of the slides and the circular pool that swept us along like fish. I was very disappointed in the design of the children’s pool, some of which we only discovered on day two. It just didn’t seem that it had been properly thought through, and we ended up heading home with several injuries as a result.

That afternoon we had a blast at family bowling: the children managed to outscore the adults in most cases, but we all had such a great time. Even I got over my Bowling PTSD to get involved- the jug of Pina Colada and One Direction on the juke box undoubtedly helped. Then we cycled up to the Pancake House for a magic show and buffet, which totally blew the children away. In fact one of them went up on stage during the magic act, which made it even more unforgettable. It all proved a bit too much for Dimples so she and I bailed early, back to the space and quiet of our villa. The perfect retreat.

On Sunday morning, after a walk during which I realised how vast the site was and how, in all likelihood, there would remain huge portions of the place that I would not get to see on this visit, DH headed off to do some Field Archery. I watched  The Girls run riot over one of the outdoor adventure areas- designed for much older children- and took hundreds of pictures. We met DH for lunch at Cafe Rouge before heading back to the pool- the main draw for us as a family, particularly as the children are currently learning to swim. We fitted in some Animal Magic with Lisa and her family. And then DH took the bikes to drop off whilst The Girls and I rode the Land Train back up the hill and home.

Supper and a DVD was perfect for our last evening in the Parc: the Girls were exhausted and we were driving back to Bromley in the morning. In the event our departure was very straightforward. DH took the last bike down to the Bike Centre and picked up our car, parking outside our villa as instructed, so that we could pack our belongings. A quick stop at the exit gates to drop off our keys and we were on the road, and home in 2 and a half hours.

 

*disclosure: as a Center Parcs Blogger, I received our Friday-to-Monday break for two families, together with welcome pack, meal at Hucks and activities free of charge, for the purposes of this review. For more information about Center Parcs, you can visit their website: www.centerparcs.co.uk*