So last Saturday we left our house with a car that looked like it was packed with everything but the kitchen sink and headed to my parents! When we arrived at my parents we off loaded the pushchair and some bags into my Dads car and put Chester's bike into my Sisters car! We stayed at my parents that night and then set off early Sunday to Banham Zoo. I should point out here that we stayed mid week at Center Parcs and stayed in a near by travelodge on a ?12 deal the night before to make the holiday last longer. I always recommend doing this if you can not afford to stay for the full week at Center Parcs.
We had never been to Banham Zoo before, it is about 20/30mins past Elveden Forest so that is probably why we had never thought to go there. We managed to get our entry tickets through the Tesco clubcard rewards and we took a picnic with us, so it worked out to be a great cheap day out! There was lots to see and do at the Zoo, Chester loved all the animals, he got to stroke a snake (I stayed outside with Millie as far away as possible!!) They also do a great thing for the kiddies where they get given a card and have to look out for the animal stamps to stamp the card. Once they have collected all eight animal stamps they can go to a collection point and collect a medal! It was a great way to make sure you missed no areas of the zoo out and kept Chester interested from start to finish! We spent about 5/6 hours at the Zoo I would totally recommend a visit if you are nearby, the animals all had big enclosures and you could tell they were very well looked after!
We then headed to our hotel and checked in. As we had stayed there before we knew that there was Hungry Horse restaurant within a 2 min drive (please do not think we are lazy for not walking, you have to cross a massive main roundabout to get to it!), anyone who has been to a Hungry Horse will know what fantastic value they are and we have always had a lovely meal in that particular one.
Because we were staying in the Travelodge which is just a 10min drive from Center Parcs we did not have to rush or get up early, we just had breakfast in bed (we had brought some of the porridge pots that you just add water too) and headed to Center Parcs just before 10am all refreshed and ready for the day ahead!
We met my Sister and her Boyfriend in the carpark (they did not come to the zoo/hotel due to other plans) and all headed straight for the subtropical swimming paradise. We all love it in there and really wanted to let Millie see what all the fuss was about! Thankfully she loved it just as much and we ended up being in there for over an hour! Chester's favorites the lazy river and the childrens pool fast became Millie's favorites, she was more than happy to float along in her baby ring!
When we got out of the pool we went for Lunch at Hucks, an American themed restaurant. We were a little disappointed as when I had made the reservation I has specifically asked to be sat by the play area and that didn't happen. However our waiter was great and really made us feel welcome, I love that Chester was able to have a buffet and could eat his whilst we were waiting for ours.
By that time it was almost 3pm (the time you are allowed into your?accommodation) we had picked a woodland lodge this time round and apart from a few things that were missing (which were quickly replaced) it was great. I love the chalk board that it has in the dining area, Chester had great fun with it. Straight away Chester was looking for the wildlife outside our Villa. I had picked our location as it was over looking the main lake, so not only did we get to see lots of ducks (and?squirrels) but we were only a 5 minute walk to the main area (what used to be the dome). Sarah and Luke went swimming that evening but the rest of us were to tired to join them!
On the Tuesday Chester had a couple of things booked, we took him to Keep Fit with Rupert Bear which was great, he loved it. It was for under 5's and after warming up they had to create a dance routine to show Rupert! At the end they all got to give Rupert a cuddle, if you have little ones I would totally recommend this or the teddy bears picnic, which sadly we did not have time for this time round. Next he had a Pizza making class in Bella Italia, Chester loves making Pizza at home so it was inevitable he was going to love it here! The kids were given chef hats, a picture to colour whilst they waited. They we then able to roll the dough, put some toppings on and watch their Pizza being put into the Pizza oven. They were given juice and were offered a desert from the kids menu too! So I think it was great value at ?5.99, infact Chester loved it so much we booked again for the Thursday! In the evening Craig and I went over to the Aqua Sana (spa) for a few hours whilst my parents and my sister took the children swimming! Me and Craig had a fab time relaxing (apart from the fact one of the steam rooms and half of the downstairs was shut off with out prior notice) and the children had a fab time swimming and causing mischief! Craig and I were meant to collect dinner on the way back from the Aqua Sana but?unfortunately?that went wrong through no fault of our own, it turned out it was a member of staff's last day so he decided to not serve any food after 9.20! At the time we were very annoyed and stressed about it as we were all hungry and the way we had been dealt with by the member of staff was awful. However, the next morning when me and Mum spoke to management the issue was resolved straight away and it was explained that even though it was no excuse it was the member of staffs last day. So the customer service we received was great (I expected nothing less from Elveden as I have always said the customer service/staff there are the best from what we have seen) and totally made up for the ?night before!
Wednesday me and Mum got up early to take Millie to baby dolphins in the pool at 9am, tbh I think it was a bit of a free for all and there were a lot of Children in there who were well over the age of 3! I was a little disappointed as I expected it to be a swimming class type thing. Millie enjoyed it though. We met up with everyone else and went bowling for the rest of the morning at Chester's request using some of our CBSOON vouchers, Chester was in the lead until Craig got two strikes in a row, he was not impressed! Chester had a little bike ride, we went back to the Villa for some lunch and then me and Mum took Chester swimming whilst everyone else had a nap! In the evening we went back to Hucks (we love it there!) and this time they had remembered to put us by the play area, so Chester was very happy to play in the play area and play the cars game on the mac computers whilst we were all busy ordering! Millie was happy people watching in the highchair and we did let her have a play in the soft bit of the play area! What I personally think is great about Hucks is that you can order a half portion of a main course, its very rare that I am able to eat a whole main so this was great for me, Mum and my Sister. After Hucks we decided to take Chester (and Millie) to the disco, Chester put his hand up to be in charge of the conga meaning I had to help too! Oh the shame! But he loved it and won 2 bags of sweets for doing it! After about 45mins of dancing he was starting to get very tired so we headed back to the villa, but out of nowhere on the walk back he got a sudden burst of energy so stayed up with us all to play games! We taught him how to play Yhatzee and he was on my team for Logo before he took himself to bed at around 10.30pm!
On Thursday Sarah and Luke had (another) lye in, so the rest of us had a lovely walk in the forest down to the country club for breakfast and hot chocolates! There is a big indoor/outdoor play area down there so we got a table by that and Chester was happy flitting in and out with us, Millie had a roll around too! My favorite breakfast ever is Eggs Benedict so I was happy to have that, I was a bit naughty and had a luxury hot chocolate which was lush! As it was not very busy we played Rumikub for an hour or so too! Then we wandered round to the wildlife hut to see what we could spot! I think that the wildlife hut often gets overlooked as (understandably) its a bit out of the way, but to us its a hidden gem! We got to see 2 deers cuddled together, lots of different birds and some?squirrels! We wandered over to the lake and had a starbucks, then it was time for Chester to go to his Pizza making class (again!) so me and Mum took him whilst everyone else went back for naps! Then we met with Sarah who wanted to go to one of the play areas with Chester. He loved being a daredevil as usual and we had lots of fun! In the evening we went in to the pool, we hired a cabana which is a hut in the pool area with some comfy chairs, towels, drinks, baby play pen and a TV! I have to say before we hired it I was a bit worried that it was a waste of money as they start at ?30 and go upto ?60!! We paid ?40 and having been in it, I have to say it is worth its money was great for when the kiddies (and grandparents) got tired! We had our dinner in there too, Chester thought it was hilarious that we were eating dinner in our swim costumes! They have recently changed the Pool food, it is now called canopy, I liked most of the changes,the salads are fab and very?generous as were the kids meals?however I did feel that the burgers tasted a bit weird!
Friday came around way too quickly for my liking, I wish we could of stayed for longer! We had so much more we wanted to do but we just ran out of time! Chester was sad we had not managed to fit in the Pancake house this time around. We packed up our car and then went swimming for one last time, we then took a very slow walk back to the car, having to stop at the toy shop for Chester's daily Moshi Monster fix! On the way home we stopped for lunch at tha Hungry Horse and had another lovely meal!
Overall we had a great family holiday, making loads of memories for the kiddies (and us) to treasure.
My top tips for anyone thinking of going to Center Parcs are:
Do it! So many people say to me 'oh your going to Center Parcs, isn't it expensive there?!' My answer is always no, its only expensive if you make it expensive! The restaurants are normal high street prices, the swimming is free, as is the disco, the bowling is priced the same as I would expect to pay in my local bowlplex if not less, it costs nothing to walk around the forest exploring and a lot of the other?activities?I would say are normal pricing. Your Villa has a fully equipped kitchen so you do not have to eat out,going out of season especially January/February/March will save you loads on the holiday cost (remember it is per villa not per person)
I have Three?exceptions?to my?defense?on the cost of it and they are: The toy shop is very over priced, however they do offer money back if you can prove the toy is cheaper on the high street so do take an argos book with you! The Parc Market (their supermarket) over the last year has gone up a lot! It used to be slightly more than Asda or Tesco but now it is way way over the top. So if you did want to eat in your villa I would stop at a local supermarket before you go into Center Parcs. The takeaway DineIn is also very over priced for what I would call microwave takeaway meals. We have always had issues with DineIn and will never order from there again.
If you have your own bikes take them with you! Great opportunity to explore the forest in a safe environment, not having to worry about cars! If you dont have your own consider hiring whilst there!
I have been to Center Parcs in all seasons and have to say Autumn/winter are my favorite times to go, whatever the weather you will have fun there is so much to see and do!
Please note: this post is entirely my own experiences/opinion.?
Source: http://oneblueonepink.blogspot.com/2012/09/first-family-holiday-with-millie.html
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