Introduction
Having visited the Center Parcs complex at Whinfell Forest a couple of times over the last 12 months I found the place has a lot to offer especially for those of us with kids. The park itself is set in a large pine forest which includes a variety of both indoor and outdoor activities ... Read review
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Advantages: Excellent facilities and accommodation Disadvantages: A bit pricey
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Having visited the Center Parcs complex at Whinfell Forest a couple of times over the last 12 months I found the place has a lot to offer especially for those of us with kids. The park itself is set in a large pine forest which includes a variety of both indoor and outdoor activities and all the accommodation.
Location
The park is situated on the outskirts of the lake district about 10 miles from Penrith. ...on the A66 towards Appleby/Brough. Center Parcs Whinfell Forest entrance is about 3 miles along the A66 on the right hand side.
Accommodation
Each type of accommodation has a kitchen, an open plan living and dining area, bedroom/s, bathroom/s and either a patio or balcony with outdoor furniture. Bed linen is provided in all accommodation apart from cots. Following on from this there are a number of different types of ... more
Introduction
Having visited the Center Parcs complex at Whinfell Forest a couple of times over the last 12 months I found the place has a lot to offer especially for those of us with kids. The park itself is set in a large pine forest which includes a variety of both indoor and outdoor activities and all the accommodation.
Location
The park is situated on the outskirts of the lake district about 10 miles from Penrith.
How to get there by road
M6 Junction 40 follow the A66 east toward Brough. At roundabout continue on the A66 towards Appleby/Brough. Center Parcs Whinfell Forest entrance is about 3 miles along the A66 on the right hand side.
Accommodation
Each type of accommodation has a kitchen, an open plan living and dining area, bedroom/s, bathroom/s and either a patio or balcony with outdoor furniture. Bed linen is provided in all accommodation apart from cots. Following on from this there are a number of different types of accommodation at Whinfell which include:-
Comfort Lodge – Standard with 1 to 4 bedrooms.
Comfort Plus Lodge – These have 1 to 4 bedrooms but are different to the comfort villas in that they have a dishwasher, a dvd player, TV in main bedroom and towels are provided.
Executive lodge – These have two to four bedrooms, are a little more luxurious with main extras including LCD TVs in the lounge and bedrooms, en-suite bathrooms, ceiling speakers in the living areas; LCD TV in the lounge & all bedrooms, a daily maid service, wine chiller and coffee machine.
Exclusive Lodge – Same features as the executive lodge but include a steam room, sauna and hot tub.
I found the accommodation to be excellent – clean, tidy and modern with the usual kitchen facilities including, hob, oven, microwave, fridge, cutlery and plates etc. Having said this there was a few notable extras that make your life a little easier if you have small children as I do. On my first visit we had two storey accommodation which could be a nightmare for those with toddlers (as I have) who insist on climbing stairs before they are really able to. However, child gates could be found at the top and bottom. Cots are provided and these are of good quality, I also like the way they have a small porch way as you enter your lodge to put muddy shoes, prams, golf bags etc etc.
Other pluses are that on both my stays we had 3 bed accommodation, each had two separate shower rooms (one with a bath) and two separate toilets. Seating within the lodges was excellent with two sofas in each and a sizeable dining table all within an open plan area. Each lodge also had a barbecue outside with table and chairs and a log fire inside.
Cost
Bookings are Monday to Friday, Friday to Monday or if you want to pay extra you can go for the whole week. The cost of accommodation largely depends on the time of year you want to visit the park. Both times I visited the park I found that there were good deals available 2 to 3 weeks before booking the holiday but this was in the off peak season. The first time was in September where I managed to pick up a 3 bedroom two storey comfort plus lodge for £410 Monday to Friday and my last visit in March cost £320 for a bog standard 3 bedroom comfort lodge. Don’t expect to pay prices like this in peak season though. I have just tried to find some 3 bed accommodation for the end of June and am looking at £550 minimum so the school holidays are likely to be expensive. The executive range starts at around £800 Monday to Friday in June so will no doubt be more expensive August. I intend to go again at some point but perhaps not at these prices.
Arrival and departure
The first time we turned up at the park we were amazed at the booking in process which reminded me of boarding a ferry by car. There are about 5 gates, any of which you can drive your car to in order to book in. Whilst still in your car, you just need your booking confirmation which is sent in the post normally two weeks before arrival or via email confirmation if you have made a late booking and the booking assistants will give you a keycard for the lodge you have booked.
You are unable to gain entrance to the lodge until 3.30 unless you have booked exclusive or executive lodges where you can book in from 1.30. However, you can park your car on the car park and use the facilities at the site from 10 in the morning. On my first visit I ended up queuing for about 45 minutes at 3.30 to get to my lodge in the boiling sunshine, not very pleasant and I wasn’t amused. I learnt from this second time round, arrived at 3, went for a swim then went to my car at 4.30 and drove straight in.
Cars are not allowed on the site during the week so you have to take your car back to the car park once you have unpacked. The only forms of transport you see will be bikes, maintenance vehicles or the horse and carriage which you can pay to take a ride on (About a fiver a person if I remember rightly). I think the no cars rule is an excellent idea as families can stroll around the whole complex which has many paths and roads without fear of getting mown down by cars all the time.
Upon departure you need to be out of your lodge by 10 but this is not such a mad panic as arrival as everybody tends to drive their car back a different times during the morning. The good thing is that Centerparcs let you use their facilities for the rest of the day if you wish on the day of your departure.
Activities
Where to start?? As I have a small child the activities I discuss are inevitably going to be biased towards small children but I will try to mention as many as I can remember for those without kids. Sorry to those who don’t have kids who would prefer talk of tree walking etc etc.
For the under 3’s there are a number of activities, we went to baby dolphins where you get the subtropical swimming paradise to yourselves and a number of inflatables to play with, also to mammal magic but I would suggest this for older kids as a lot of the course is spent listening to presentation on different mammals (not good when you have a 16 month old who never sits still!). Messy play was probably the best and most comical activity we went to, this basically involved the all the kids jumping into buckets of spaghetti, cornflower and water, sand etc etc and having the chance to paint – WARNING – your kids will get absolutely covered in the stuff, old clothes are required (even better just strip em off!!). There was also a soft play area we used nearly every day at £2.50 a pop, this was excellent and included things like ball pools, tunnels, little slides etc, etc. There are loads more activities available for the small kids which can be found under the following link:-
For the rest of us there is an indoor sports centre where you can take part in table tennis, badminton, indoor football and cricket, snooker and pool, ten pin bowling, a golf simulator and many, many more activities. There is of course the subtropical swimming paradise which has three large slides, a baby pool, main pool with a wave machine and a further pool on the top level which is quieter and good for those who are more serious about their swimming.
Again outdoor activities are plenty and include golf, watersports at the lake next to the main complex (you are also able to walk round this lake), horse riding, archery, paintball, tennis, quad biking, clay shooting, tree walking (new to me!!), mini golf, soccer tournament etc etc etc.
Please remember that most of the activities do incur a charge with the main exception being the subtropical swimming paradise so you will have to bring your cheque book if you wish to participate.
Shops and eating out
The complex has its own mini supermarket which pretty much contains everything that you need (reminds me a little bit of a Tesco Metro) and isn’t too expensive. There are one or two other shops on site which include sportique for sports items, Funtastic the toy shop and treats which is a sweet shop.
There are a number of eating areas and restaurants and it would have been rude of me not to try both the Chinese (Yang) and Indian (Rajinda Pradesh) restaurants where the food was quite respectable and reasonably priced (About £15 a head). Most of the eating areas do provide high chairs for those with toddlers, were clean and had a wide variety of foods such as Traditional English pub food, Italian and American.
Advise
If you don’t like walking too far to get to the centre of the park where most of the action is you should chose to pay the optional £20 to chose where which lodge you can stay in. take a look at one of the maps on the website, this will show you the areas close to centre. On my second visit I chose the Seven Pines area which was pretty useful for both the car park and village.
If you like it quiet but don’t like walking too far, hire a bike, these are around £15 for the 5 days or weekend. You are able to choose from normal bikes or mountain bikes which have gears. Bike seats and trailers are also available for toddlers they have a bike centre with experts to ease your mind about the safety. I was surprised at how many bikes they have at the park, trust me the warehouse has literally hundreds. I have never seen so many bikes!!
Avoid queuing to get to your lodge at 3.30, relax, take some time around the complex and sort your unpacking after 4 o’clock when you should be able to drive straight to your lodge after the mad rush.
Some of the classes get fully booked up (especially the kids classes) so make sure if you wish to go to some of the classes book them by phone as soon as possible after you have you have made your booking. Don’t leave it until the last minute, you may be disappointed.
Conclusion
Don’t expect this to be cheap, however, accommodation is excellent, you will never run out of things to do come rain or shine, and the surroundings are very pleasant (you can even see red squirrels and pheasants whilst wandering around the forest). There seems to be something for everyone here from those with families to young and old. If you need further info on centerparcs they have a comprehensive website at www.centerparcs.co.uk.
Advantages: Self-contained, lovely setting, plentiful activities Disadvantages: Service
...a 3 night stay at Center Parcs Whinfell Forest.
CHOOSING A CENTER PARCS
Once we had decided that we would go to a Center Parcs , I went to www.centerparcs.co.uk to have a look at the various places on offer and to request a DVD and brochure. They arrived in only 2 days. There are 4 Center Parcs in England- Whinfell, Sherwood, Elveden and Longleat. After some debate and discussion with friends who have been, we chose Whinfell Forest. Whinfell is ... ...following the link on the Center Parcs website, including choosing the house we wanted. I picked #5 Badger Wood as it looked to be in a central location. I paid a small deposit using my credit card. I could have also used my debit card. The deposit is £75 or 30% of the total cost, whichever is greater. The remainder is due 10 weeks before arrival. Since I had paid by credit card, it was automatically deducted at 10 weeks prior arrival.
2 weeks before ...
ukusa 13.07.2006
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Center Parcs Oasis Whinfell, Penrith
Advantages: RELAXING, MOD CONS, PLENTY TO DO Disadvantages: EXPENSIVE PRICES
...cabin and my fella suggested Center Parcs as he had been a great number of times before and really enjoyed it.
How to Book:-
www.centerparcs.co.uk or call 08705200300
Location:- Oasis Whinfell Forest is located just off the M6 on the A66 and is clearly signposted. Upon arrival you drive up the path until you come to the security lodge where you are then directed to the chek-in area where you are welcomed by the Center Parcs staff onto the site. ... ...cupboard basics.
Activities:-
Center Parcs has plenty of places of interest and has features for all ages although I did feel that it was partcuarly aimed at families with children as we recevied money off vouchers for our stay but they were only valid for families with children so not much point in use for us.
There is a sports centre that offers a great range of sports suitable for everyone and if you prebook before you get to Center Parcs you ...
KELLYLOUJ 16.09.2005
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Center Parcs Oasis Whinfell, Penrith
Advantages: Brilliantly concieved. Great accomodation Disadvantages: money money money money
There is probably no way I can give justice to this place in less that a thousand words. I'll give it a go.
In one sentence: If you can afford it - go!
Why?
Because there is no where that quite reaches the standards this place hits. Not that I've ever seen. I've been 3 times in 5 years.
Oasis is a 'community' of hundreds of holiday chalets surrounding a central 'hub' of activity. The homes are dotted around a large pine forest punctuated by numerous ... ...in are exhaustive in the extreme and I can't even begin to remember them all, for the full list check http://www.centerparcs.co.uk/villages/whinfell/todo/index.jsp
These activities take place in the main butterfly centre, a huge, attractively build dome housing bars, restaurants, shops, a cinema, nightclub and the huge pool, flanked on one side by a lake on which to do water sports (in boats, not porn).
Dotted around the forest are other centres ...
dhillcrest 09.11.2007 (10.11.2007)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Center Parcs Oasis Whinfell, Penrith
Advantages: Lots to do in a beautiful setting. Disadvantages: Aimed more at families with young children.
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 ... ...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 ...
GemmaC25 09.01.2009
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Center Parcs Oasis Whinfell, Penrith
Advantages: Quiet, Clean, Relaxing,Fun, Good Range of Facilities, Disadvantages: Activities Expensive, Pool Noisey at Peak Times
== CENTER PARCS ==
I had heard lots of things about Center Parcs and mostly it was everyone saying "its really expensive and you have to pay for everything"... so was always put off by it. So never really thought about it. I use lots of discount codes so when I found a great discount code for Center Parcs I thought I would have a look. So I looked up their website which is easy enough to navigate through and found a location, date and then price ... ...decided to go from Monday to Friday...( just in case it was horrible ..) We booked for first week in the October Holidays. It was brilliant. There a plenty sign posts easy to locate. We arrived at 3pm so had to wait about 15mins to get in. But you are surrounded by trees and squirrels that it wasn't stressful. The booking in is done online before you go so when you drive through what looks like a car wash... they greet you with your name and had ...
BexxaG 27.10.2009
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Center Parcs Oasis Whinfell, Penrith
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