Hello all....I'm back! After a long absence from the Ciao community I have come back to bring more ...
Hello all....I'm back! After a long absence from the Ciao community I have come back to bring more reviews and to revive old friendships. See ya round! Leila :) xxx
Member since:18.04.2003
Reviews:106
Members who trust:169
Center Parcs is made up of four woodland destinations. There is Longleat Forest, ElvedenForest, Sherwood Forest and Oasis Whinfell. When I say forest, I mean forest. It’s like having a holiday theme park in the middle of a giant secluded wood. The surroundings are just stunning. As I understand it Elveden has had a massive refurbishment after there was a fire there a few years ago and the Center Parcs company has only recently taken over Oasis Whinfell.
For me and my family, it’s the perfect holiday for us. Some of you may think I’m mad but we don’t like to travel to far, or go abroad that much. We’ve been to Center Parcs six times - twice to Sherwood Forest and four times to Longleat Forest, as this seems to be the favourite for us. We plan to return to Longleat Forest this September for a five day stay.
When you book a holiday with Center Parcs you can book anything from a long weekend break to 2 weeks, whatever you feel like. You can pay in gradual instalments to suit your budget, and a couple of weeks before your due to set off you get a little information pack:
A map of the village
you booked your stay in.
A Pre booking form - There are tons of activities and things to do here and some of them get booked up well in advance. This is your opportunity to pre-book a specific activity so that you’ll have something to look forward to when you get there.
A set of registration forms - These have to be filled in. When you go to Center Parcs, you can bring your own bikes, but you need to tell them in these forms what make, colour and how many you bring. If you drive up to Center Parcs holiday destination you need to tell them colour of your car, how many you bring, the make and the registration. This is so they can keep track of your car and leave it in one of their long stay car parks until you come to collect it at the end of your stay. One other thing these forms need from you is how many people are coming to stay and give them names.
A catalogue - This will give you information on every activity, treatment, restaurant, facilities, services and shops.
You can do as much or as little as you like. Different destinations have some activities that are not offered in others, if depends on which one you go to.
LIVING SPACE
When you stay, your in your very own Villa. And there are 3 main types - Apartments, Comfort Villas and Executive Villas. Some executive accommodation and apartments have private saunas, full hi-fi systems and TV’s in every bedroom. But with every villa is a multi-channel TV with Sky, Patio with table and chairs, fully equipped kitchen and bathroom.
Groceries can be delivered to your door for when you arrive, and a daily maid service is available if you don’t want to lift a finger.
Villas can house from as little as two people to eight people at a time. Obviously the more people that stay, the more facilities there are. You can choose whether you want self catering accommodation, or to eat out every night, it’s up to you.
SUBTROPICAL SWIMMING PARADISE INSIDE THE PLAZA
It does not matter if the weather is foul outside the Swimming Paradise is inside a huge dome, called the Plaza the main attraction, and houses most of the shops, a market, restaurants an arcade and a huge swimming pool surrounded by palm trees and loaded with a wave machine and tons of flumes, as well as the white water rapids, an outdoor flume that can take a good 3 or 4 minutes to go down it’s so big!! (Nope not kidding here)
VILLAGE SQUARE
Here you’ll find the launderette and a few more restaurants. Something free for the kids is an adventure playground too. There is also a medical centre here in case of a medical emergency.
JARDIN DES SPORTS
A massive sports centre basically. It is situated right next to the lake where the water sports usually are. Whatever the sport, come here to do it. There is also a cinema here as well as a few restaurants and a huge sports café filled with tons of squashy armchairs and sofas for you to sink into and a huge flat screen TV for the guys who love Sky sports. It has one or two shops and a newsagents too.
AQUA SANA
Usually somewhere near the Jardin Des Sports, this is where all the beauty therapy treatments are with a Zen Garden, Greek Herbal Bath, Ice Fountain and tons of other treatments to help you relax.
EATING
My favourite bit!! Center Parcs have a restaurant to suit most taste buds. For the kids there’s the pancake house. This place serves nothing but pancakes and I’m being dead serious!! There is Luciano’s for Italian food, Huckleberry’s for American style cuisine, La Sapinere for a more sophisticated evening, or you could go to Rajinda Pradesh for an Indian, or Chez Pierre for a bit of variety. There are more including little fast food joints where you can pick up a hamburger if you feel like it instead of a huge meal, and little cafes dotted around the place. These restaurants have a great selection of kids and adult cocktails and drinks too. Very nice.
KIDS
For you parents out there don’t worry, there are clubs for your kids to join if they are young enough, so you can get some time to yourself. There is a nanny service available and a crčche for you to keep your little ones in check.
WILDLIFE
There is an incredible wealth of wildlife in Center Parcs. It is actually protected by a preservation project, so you’ll see more variety in wildlife than anywhere in Britain. This is the reason why no cars are allowed. The noise and pollution for animals has a strict limit to it.
GETTING AROUND
Center Parcs will only allow cars in and out when you arrive and leave. When you arrive you drive straight to your villa and unload your stuff, then take your car to the car park. Likewise when you leave, you collect your car, get it back to load up your stuff and off you go!! You cannot drive any faster than 10 mph as there are a lot of people walking around and because of the animal reason I mentioned earlier. You can either walk, catch the tram or cycle to get to where you need to go in Center Parcs. I have to say cycling seems to be the most popular mode of transportation and you can hire bikes, helmets and locks from the cycle centre or bring your own.
ACTIVITES
Wow!! There are too many to list but here’s a few:
Archery, Falconry, Horse Riding, Climbing, Sailing, Bowling, Swimming, Nature Walks, Racquetball, Badminton, Pedalos on the lake…the list goes on and on.
Overall Verdict
I think I have covered everything if not I’ll amend my review but here is my opinion. I love Center Parcs, there is something for everyone. You can do as much or as little as you like and still have a great time. It doesn’t matter what time of the year you go, or what the weather is like, because most of the things to do are inside like the Swimming Paradise. There are bucket loads of activities to have a go at, but caution: It can get expensive if you decide to do a lot. The shops like sports wear and fashion can be expensive, but in my opinion everything else makes up for it. The activities can get booked up quickly but in it’s well worth it, otherwise they would not be so popular!! I think I know everything there is to know, so if anybody has a question feel free to contact me!!
I love it, hope you do to!! Happy trails kids and I’ll see you soon!
Center Parcs Spa, the Aqua Sana is no longer adults only, it is now open to teenagers who are encouraged to use it. So it is very noisy and unpleasant. Speak to the Spa Operations Manager at their Head office if you have a complaint, the local staff have no influence on policy and just have to toe the line.
Scarlet_Ribbons 27.08.2004 14:21
The Aqua Sana sounds right up my street....in fact it all does. Helen x
NH Hotels, the hotel chain leader in Europe, with more than 300 hotels in 20 countries in Europe, Latin America and Africa. Enter into our web site and find the best available tariff at all times
Advantages: Great family holiday, perfect for kids, lovely natural setting, plenty to do Disadvantages: Lodges can be shabby, you will wear yourself out with all the activity!
fallen121 20.03.2006 (20.03.2006)
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Review of Center Parcs
Mar 20th, 2004
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