Author's product rating: 
| Advantages: |
Free day/night entertainment, Friendly Staff, Cheap Holiday ! |
| Disadvantages: |
No babysitters : - ( |
| Recommend to potential buyers: |
yes |
Back in February my partner and I decided we needed a holiday and our 17 month old daughter deserved her first holiday! I have a phobia of flying so abroad was out of the question! We started looking for holidays in this country!
We looked at the pontins website http://www.pontins.com/ which is very good and very inviting!! It was showing a deal that if you booked before the end of february you get your holiday half price!! So thats what we went for!
I called the hotline and spoke to a lovely lady who was very friendly and gave me all the information we needed!
Apartments are split into 3 catagories:
Budget
'Budget apartments offer fantastic value for money and are perfect for that low cost family getaway'
Classic
'Convenience and comfort are two of the reasons that make Classic accommodation so popular. These holiday apartments score especially highly with the kids, offering easy access to the children’s activities and just a short stroll from the main entertainment venues.'
Club
Our Club apartments are located in the prime landscaped areas of our centres and they really are a home from home. You’ll enjoy priority check-in from 2pm
We booked a 'Classic' 2 bedroom apartment!! Total cost was £107.50 For the 3 of us (Prices are per room not per person!) to arrive on Monday 5th - Friday 9th July 2004!
Luckily I had taken a little look at the directions beforehand as my darling partner went to take Junction 21..not 22 in Weston Super Mare..!!
Following the directions was really easy and we arrived at about 5pm (check-in is after 4pm - although 'Club' apartments check-in from 2pm!)
The reception was relatively quiet by this point and not many people in front of me..which were seen to rather quickly!
I gave my balance paid holiday voucher (which you receive in the post a week before!) and the lady gave me an envelope with 'my' details, apartment no, keys etc... except..it wasnt MY details :-( Same surname..different initial and address..this annoyed me a little as I dont REALLY have a common surname..I think all addresses should be checked along with surname!
But anyway..I told the lady..'Thats not me!' She congratulated me on my sight and went to find MY details...while I was thinking 'I paid for Classic..not Budget!'
About 10 minutes later the lady came back..and you guessed it..the other party with my surname now had a BARGAIN! They had a classic for a budget price!! My apartment was gone :-( Luckily they had another! Apartment 629!! I asked the lady about the cot we had asked for..she said it was reserved for us to collect from 'Hire-Time' and showed me where it was on the map!
Then we were off! Upon arrival I didnt really look around the apartment much as I had food that needed to be in the Fridge - quickly! So as I unpacked my partner and daughter explored!
After a much needed Cup Of Tea..I had a look around..I thought it was alot smaller than anticipated but would suit the 3 of us! Apparently it could sleep 7..sleeping would be fine..but would be VERY cramped at any other time!
A little imaginary tour??? OK!
Apartment 629 - Walk in through (must add..quite dirty) Sliding/Conservatory Doors straight in front is the lounge area..in front was a bed-settee to the left was TV on cabinet with Bible in drawer! Also heater on the wall! To right was Kitchen area, basic and small! Cooker..sink..1 cupboard above and 1 cupboard below sink! Just in front was a what I think might have been the serving/dining area..we only used it to serve meals..my daughter used it to eat her meals but there was not enough room for the 3 of u to eat!
Inbetween Lounge & Kitchen was a short hall where Bathroom (clean) was on right, Double bedroom in front and twin bedroom on left!
All were very clean and quite nice to stay in..both bedrooms had heaters...those heaters became a blessing! It was freezing at night!!!
The outlay of Pontins itself was quite neat, all apartments were in neat rows of about 10 and looked quite nice!
Our first night we stayed in as our daughter was quite tired from the travelling so we just watched TV! (Yay!)
After our first night we went to the 'Queen Victoria' for breakfast...I'm sorry it was disgusting!
Toast, Bacon, Beans & Scrambled Egg - £4.99
It wasnt nice and quite expensive for what it was!
We found the cafe across the road was much nicer & cheaper and alot more value for money!!!!
A while later we went to take our daughter to meet Postman Pat..(Part of Kids entertainment!)
My daughter loved him and burst into tears when he left because he didnt stay very long..but throughout the holiday..she got used to it!! She'd wave bye bye when he started waving!
She also fell in love with Captain Croc or 'Croca' as she would call him..and on our last night she had her photo taken with him! She loved it!!
For the kids there was loads to do..different things depending on age! And lots of places to go & see around the area too! ( we went to a farm not so far away..brill!)
I was impressed with the H20 zone..there was a mums/dads & toddler time @ 4pm on Wednesdays which was really nice for us as there was no bigger louder kids running around! As we were going there we saw people being turned away as they didnt have a toddler!!
Unfortunately we only got to see the Childrens entertainment as Our daughter would be very tired by 10pm but wouldnt sleep in the pushchair (no matter how much we pushed her around!!) I know by 10pm the adults entertainment hadnt started though!! The kids entertainment was really good..though a little old for my daughter..but she enjoyed it all the same!!
One problem we found was at 7.20pm there was Bingo (everynight) which is ok..and they supply entertainment in another place for the kids until 8pm..which is great..except it is a magician..which was no good for toddlers!! there was nothing for toddlers to do during bingo!! And they are the hardest to keep quiet when people are trying to concentrate!!
We enjoyed ourselves..but now need a break away on our own!! Our daughter had the time of her life and was spoilt like mad! She's not got used to being back home yet though :-S
A definate thumbs up for the kids..and if they did babysitters It would be brill for us mums & dads too!
very helpful
very helpful
