Recently we took a trip to Butlins in Skegness, myself and my husband had both been as children, but that was many moons ago so we were so excited to try something new as a family. Butlins is advertised as a family friendly resort with plenty of activities going on to keep everyone happy and occupied.

As a home educating mum of two, we tend to avoid school holiday visits to anywhere. Before we left I dreaded hours long queues, screaming children and parents who look like they're ready to run! But as this was a full family holiday (a party of 16!), school holidays were the only option.

There are plenty of Butlins tips though-out this post, but I listed a whole load more of the best tips to plan a Butlins holiday here!

 

Butlins Skegness Review

Traveling By Public Transport

As non drivers I have to say it's really exciting when we can visit somewhere using public transport! We hopped on the train at our local station and changed at Grantham for Skegness. Once we arrived in Skegness the bus stop was right outside the train station, there were multiple busses to choose from so we hopped on the next one available which just happened to be an open top bus! (What a great way to start our trip!)



Going home at the end of the trip was just as easy, just do it all in reverse.

Tip: the bus takes far longer than it says and ther

e is no way it can make the amount of stops it needs in the time it has, we worked it out to be about 40 seconds between stops and thats without passengers getting on and off!

Accommodation

 

We book our trip in advance to get the best deal. The accommodation was on sale at the time, so we managed to snag a silver upgrade for £10 more than the standard accommodation we were looking at.



I have to say on arrival I was disappointed, although it has been updated recently, the accommodation looked old like it was still in the 90's and the paint around the edge of the buildings and stair ways really looks like it has seen better days. Entering our room there were two very basic single beds (looked and felt like camp beds) a double which was pretty comfy, a tele in each room and a bathroom in the middle.



Though-out the family we had a few standards of accommodation (standard room, silver room and silver apartment). I had a peak in all and can honestly say I wouldn't pay to upgrade from the standard room to silver, they were very similar and wouldn't be worth the extra had the room not been on offer. The apartment however is something I would totally pay to upgrade to on another trip. More space, it looked clean, fresh and had that holiday feel to it!



The downside to being is different accommodation was how far away from each other we were, some of the rooms were quite a trek from everything meaning you didn't want to forget to take out an extra nappy!

Daytime Activities

There were so many activities going on around the site we didn't know where to start! We headed into the play area and let all the kids run around while we checked the map and the mobile app. Both the app and map seams to contradict each other, so it took a bit of working out what was really on each day, but we got there in the end.





Some activities like the crafts and mobile petting zoo, were only seasonal so would change during each school holiday. The girls made bonnets, it was so much fun!





Throughout the week we got stuck in to a few different activities, the kids watched the puppet show (multiple times, because they loved it!), they did an egg hunt around the site (okay, the adults did, but the joined in a bit), we visited the fun fair, outdoor play area and craft activities. Everyone seamed to be having lots of fun and we came home with crafting memories!





On on evening, some of the group headed to the cinema, the prices seamed like a good deal. (Pictured Below)



Tip: You need to book the play area in advance of the session

 

Evening Entertainment

Evening entertainment was a bit hit and miss. The first night we walked into the bar in the Skyline and it was packed there were no seats anywhere, just standing room only. We walked back out and came back later when the families had cleared out. The later show was Abba, which was great fun to sing along too.



On the other nights we just headed straight to reds, the kids 'danced' in the mini disco, although to be honest I was disappointed, there were no redcoats on stage or dancing with the kids, just nursery rhyme type songs played, I'd much prefer a Haven mini disco!



The other evenings included a show which the kids absolutely loved (They still say 'it's on the floor' now and little Naminé kept asking to see it again and again!), a Bruno Mars Tribute who was fab, a comedian who wasn't the best and the last night was a magician who everyone said they loved.

Tip: Queue up early and grab tables to avoid disappointment

Swimming Pool

The swimming pool has to be our absolute favourite part of the trip. The pool was so much fun, but the slides were amazing! The outdoor 'rapids' had us laughing so much, we honestly can't wait to get back to go again. The changing rooms are mixed which made getting the kids ready so much easier, just beware the floors do get very slippery.



There was also a great hire shop on site for anything you've forgotten or want to try out!

 

 

Food

I was a bit worried about the food before the trip as I had heard bad reviews from family, but I needn't be. The food court dining plan food was amazing, the service fast and there was plenty of choice.



Getting up to a cooked breakfast each morning was heavenly and the fish and child I had one night has left my tastebuds watering even now!



On the last evening we upgraded to premium dining at another restaurant which was easy enough to do, the whole place had a upperclass feeling to it and you could access roast dinner and other cuisines like mexican too.



I wouldn't pay to upgrade for the whole trip, but it was nice on the last evening as something a bit different.

 

Review

Overall we had an amazing trip that left me looking for bargain deals even on the train home! The food was delicious and there really was great entertainment for everyone.



The only downside to our trip was that on the very last night Kairi got D+V but I have to say Butlins handed it amazingly, they gave us bottles of water, sick buckets and bags and even offered to help us with keeping our room should we have wanted to stay.



Great news was that the queues really weren't that bad and we will be back to Butlins again soon, either in another school holiday or term time!



 

 

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