We visited Butlins Bognor Regis over the October half term break. It was our first time visiting a Butlins resort so we didn’t really know what to expect. We have heard a lot about Butlins Bognor Regis in particular, which is why we opted for this resort. I have previously written about our stay at Ocean Hotel in Butlins Bognor Regis so do have a read if you are interested in hearing all about the hotel and how we found it. Now for the resort itself, when we got there, our first impression was good. It is a huge seaside resort located in Upper Bognor Road, Bognor Regis, West Sussex, PO21 1JJ, and there were all sorts to do.
The Fairground
The kids were excited to get on the rides, so that was our first stop. They had so much fun going on the many rides over and over again. We the grown ups enjoyed the rides as well. There were rides for everyone. My favourite was the Sizzlers and the Dodgems. The queues were not long at all, which was great. The only issue I had was the staff. Many of them didn’t look like they wanted to be there, which affected the level of service we got. There was also confusion on whether some kids could get on rides based on their heights. Some days they were allowed, other days they were told they were too tall or not tall enough. Getting on some of the rides was dependant on who was on duty that day, which was a shame.
The Beach
We visited the beach and played there for a bit. It was fun for some minutes but there was really nothing much to do at the beach apart from taking pictures, watching the sea and playing with stones.
The Spa
We couldn’t use the spa which was annoying as we planned to relax and unwind there at some point. It was fully booked with no availability for the whole week.
The Pool
The pool was fun. The kids really enjoyed splashing around and the water slides kept them very busy. We got there early so the changing rooms were not packed yet. It was all fun and games until everyone (including us) in a section of the pool was ordered out of the pool by the staff without any explanations. It looked like the staff were looking for something in the pool but they didn’t offer any explanations which was not good. I found the staff at the pool quite rude to be honest. Many of them looked like they couldn’t be bothered to offer any sort of help.
Live Shows
This part was the most frustrating. We planned to watch a few of the live shows That was the main reason why we decided to spend half term at Butlins. There were a few shows that week and we were looking forward to watching Sleeping Beauty and Paddington in particular, but we didn’t watch them. The queues were very long and there was no guarantee we would get a seat if we managed to get it. The thought of watching a live show with 5 children and not sitting comfortably put us off, so we didn’t bother.
There was the opportunity to buy extra fast pass tickets for the shows but we decided against it. Butlins was costing us a fortune already, and the extra cost of buying fast pass tickets for live shows would have been too much. You would think the organisers of the live shows will ensure there were enough seats for everyone, especially as it is not a cheap location for a holiday with kids in the UK.
We did manage to watch a few shows like Telutubies, Billy and Bonnie, Mr Men Little Miss and more. My niece enjoyed them but the other kids were too not interested.
Softplay
The children really enjoyed the softplay. My son spent hours in there and loved every bit of it. The staff at the softplay were really good. They were on top of everything in there and did a good job keeping an eye on the kids, as it was really busy.
The Arcade
The arcade kept the children busy. They loved the challenge of winning something and spent quite a few coins there. But all the fun stopped when we tried to retrieve what we got and we were told by the very rude attendant that our tickets have been used already. This was impossible as we only just collected it from the machines. The machines were obviously faulty or hers was but she didn’t look interested and she was very rude. I was happy I gave her a piece of my mind. If we really wanted to cheat, we won’t be cheating for sweets after paying a fortune to be at Butlins. I also witnessed her being rude to our customers, and I wondered why most of the staff looked miserable doing their jobs.
Overall, I was very dissatisfied with our stay at Butlins Bognor Regis. It was far below my expectations and I don’t see us ever returning to this particular Butlins resort.
Have you been to Butlins Bognor Regis? How was your stay? Please share your experience in the comment section below. I would love to hear all about it.
Thanks for reading this post. Have a lovely weekend.
