Bognor Regis, is it worth visiting?

In my opinion Butlins, Bognor Regis is a must-visit holiday destination for people with children,  although, actually, I have heard they do other popular adult weekends etc... too!  We've been to Butlins Bognor Regis once, Christmas 2011 and absolutely loved it.  In fact Christmas 2012 wasn't the same, with us not having gone again.  We need to plan another visit, now that Aaron is old enough to understand it all.



Christmas is a great time to go as Butlins is so incredibly festive.   I felt it from the second we entered the carpark, and reception was all twinkly, sparkly lights.

Aaron having fun while we checked in (see what I mean about the sparkly lights, the windows in reception were covered):

I said above "when Aaron is old enough to understand it all", but now that I have watched some videos from our stay, I think, even at his mere 1.5 years of age he had a right royal time don't you agree?  Look at my rock 'n' roll lad:

Such rhythm!  He was musical from birth I swear, just look at him! Fond memories indeed!

It's great to watch things like this (below), only metres from your on site hotel, not having to pay for it, whilst being able to stumble home, no cab required, after.  Relaxed, tired and happy.  Ready to sleep in a comfortable bed in a beautiful hotel room:




The Skyline Pavilion (which Butlins says is the HEART of their resort) is where the entertainment happens and there's lots of it; it's within walking distance of all 3 hotels.  I think "Centre Stage" (which is just outside the Skyline Pavilion) is where we saw the Christmas Panto, which was so incredibly engaging it held Aaron's attention throughout at his tender age of one and a half!

Watching Christmas Panto is a serious business when you are one and a half and need to concentrate to take it all in :-)

We were at Butlins for 4 days and did not have to leave the resort the whole time we were there.  There's shops, restaurants and entertainment is in abundance.  In fact we still watch the Fireman Sam DVD that Daddy bought Aaron in the shop there.

It's wonderful to see all the decorations, a panto and so many shows, without putting your hand in your pocket each and every time like you would in London's West End for example.  They say that included in their breaks are "Splash Waterworld, fairgrounds, live shows and ... TV heroes all included in the price".  See when we were there we didn't do Splash Waterworld so that on its own is worth a return visit.  I've lost count of how many places I have taken Aaron where you end up putting your hand in your pocket every five minutes - it's a relief at Butlins not to have to do that.

Butlins Bognor Regis is not as you may remember from decades gone by; it now has lots of new swanky hotels.  When we were there, it was the Shoreline (where we stayed) and the Ocean that were brand new, but since then they have also opened the Wave Hotel.  Wow the Wave Hotel sounds GREAT with "unique underwater style features like ... submarine style kids rooms".

I videoed a room tour of our room at the Shoreline Hotel, during our stay, December 2011 (below).  It was my first time away from home with Aaron so I didn't realise how lucky I was to have all those extra little touches, that I really value, and wouldn't at all take for granted now.  In the video below I say "we'll have to push our beds together".  What actually happened was, despite us arriving crazy late (something like 11 p.m. - Aaron slept the whole journey in the car) the lady from reception came up and actually ZIPPED our beds together (yep, no fear of falling between the two singles) and changed the bedlinen for double.  She even humoured Aaron whilst doing so. The 5 star service blew me away to be honest.
 

What you straight away notice on arrival is how family friendly everything is.  The staff are as friendly as Disney, but like a British version ;-)

The food in the Shoreline restaurant really impressed us.  LOTS of high chairs, children's dishes and children's cutlery.  Aaron ate really well:

There's not many places/hotels where the staff would all pose for a photo, just because you asked them to:

 

Now that Aaron no longer has day naps, keeping him stimulated and entertained all day is my day-to-day challenge.  I'd love to go to Butlins once again to have that challenge taken off my hands.  When he's having fun, I literally feel my breathing and my blood pressure relax, especially in a child friendly environment such as theirs.

There's so very much to see and do there - it really is magical and well worth a visit.

Butlins offers a range of UK holiday breaks but like I said earlier, although any time of year there is great, Christmas really rocks if you are looking for a few days away in the coming weeks.