We’ve just got back from a week away at Butlins Minehead for the Easter holidays. This is our 3rd visit as a family and although I’ve written about it before, unfortunately that post is one of the ones I lost due to a technical glitch, so I’m now rewriting it! I’ll include photos from our trip last week and from 18 months ago as well. We had a lot more sunshine on our previous trip!
Butlins is hands-down a kids paradise. It’s aimed at families having fun and has loads of activities all day, every day to keep you busy. How you ‘do’ Butlins is up to you. Some people stay on campus for the duration of their holiday, others dip in and out, exploring the local area as well as the offerings on site. Last week we stayed on site, except for a pub lunch in town mid-week to celebrate my birthday. On our previous trip 18 months ago, we explored the local area as well, so we’ve done both.
Accommodation
Butlins Minehead has a variety of accommodation types to choose from. These include hotels, ensuite bedrooms, apartments and lakeside chalets. Personally I always go for a Comfort Apartment. These are basic apartments with 2 bedrooms, bathroom, and a living space complete with sofa, TV, dining table and chairs, plus a small kitchen. This gives us the versatility to self-cater and have a space to relax in, without breaking the bank. You can choose at the point of booking to have a guaranteed ground-floor apartment if you need to. I did this 18 months ago and it worked out to be the best decision ever as Baby Bear broke his leg a few weeks before we went! Having the ground floor apartment was a godsend for wheeling him in and out in the pushchair. Most recently we were in a first floor apartment which was fine. We heard very little noise at all from our neighbours above or below us.
Activities
The Fairground and Little Stars Fairground are probably our favourite activities at Butlins Minehead. We love the fact they are included in the price so the kids can ride as many times as they like and I don’t need to worry about the cost. The carousel is of course an essential ride at any fairground. You will also find the dodgems, waltzers, chair swing, paratroopers, helter skelter and tugboat. On our most recent visit the waltzers and paratroopers were both closed for maintenance work which was a shame as we love the paratroopers ride. The fairground is open all day so queues are usually short, if any at all.
For little ones, the Little Stars Fairground is great. It’s indoors so you can enjoy it whatever the weather and is ideal for kids from 1-7 years (although my 10 year old was still able to ride most of the rides this year!). I like that younger kids can ride these without an adult, giving them some independence. There’s a soft play as well to burn off some of their energy.
As well as the funfairs, there are lots of activities you can take part in at Butlins Minehead including football, archery, mini golf, bowling, high ropes course, pedal karts, go karts, laser tag and art activities. Some of these cost extra so check the timetable for more info. There’s certainly something to suit every age and lots of opportunities to try something new. We’ve enjoyed bowling, football, go karts and pedal karts on previous visits. All great fun!
Swimming Pool
The absolute highlight of my kids week when we go to Butlins Minehead is the swimming pool. The pool is actually made up of 3 pools. One is a shallow pool with water sprinklers and little slide for tiny tots. Then there is a rectangular pool which leads into the lazy river and wave pool. The lazy river is a firm favourite of ours. Its well worth taking your inflatables to enjoy this. The pools are maximum 1.4m deep (the lazy river is about 1m so even Baby Bear can touch the floor). We love the Master Blaster flume ride, which takes you in a rubber dinghy around the roof above the pool in an exhilarating ride. Sometimes if you’re lucky there is a photographer in the rectangle pool who will take photos of your family which you can purchase at the kiosk. Outdoors you will also find a paddling pool open during the Summer months which is great fun for little ones. Of course there’s also the beach across the road too!
Shows
The shows at Butlins Minehead (and all Butlins sites) vary throughout the year. During our Easter visit last week the headline show was The Masked Singer Live which we really enjoyed. I won’t say who the celebs were but they were both well known! We also watched Imagination by Jay and Joss which is a fantastic illusion/magic show. We’ve watched them before and they are brilliant! We also watched the current pantomime which is Jack And The Beanstalk, 360 Allstars stunt show, Skyline Gang’s Frozen Adventure, Ed Sheeran Songbook and Summer Night City (an Abba music show). On our final night we watched Big Bro’s favourite show which was the Kick Out Wrestling Live!! As well as these there were PJ Masks, Peppa Pig, Kylie Minogue tribute, Let Us Entertain You (Robbie Williams music) and so many more! Some of the shows need to be booked but many of them you can just turn up. The shows are all really good and as a keen theatre enthusiast, as well as someone who enjoys live music, I love the variety and the fact they are all family friendly.
Food
When booking a holiday at Butlins Minehead you have the option to add a dining plan or go self-catering. Personally I prefer to go self-catering as my kids are fussy as hell!! I also like to have the freedom to eat where we like, when we like. The dining plans can work out good value though so its worth a look to see if they would work for you. We have breakfast in our apartment and an assortment of snacks/lunch , then we tend to eat out once per day. On our recent visit we had lunch in Papa Johns (pizza and pasta buffet), Burger King (my 2 fussiest kids would live off chicken nuggets permanently if I let them!), the Fish and Chip shop and Chopstix (my personal fave). Previously we have also eaten at The Beachcomber Inn which serves pub classics and The Diner which serves American style food. I love The Diner as it has a lovely theming and we’ve even been treated to live music there while we eat. It was closed on our most recent visit during the Easter holidays so check availability.
In The Local Area
On our previous trip we put our National Trust memberships to use by visiting Dunster Castle, which is literally a few minutes up the road from Butlins Minehead. It’s a stunning castle up on a hill overlooking the local area. The watermill is equally lovely and the walk to it is beautiful. We had a lovely day exploring there. If you have a National Trust passport, make sure you get it stamped at the watermill as it’s by far the best stamp you’ll find!
We also like to visit Torre Cider Farm which is a short drive away. I love the relaxed, family friendly, authentic atmosphere. The food is all home made and the farm is lovely to explore with kids. It’s an ideal place to escape the noise of Butlins and enjoy some peace and tranquility in the orchards, while sampling some local produce.
Also, over the road from Butlins you’ll find the West Somerset Railway. This is ideal for any train lovers, with vintage trains running throughout the day and rover tickets available so you can hop on and off at any of the stations along the 20 mile stretch. It’s well worth checking to see if they have any events running during your visit too.
To find out more and book your own holiday to Butlins Minehead, please visit their website here: https://www.butlins.com/resorts/minehead
Disclaimer: I am in no way associated with Butlins and this is not a paid AD. All words, photos and opinions are that of my own.
