TRAVEL REVIEW: Fun for everyone at Butlins Skegness

The school holidays are ideal for making family memories - and you can't go wrong with an action-packed short break at Butlins in Skegness.

I spent four days there over the Easter holidays with my husband and our five-year-old daughter Lucy.

It’s hard to know where to start because the entertainment is practically round the clock. In just four days, we managed to squeeze in numerous top-class shows, including the Mr Men Little Miss show, the Teletubbies, Animal Antics, Mr Potato Head, a ventriloquist, puppet shows and Billy and Bonnie in The Wizard.

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Be warned though - if there’s something you are desperate to see in the Centre Stage, then make sure you arrive early as people start queuing up to three hours before the doors open, and we saw people at the end of the queue being turned away because the venue was full.

Stepping away from the shows, Lucy (okay, me too) also enjoyed an Easter craft session making bonnets with the Red Coats and we spent a lovely day going on all the fairground rides and playing in the play area.

Splashworld is absolutely fantastic - our little girl loved the smaller slides and there’s plenty of room with three different pool areas, loungers and lots of clean changing areas.

You’re never short of stuff to do, from early in the morning, until late at night. In fact, Lucy stayed up so late every night that we could have done with another week off school for her to recover from all the fun.

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There was still absolutely loads of stuff that we didn’t get to see or do - adventure golf, the spa, Diversity, the silent cinema, bowling and sports sessions.

We also never made it to the beach during our stay - partly because it was cold and drizzly - but it was only a short walk away from our apartment, as was pretty much everything else on site.

With regards to the accommodation, we didn’t spend much time in our apartment, but it was perfect for us.

We stayed in a two-bed Seaside Apartment and it was spacious, spotlessly clean and comfortable. Lucy loved the pin the tail on the donkey on the wall of the open plan living area. The bedrooms have plenty of storage space and the black out blinds - complete with wonderful hooks to keep the blind cords out of the reach of little ones - ensured some lovely lie ins. There’s also everything you need if you’re on a self catering break.

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We weren’t, however, and I have to say the food was another highlight - I often find places like this can serve up bland and lukewarm offerings. But, as part of the premium dining plan, we ate at The Deck or The Yacht Club, where we found piping hot dishes, food from around the world, starters, desserts, and both a full English and continental breakfast selection.

Our slightly fussy five-year-old found something she liked without fail and, of course, the unlimited ice creams went down a treat.

There’s so much to do that you don’t really have to leave the site at all, but we decided to venture into Skegness

It’s the kind of place everyone thinks is a bit of a dive, but actually it’s a pretty decent place for families. There’s all your usual attractions - fish and chip shops, arcades, the funfair, seaside-style shops - and we enjoyed a lovely afternoon there.

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Butlins also has seaside resorts in Bognor Regis and Minehead, and the next school holidays - in May - will see appearances from Dick and Dom, Andy and The Odd Socks, Mr Potato Head, Teletubbies, Mr Men Little Miss and Danger Mouse. There’s also the Just for Tots breaks in school time for families with under fives. Younger ones can enjoy seeing Justin Fletcher, Mr Bloom, Mr Potato Head, Teletubbies, Mr Men Little Miss and Danger Mouse.

A four-night break at Skegness during the school summer holidays starts from £240pp based upon four sharing Silver self-catering accommodation. That price includes shows, entertainment, the fairground, Splash Waterworld and lots of other attractions.

Visit www.butlins.com for more details or to book.