We're on day 3 of our Butlins holiday and we've been having a fab time so far, today we have a Thomas The Tank Engine show to see, followed by a beach trip and some more free fun fair rides. If you want to be super nosy with what I'm too then follow which I'm adding too.Today on the blog I had you over to the lovely Clare from Emmy's Mummy guest posting on how Butlins has changed in the last 20 years.
Now there are NO pictures to accompany this post as I try to forget what I looked like as a child, I’ll give you a vague idea – I was (and still am short), had Auburn (ok – Ginger) hair which had never known the likes of conditioner let alone a straightener and my mother always brought me floral skirts and tops which clashed. Needless to say I’ve destroyed all photographic evidence that I could get my hands on.
Well my style has probably changed as much as Butlins has in the past 20 odd years. I used to go their as a child with my younger brother and our parents. We would be over excited about our yearly holiday and thought it was amazing.
We would stay in the smallest accommodation ever as it’s all we could afford. Some times I do remember we all stayed in 1 room with my parents in a double bed and me and my brother in sleeping bags on the floor, with a small kitchenette affair in the room and a bathroom. We would always go self-catering as it was a cheap option yet we would always have an amazing time.
Holidays are what you make of them I believe, so if you go thinking your going to have a good time then often you will. We would spend family time in Bognor Regis, on the beech, splashing in the freezing cold water, wandering around the town and the holiday camp, go-karting and just having fun.
As we got older the holidays stayed the same yet the accommodation and entertainment started to change, we would stay in a 2-bedroom chalet style room, still self-catering and more often than not we would have a front room too meaning us children could get up and watch tv leaving mum and dad in bed still, make our own breakfast then go off onto the site to play with the other children who we would make friends with. It has always had that friendly atmosphere where you are happy to go off and do your own thing and our parents could relax enough to know we were safe within the holiday grounds.
Evening entertainment has almost remained the same throughout with the evening family club atmosphere, entertainers on the stage and the famous Red Coats to entertain all. I remember many evenings spend on the dance floor with all the friends I had made throughout the week happily running around playing while my parents watched from the side-lines of the bar. Even now they still have this type of evening entertainment at Butlins and I know when I go with Emmy, baby, hubby and the Grandparents that Emmy will be up on the dance floor strutting her stuff while I look on at her enjoying herself.
While the whole of Butlins has been done up to a very high standard with even more room options including the brand new Hotels, more restaurant's and food options, it is still easy to remember the early days and much has remained the same. The family values are there, as are the Red Coats who everyone has to love – it maybe more comfortable now with more to do but for me it will still remain exactly the same as when I was a child, and I am glad!! We are going as a family in March and I can honestly say I can not wait – it will bring back so many happy childhood memories which will be re-lived as my parents are coming too. I hope Emmy has as much fun as I used to.