Last Updated on February 1, 2023 by Suzy McCullough
We LOVE Butlins in our household. Today I am bringing you my 8 great reasons to book a holiday to Butlins. For us, we are just a short drive away from Butlins at Skegness and it always seems like millions of miles away from home. Butlins just has three resorts now, Skegness, Minehead and Bognor Regis.
In the past, we have booked our holiday to Butlins during their sale in January. For us, this is a good time to book as they have some really good discounts. They do, however, run sales throughout most of the year, including kids eat free offers and more.
Be prepared to be on the go during your break to Butlins. There is so much on and plenty to do that you will never find yourselves with a lack of something to do. We start the days as early as we can. Then we try and chill out back at our accommodation for an hour or two before starting out for the evening meal and entertainment.
When you arrive at Butlins you are handed your room cards plus plenty of maps and information. You can then park as close as you can get to your accommodation. On with my 8 great reasons…
Reason #1 – The Accommodation
You can book accommodation at Butlins Skegness with two bedrooms and a shower room. We prefer to book an apartment as it also includes a well-equipped kitchen. We have stayed in a Silver apartment with 2 bedrooms, shower room plus kitchen/lounge and also a Seaside apartment with all of this plus a balcony. Both gave us the freedom to eat our own breakfast before we headed out for the day. Plus you can also cook your own evening meal and/or lunch if you are on a budget.
Watch below for my tour around our Seaside apartment. The seaside villas are located really close to the main Skyline pavilion. We were also just a short walk from the splash park and restaurants. There is also a touring park that you can take your caravan to at Butlins, Skegness.
Reason #2 – Entertainment at Butlins
Entertainment is something Butlins do really well and there’s always plenty of it on offer. There are puppet shows at puppet square in the Skyline Pavilion. Shows on a big stage in the Skyline Pavilion (they had the Teletubbies, Mr Men, Sing a Long and more while we were there).
In Reds, there’s an early evening tots disco, evening child-friendly shows plus daytime activities. At centre stage, in the Skyline. they have daytime and nighttime shows. We saw Dangermouse and Whittington Rocks during our stay. Sometimes there’s so much on you have to prioritise what you want to see.
Whittington Rocks was a pantomime and it was very enjoyable. Jamie loved the Mr Men and seeing the Skyline gang in the pavilion.
When we were there they had a couple of entertainment chaps wandering around dressed up in various guises. They were very amusing and friendly to the guests. Jamie loved them and followed them about as much as he could.
Reason #3 – Great fairground rides at no extra cost
Jamie is ride mad. He could spend all day on them if we let him. So to go somewhere with a really good choice of fairground rides and not have to pay for them is a big bonus for us. They have a small playground with tunnels next to 5 kid-only rides. Plus a huge new playground that was opened in the summer of 2023.
Behind these, you will find more adult-type rides but a few of them even the little ones can go on, such as the merry-go-round and a train. Jamie was just tall enough to go on a couple more rides than he normally does, so he was thrilled about that.
Reason #4 – Water fun
It was really lovely weather during our Butlins break so we visited the splash park every day. It can get really busy at peak times so be prepared for this and read more in my top tips at the end of this post. The water jets come on at different times and they’re not always on. On the really hot day, we did find that they were running the jets a lot more than before.
The pool at Butlins is amazing and well worth a visit, every day if you can. There are so many different areas and plenty for all swimmers and non-swimmers. There is a big area for the little ones which includes 3 small slides. Jamie wasn’t tall enough for the big slides, but to be honest they are so big that it may be some time before he would even want to go on them.
Other things we love to do are to go around the lazy river together. It’s very fierce so all parents were holding onto their kids. We always sit at the edge of the wave machine pool and go into the cave. There’s a large swimming area with big jets and a couple more slides that younger kids may want to go on.
Reason #5 – The Beach
There is one main access point to the beach at Skegness Butlins and this is a short walk directly from the Skyline pavilion (you don’t have to walk from there to get to the beach). They have a fun area with oversized beach ‘equipment’ at the entrance to the beach. This is great for photo opportunities and playing about on. Once you get through the gate there is usually an ice-cream van and a small shop. Be aware that the sea can often be out a very long way at Skegness. It took us a long time to walk down to it.
Reason #6 – Meet and greets / Photo Opportunities
There are loads of places for photo opportunities around Butlins, Skegness. As well as the beach area there are various photo ops dotted around the place. Keep an eye out for them!
They also have character meet and greets at the Skyline Pavilion. Jamie was over the moon to meet Mr Tickle and didn’t stop talking about it for ages after. He was very disappointed he didn’t actually tickle him. You stand in front of a green screen for the photo and then they turn it into a nice keepsake, for a small cost. We bought a photo, keyring and magnet set. You are allowed to take your own photos but of course, they will just be with the green screen.
Reason #7 – Extra Activities
As well as everything mentioned above there are other things that you can do at Butlins, some of these come at an additional cost.
You can hire a peddle bike to tour the park. Or do some pottery painting, join in with crafts, practice your archery skills, play adventure golf, learn some circus schools, play quasar elite, go on an aerial adventure, take part in a football coaching session and more. #
There are a couple of playgrounds, 2 large indoor amusement arcades and a soft play area. There’s even a spa for those that have the chance to unwind. Don’t worry if you forget anything as there is a well-stocked shop on site plus gift shops.
Reason #8 – Bars and Restaurants at Butlins Skegness
We really enjoyed the meals that we had at Butlins. We ate lunch in the Front room as we have found this to be a good value place for lunch from our visits in the past. Another good place we found for lunch is The Beachcomber Inn. We managed to get a table outside next to the playground so Jamie was thrilled to be able to go and play while we had some chill-out time.
This is also where you go to buy drinks if you are sitting around the splash pool. Because of this, your drinks will be given to you in plastic cups or glasses. The queue can get quite long at times so if your kids are prone to getting hungry quickly make sure you get there with time to spare.
In the evening we ate at Ludo’s Italian restaurant. We also ate at the firehouse restaurant where I had an amazing rack of ribs.
My Top Tips for Staying at Butlins Skegness
- Make sure you start queueing for the shows at least 20 minutes in advance if you want a halfway decent table. We started queueing about 30 minutes beforehand and we only managed to get a table on the second row. For celebrity events, you will have to consider queueing even earlier.
- Eat well in advance of the start of the entertainment.
- The queue for the pool first thing can be enormous. We usually visit just after lunch and although it’s busy it’s not as busy as first thing. The splash park is quieter first thing so try and visit this early on.
- Pack lots of changes of clothes for the kids. Especially if they decide to go in the splash park.
- Don’t assume the beach is always open. We arrived there at 9:30 am one day only to find that the gate didn’t open until 10 am.
- Maximise your time there. You can arrive at 12 and use the facilities even though you won’t have access to your room until 3 pm. You are also allowed to stay until 12 on your day of departure even though you have to vacate your room earlier.
- Check out the Butlins app. It will provide you with up-to-date information of what’s on. There is a really helpful interactive resort map. Plus is a calendar to add shows and activities to, plus lots more.
- Prioritise and accept you won’t have time for everything
- If you can pay the extra for an apartment with a kitchen area please do so. The fridge is very handy and it’s great to have the freedom to eat in whenever you want.
- The resort toilets are a long way from the beach so make sure you all go before you head there. Towels for the beach and swimming pool aren’t provided so don’t forget to take your own.
If you are looking for something else to do in the area why not read all about our day out to Fantasy Island? It’s just down the road from Butlins at Skegness and is a really fun day out.
