Forget Disneyland, this is the happiest place on earth!! Perhaps my perspective is skewed as it was…read moremy first visit, my first time in England, and my first time seeing my favorite musical act (Five)!!!!
I should mention, my review is for the entire property, not just the caravan site.
I visited during the October adults-only Back to the 2000s weekend, 7 October - 10 October 2022. This location is SW of Bristol and not very easy to get to if traveling from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. I had to take a flight to Chicago, then to London. From London, it was train to Paddington Station. I missed the coach bus I previously booked out of Victoria's Station so I had to take a train from Paddington Station to Bristol. There have been many rail and bus strikes recently, which resulted in a lack of bus drivers. the bus that was scheduled to take us from Bristol to Tauton wasn't too late. However, we were dropped off in Tauton and told the next bus would pick up for the location. Turns out, that bus went to a different location and we missed it. After 2+ hours in Taunton, a Sommerset bus finally arrived to take us to Minehead.
This was truly an adventure of a lifetime!!!
Butlin's was like anything I've ever experienced before in the USA. It's amusement park meets water park meets various activities (mini golf/go carts/archery/etc) meets concert festival WITH on site lodging facilities and what I would call an "all inclusive" meal plan (optional), restaurants, arcade, gambling, a sports bar with bowling and 10 pool tables, 2 small grocery stores, and it's across the street from the public beach!! :D There are also larger grocery stores, restaurants, and shops with walking distance of the property.
There is a variety of lodging facilities, from single rooms to holiday houses overlooking a pond. Ours was a 2-bedroom suite. One room had a double bed, the other was a single. There was also a living room with 2 couches, a TV, mini-fridge, and everything to make tea or instant coffee. Although it was a part of an older set of chalets, it was still in good condition and clean.
All the employees and security personnel were friendly and wanted to talk to us (probably because there has never been guests from Wisconsin, lol). Prices for food and drink around the property was very reasonable, in my opinion. The food was overall good - the dining hall was set up buffet-style and there were SO MANY options. The best food was at The Diner, where we experienced bottomless brunch. The chicken sandwich was fantastic as well as the brisket fries! Highly recommend!! There were 3 beverages that were a part of the "bottomless" option, all were great.
I only saw musical acts at the Centre Stage venue, which was quite large with bars on both sides and some high-top table seating in the back. I was very surprised how clean it was each night... especially with the partying the majority of the crowd was partaking in, hahaha.
Overall, the Butlin's Minehead experience was AMAZING! It was just a little challenging to get to if you are visiting from America ;) I hope to visit the Bognor Regnis location in the future.
