Just returned from2 nights of hell (should have been 3 but could not take anymore!). We booked Nelson Stateroom, at £240 per night b&b. Where do I start, dirty, tired, cheeply furnished rooms. Could have been a view of the sea (and carpark) if not obscured by bird poo! Foam pillows, broken remotes on TV and rusty bathroom fitments. The food in the hotel is worse then awful, as is the service, many members of staff whilst friendly don't speak English. Powdered fruit juices, self service machine coffee, hard to believe at £240 per night. As for the facilites if slot machines, dirty swimming pools and token liquidated stock funfairs are you thing, you will have a ball. I really wish trading standards would extent thier ban on explotation of children to hoilday venues, Butlins does not remotely resemble the place portraited in their TV advert.

My Wife, 4 year old daughter and I have just returned from a 4 night mid week break at the Bognor Regis resort. Having only ever visited the Skegness site before we opted for a change and, despite reading some negative reviews of this resort before we went, we were pleasantly surprised by our experience. It must be said however we visited the resort the week before the May bank holiday, i.e. the resort wasn't that busy - a member of staff suggested that there were approx' 2700 guests there that same week - approx' 5000 were expected the following week!

The following summary is provided on the basis that when we were there the resort was nowhere near full guest capacity. Had the resort been any busier then I really believe the place would have been unbearable. The resort and all its amenities are small/compact compared to the Skegness resort and does not lend itself to high numbers.

In summary....

All staff (except the one)! throughout the resort were very friendly and helpful, right from first arriving on resort to checking out of the hotel.

Make sure you keep a look out for the OAPs on electric scooters otherwise you'll be mowed down - electric scooter city!

Stayed at the Shoreline Hotel in a Columbus Quarters room (339), we had asked for a room on the south west corner of the building to gain better sea views and this was provided. I would recommend anyone to do the same (either SE or SW corner of hotel) as you are then away from the hotels lifts and stairs, and also the resort amenities so there is less noise and you have a much better sea view.

Hotel restaurant served some great meals, Restaurant priced meals though, i.e. not cheap, but nonetheless they seemed freshly prepared and good quality.

Unlike the Skegness resort where the kids evening entertainment happens in Reds, all kids entertainment at Bognor happens in the skyline. There is very little seating, many inconsiderate pushchair owners used them to full advantage to reserve space and even with the small number of guests the place soon became very congested, unpleasant, and even hostile - be prepared at busy times! The entertainment however was good and thoroughly enjoyable.

We tried the sun and moon restaurant one evening which we regretted. Having heard the place had been refurbished for 2008 we had high expectations of cleanliness and quality. The seating was grubby, menus even stuck to the table, foodstuff was accumulating under the tables where it wasn't being cleaned. The staff and premises need better managing!

The Splash swimming pool, again compared to Skegness is dissapointing. Butlins seem to have put in place excessive litigation limitation measures everywhere, which has detracted from alot of the enjoyment factors that you associate with Butlins. I took my daughter in alone as my wife is heavily pregnant, but found the experience a little traumatic. The changing and toliet facilities need cleaning better/more regularly. In one of teh two male toilet cubicles there was faeces under the toilet seat and on the soap dispensers - not nice! However I did notice the lifeguard spraying air-freshener in there - shame it wasn't disinfectant!! The swimming facilities themselves are limited and after 45 minutes we were bored and ready to get out. Be aware you have to be over 1.45 metres tall to use the rapids even if acompanied by an adult - couldn't understand it.

Could go on, but to end here I would recommend:
use the Shoreline Hotel if possible as opposed to the 'chalets' which are very tightly packed in to a small space, and don't look too good.
Try to go to the resort off-peak if possible when guest numbers are low.
Don't stay any longer than 4 nights as you really run out of things to do both on and off resort (in local area).
Try out the breakfast with the characters one morning (at the Papa Johns restaurant) - great for the kids
Start queuing/reserving seats for evening entertainment early to avoid dissapointment and a long time standing.
Watch out for those electric scooters!

We had had good reports of the Shoreline hotel and had a comfortable stay. The room was well-designed for a family of four (2 adults and 2 boys aged 9 & 6) , and had a pleasant (side) sea - view. Our request for a room well-away from the noisier reception end was met even though we arrived a day late - a good start.

The hotel restaurant had a serious lack of capacity during the busy half-term weekend we were there - and people were having to wait - for in some cases approaching 30 minutes - to be seated for breakfast. This needs to be addressed urgently - it ought to be a matter of proper sittings and/or more efficient clearing of tables.

The food quality in the hotel restaurant was fine, though nothing to write home about - and there was a decent carvery on the Sunday.

The food elsewhere in the resort was very poor. Apart from one reasonable enough pizza place, there was nowhere offering a normal restaurant meal - all fish and chips and burgers. The resort needs to think about offering a much more diverse range of options - what about a noodle bar/Chinese/Indian?

As for the resort itself, well it was Butlins! The entertainment was good quality - plenty of shows and tribute acts. Swimming pool/slides were superb - a real treat. If you are staying at the Shoreline it is well worth taking advantage of the dedicated swimming times for hotel guests, when it is far less crowded.

Otherwise there was rather less to do for our childrens' age group than we had expected - no real kids clubs for example. This meant they spent a lot of time on the incredibly large number of slot machines that the whole resort is unfortunately plagued with. Sometimes it seems you can't move without seeing another bank of them. All of which increased the cost of the holiday and risks giving the kids a potentially unhealthy fondness for this activity!

3 days of all this was fine - the kids enjoyed themselves and we had some pleasant walks along the sea front. Don't think though that it is a cheap stay - total cost of 3 days with food came to around £500.

Stayed at The Shoreline Hotel at Butlins, Bognor from Friday 30 Nov until Monday 3rd December for the Skool Reunion Adult Weekend held at the Resort.

This is the 6th time we have stayed at the hotel as per usual it was a thoroughly enjoyable stay for £140 per person we had 3 nights bed and breakfast and entrance to all clubs/bars.

Excellent value for money, the rooms are spacious and clean. Excellent sized bathrroms with power showers over the bath.

The staff are friendly and polite, and the hotel bar stays open until 4am, where night-staff Scott and Alan look after you like royalty.

The breakfasts are fine, wide choice of cereals, hot foods and fruits. The evening meals are pretty pricey and not greatest of quality it has to be said though.

You did a bit of noise outside, but hey this is Butlins and everbody is there to have some fun!