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21 Lake Beck, Center Parcs, Penrith CA10 2DW England
Center Parcs Whinfell Forest
14,137 reviews
Getting there
Somewhat walkable
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Center Parcs Whinfell Forest boasts a festive and family-friendly atmosphere which delights guests, although there are suggestions for fresher furnishings and updates. The spacious lodges are well-received for their amenities, but the experience is marred for some due to cleanliness concerns and a worn look.
Despite the picturesque location and a plethora of activities like the much-applauded tropical pool, reviewers often cite the resort as pricey, with some facing service responsiveness issues. Noise levels also draw criticism, particularly around the Lakeside Grill area.
Location
Picturesque
Atmosphere
Magical
Rooms
Dated
Value
Expensive
Cleanliness
Mixed
Noise level
Noisy
Service
Friendly
Amenities
Abundant
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We booked a 2 bedroom new style woodland lodge, for a Monday-Friday break 4 adults (2 x mams and 2 daughters), we pre booked most activities in advance of arriving to the Parc in order to avoid disappointment. A few weeks before arriving in March 20 my booking was updated to confirm the lodge address so we already had an idea where we were going to e located on the parc (very happy as close to the village centre) the lodge was excellent clean, tidy with excellent facilities (you can be self sufficient and would definitely recommend bringing your own food and drink) the restaurants, cafe and bars on site are good but can work out very expensive. You can arrive as early as 10am on arrival day and make use of the time getting to know he parc, chill and have a coffee before been allowed into your lodge at 3.30. Checking in was excellent, didn't even get out of the car, given wristbands to access the lodge which can also be used to credit money to and can be used mainly in the pool area. The wristbands are an excellent idea downfall was not been able to use them around the whole of the parc this could've been so much easier. Village centre was a 2 min walk from the lodge with plenty of spaces to park your cycle, taking about cycles we each hired one for the week the collection at the beginning of the week and the drop off at the end was very slick no queues and service was excellent.
Pre booked activities we took part in were the Ariel adventure, ten pin bowling, badminton, adventure golf, kayaking, and quad biking all were excellent and plenty laughing was done between us, whilst on the parc we also booked a 3 hour spa session which was amazing, I would definitely recommend this as a must do.
Parc setup is extremely well organised and kept to a high standard , staff were always friendly and went out the way to please, location is excellent,
Wifi in the main buildings I.e village centre, sports plaza etc was excellent, very little phone service so do tend to rely on the wifi which in our lodge was dreadful and pretty much the only drawback of the holiday, couldn't even get onto the centre parc app to book restaurants etc. I would pay extra to get better wifi reception in lodges.
On the day you leave you have to be out of the lodge by 10am but you can stay on the parc until 10pm and make use of the facilities still available to you, great if you not in a hurray to leave.
All in all we had an amazing holiday, I would definitely look at going back (out of season which is still busy but not manic)
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Date of stay: March 2020
Value
Cleanliness
Service
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Myself and 7 other adults visited here Friday to Monday for a birthday celebration. This was the first time any of us had visited and we were not disappointed. We pre booked a central lodge so as not to have a trek to and from the car park. We stayed in 15 seven pines great lodge and location. We opted for the early check in after reading about the madness of 3:30pm check in and it was worth it as if you arrive after 11am and you have paid for early check in you can drive straight to your lodge and park up until 2pm you can then unpack and move your car back to the car park. Lodge was lovely and clean and had everything that was required for self catering should you wish. Plenty of pots pans cutlery etc everything was spotless. We used the pool on a couple of occasions again very clean lockers are free and activated by your wristband. We also visited the sports bar whilst we were there plenty of activities to do again plenty of space, seating etc. We booked bowling for the Saturday evening which was great fun however I would advise booking in advance on a weekend as it was really busy and no spare lanes to be had. Plenty of arcade games for kids and stuff to do in there also. We ate out in Bella Italia one night in comparison to other Bella Italia branches I have visited it was not the best, seemed very slow on service and the food wasn’t great but was edible. Lacked atmosphere for such a large dining area. One of the other nights we opted for the dining in which you can order over the phone from the menu in the lodge and pop round to the village centre to collect at you allocated time slot or you can have it delivered for a £4.99 charge. Food was lovely we opted for food from the Asian/Chinese menu all food was tasty and reasonable considering our expectation. Overall this was a great trip and would return again in the near future. All staff are exceptionally helpful and nothing is too much trouble.
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Date of stay: January 2020Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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Great accommodation, all 4 bedrooms had ensuite televisions in every room, the house was well equipt and very comfortable. The only negative was the kitchen equipment it would benefit by having non stick pots and pans. There are plenty of ways to entertain yourself depending on what you want to spend,the swimming pool was enjoyed by all the family,the bars and restaurants are staffed by friendly and helpful staff catering for most dietary needs. We all look forward to returning soon.
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Date of stay: February 2020Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Over the last few years I have enjoyed many family trips to Center Parcs. I have visited Sherwood and Woburn and stayed in a variety of lodges. As expected it can be expensive especially as we only usually visit during the school holidays. However we have always enjoyed our experiences and have come to expect a consistent standard of service.
This time we chose a slightly cheaper option (standard woodland lodge) in Whinfell during February half term. We arrived in the morning and used facilities throughout the day. All facilities met expectations as we were aware the pool has not yet been upgraded with Venture Bay Area like Woburn and sherwood. However still enough for all ages to enjoy.
We entered our lodge just after 3:30pm when the barriers opened. On opening the doors we were met with piles of laundry bags from previous occupants which had not been collected. Also noticed laundry bags left in entrance to other lodges in our area. This was not ideal but we continued into the lodge which appeared clean and in keeping with usual expectations of this style of lodge. However the bathroom was still wet from mopping and throughout the floor, bath, sink and toilet were a significant amount of long dark hairs. The amount was unmissable!!! They were in the middle of the floor not just edges of the room and plugs. They were across the side of the bath and in the middle of the toilet seat. I’m not fussy and never like to complain about trivial things but it was unacceptable and disgusting.
I did contact guest services. Over an hour later laundry bags were collected and an offer was made to clean bathroom but as the kids had been swimming they needed to use bath & shower straight away so I had already cleaned the room myself and regretfully did not take pictures but kept a small tissue full of hairs just from bath which I handed to cleaners. Following this guest services left a voicemail on my phone advising me to call in but as weather was bad and we were attempting to make the most of the short time we had there I did not call in as I did not wish to waste my time chasing staff for some sort of compensation. I hope that Whinfell will monitor the level of cleanliness of their lodges in future and hope no one else has to experience this.
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Date of stay: February 2020Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from HelenW3601, Guest Services Executive at Center Parcs Whinfell Forest
Responded 26 Feb 2020
Thank you for getting in touch regarding your stay at Whnfell. Can I ask you to email directly with your booking details to the Contact Us page on the Center Parcs website so that we can look into this. Kind regards Helen
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This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
I had booked an exclusive lodge thinking it would be worth almost double the cost of the other woodland lodges for quality finishes and the hot tub area - I was totally underwhelmed.
As well as confusion in how to get to the lodge (having to drive down roads with no entry signs) we arrived for an early check in to a well weathered lodge both inside and out. The outside hot tub area was dirty with food lying on the ground and sweet wrappers too, as well as the side off the hot tub for two hours and unable to use. The lodge was clean but well worn (some strange looking stains on the decorative bed runners though!) and definitely did not look like the quality from the online photos. We had issues with the TV (it’s a very basic set up too) and the hot water in one of the rooms. The downstairs area is very cold even with the heating on so I bought hot water bottles and logs for the fire too to take the edge off. The hot tub is checked frequently, which is good, so be prepared for lots of staff in and out of the hot tub area through the day.
Our lodge, 94 Three Oaks, didn’t have a games room (I knew this when booking so wasn’t an issue) and was right in the top corner of the park so a fair walk for all activities so leave LOTS of extra time to get where you need to be if walking, particularly for the Stables and the Outdoor Activity Centre. We had to arrange the mobility bus for a journey to the Village Centre for one of my family and the rest of the stay they remained in the lodge. I liked being able to leave my car in the dedicated bay outside for the length of our stay.
I contacted Guest Services several times about the issues we had and they were very pleasant and helpful - really great customer service. We also got a voucher towards a family meal by way of compensation which I was grateful for.
I still feel like the whole experience associated with this lodge type was disappointing and not good value at all, not sure we will return (this was our second visit). I appreciate there will be a follow up comment below from Center Parcs and sure it will not contradict any of my points raised as they will have all this detail on file. Happy to share the photos and communication (already provides to Guest Services) to highlight the issues if required.
As for the park in general ... It’s expensive overall, the food in the places we ate is ok (Dexters and Huck’s), the activities are good whilst expensive in addition to the cost of your stay and you need to plan ahead. The pool area is ok - we hired a family cabana which was nice but you really don’t need to as lots of seating areas round the pool. Fortunately we didn’t have any activities cancelled due to the storm, very fortunate timing for us.
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Date of stay: February 2020Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
We've just returned from 4 nights at Centre Parcs Whinfell forest as a family of 5 adults, an 11 week old baby and a toddler. It was just perfect. Our 2 year old had many classes which we booked for him such as the soccer for toddlers, baby balance bike, roller tots and many more, he was never bored, the staff were so friendly and great with children and we thoroughly enjoyed the subtropical swimming centre. I highly recommend hiring a cabana when you're swimming if you've got young children, it was a god send for us so we could have a base to keep nappies and drinks and also for my mum who came with us who doesn't swim much, she was able to kick back and relax and read the complimentary magazines and watch TV in private and relaxation. I also highly recommend the family interactive squash sessions, lots of fun and laughs, it was only £15 to hire the court for the whole family and many interactive games to compete with family and friends and to have a huge laugh and good exercise at the same time! We didn't eat out much during our stay as we were well equipped with food for our lodge so I can't comment on the restaurants on resort but we had a lovely lunch at Cafe Rouge with our 2 year old. It was a touch pricey but as we only did it once, it wasnt too bad! We spent the 4 nights dining in with a box ordered from Gousto which was ideal for our Monday to Friday trip! One of the biggest highlights of the holiday was the Aqua Sana spa. It is beautiful inside and very peaceful. We had a few different treatments during our stay including foot massage and OPI gel manicures and the staff and the products used were of the highest quality as you would expect in any decent hotel spa. We have already booked for our next trip using the come back soon offer, we can't wait to return, there is truly something for everyone to do and enjoy! The only feedback I can give us that we booked a standard 3 bedroom woodland lodge and found it a little cramped with the cots and highchairs so if you are a family with a few smaller children under 5 with lots of nappies and baby paraphernalia etc , it might be worth going for an upgrade to a larger lodge. We have decided to book the 3 bedroom executive detached 2 story lodge for our trip next year to give us extra space and I'm sure it will be well worth it! The only thing I would change overall on my whole trip is that we were disappointed with no washing machine facilities at all on the site. It would have been excellent if there was a launderette on site so we could have washed baby clothes during our stay as we found this a bit of an inconvenience. But otherwise, a perfect wintertime stay!
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Date of stay: January 2020
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Room Tip:Moorland view was a great location for the sports plaza and access to village centre
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
We have recently returned from a midweek break, and overall we had a brilliant time in an extremely quiet forest.
First and foremost, it's worth mentioning the safety measures that have been put in place. I think that the cleanliness is second to none and actually, at times we found the staff could be a little curt (and slightly over the top) when insisting we walked in the 'correct' entrance to Guest Services when there wasn't another person in sight. By I would rather this than a lackadaisical attitude where safety is concerned. Hand sanitiser is available everywhere, and you have to put this on when entering any shop or restaurant. It is also by every park, play and activity area.
Secondly, our lodge overall was very good. We had an issue with our wifi, so we were told to call the internet provider - this is outsourced to an external company. This was hugely frustrating as the call lasted 45 minutes and did not have a clear resolution at the end, but our internet suddenly started working and remained consistent for the rest of the break. Aside from that, the facilities were good, particularly the sauna. We weren't too concerned about the lack of cleaning but to only have 1 toilet roll per toilet was a little tight to be honest!
As for the activities, we were really pleased with how safely they were run and the attention to detail in terms of cleaning. The staff were attentive, helpful and knowledgeable. We particularly enjoyed the Wildlife Walk, and learned loads from Ranger Rob!
We ate out, and used the delivery service a number of times and again, the safety measures were impeccable. You are encouraged to order online while in the restaurants to avoid social contact. Our only niggle was the lack of food choices at the restaurants with burger and chips being the main offering. We had an issue at the Sports Cafe when we order soup which came out cold. We sent this back and then waited over 20 mins for the replacement while watching other tables being served with their meals. The manager did come and said she would refund some of the bill, but could not say how much or when this would be actioned. We also found there would be items that would be sold out which seemed absurd when the park was so quiet (and this limited the food choices even more)! In terms of dining in, we found the food to be expensive overall but the quality was fairly good.
If you are concerned about safety while visiting CenterParcs, please don't be. I think it's the safest place you could visit. Overall, we had a fantastic time and reveled in the peace and serenity of the forest. Our 6 year old son had an amazing time, and he was the one we wanted to keep happy.
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Date of stay: July 2020
Value
Service
Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
We stayed here for a long weekend break as a family with 2 small children. We’re regular Hoseasons lodge stayers so thought we’d try something different, pay a bit extra & book center parcs but I have to say I was a bit underwhelmed. Check in was organised & staff were efficient & nice (as were the waiting staff) but the lodge itself was not what I expected. They all look dated & actually a bit cheap looking (the cream looking ones) I think on the outside. You have all the furniture you need for a break & beds were comfy but the cleanliness was not what I’d expect from center parcs. Floors weren’t hoovered properly, sofa & carpets have dirty marks on them & then when I moved one of the sofa seat cushions I was greeted with a load of dirt, hair & mass dust balls (pic inc) Personally the lodge needs a deep clean! The restaurant prices I actually thought were ok & the supermarket on site isn’t that expensive tbh. However I think the site should warn customers prior that some restaurants are going through a refurb....Starbucks in the village & the pancake house were both closed which was disappointing. The park area & pool (only things that are free) is really good and nice & warm for the kids. However paying £1 for every minute to actually semi dry your bathing suits.....are you being serious!!!! That’s just ridiculous. We didn’t book any activities as our children are 3 & 1 so the younger one is naturally too young for some & the 3 yr old didn’t want to do them on her own but I imagine when they’re both a bit older some of the activities would be good for them. Didn’t go in the spa but apparently it’s lovely. We did have a treatment but unlike other spa’s where if you get a treatment you get access to the spa for a limited time unless you actually pay to use the spa (£47pp) you ain’t getting in. The girls who done our treatments were lovely though. I’m not sure we’d actually visit this site again. Think if we were to visit again we’d travel a bit further and go to Nottingham (which is meant to be the best one) but tbh I think you could book a Go active Hoseasons break for min £150 cheaper and the lodge would probably be cleaner and very similar activity wise.
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Date of stay: February 2020Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
We have been going to Whinfell Centerparcs every year for almost 25 years (since it was called Oasis). I was very worried about going away for the first time since Covid and up until 2 weeks before, I was all for cancelling. I am so glad we decided to go ahead. This has been one of the best trips we’ve had. First off, I have to say all the staff were terrific and go out of their way to be reassuring and helpful. There is hand gel everywhere and everyone was adhering to the face mask policy. We felt very safe. We did take our own antibacterial spray with us and gave our lodge the once over just for peace of mind. We managed to book lots of activities and meals before we arrived. I’d say this is essential if you have something you really want to do. We did see some people just turn up at the pool without realising they had to book in advance. It’s well worth reading everything they email you in advance! We had the most wonderful weather the whole week, and it was great to be able to eat outdoors for breakfast, lunch and dinner. We stayed in a lakeside lodge and enjoyed watching all the activities taking place there. The new zip line across the lake is so much fun. On the Monday you have to stay in your lodge between 12 and 2pm for a complete clean to take place within the park. We were given a voucher for the inconvenience, but had already decided to go offsite that day to visit the waterfalls at Ingleton and Malham Cove. This was a much needed holiday after months of lockdown and we really enjoyed the peace and quiet, the open spaces and the wonderful weather. Can’t wait to book up again:-)
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Date of stay: August 2020Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Great break in August at the Whinfell Centre Parcs. We are regular visitors to Elveden Centre Parcs but this was our first visit to Whinfell.
Because of restrictions, it felt about 2/3rds full which was nice as it meant that you could still get access to restaurants and activities and the central areas never felt packed. That said the activities and restaurants did fill up quickly and they were restricted on numbers but it felt really well organised.
Whinfell is a lot more “hilly” than Elveden so on the bikes there are a few places where we had to dismount and walk the bike, but it does make it feel a lot more like it’s a part of the forest.
The lodges were fine, we stayed in a 2 bed single story exclusive (no no maid service at the moment) and we stayed in the Badgers Wood location which was really central for the sports plaza and village centre.
Activities were great, we spent a lot of time at the outdoor activity centre, Segways, Quad Bikes, Shooting and Archery. Weather was great whilst we were there so perfect for being outdoors
The only downside was that the swimming and sports cafe have to be booked at the moment, understandable but it does make the trip feel super-scheduled. You can get into the leisure bowl for a drink without a booking but tables are limited.
Masks are required in all of the indoor shared spaces but that’s fine and starting to become second nature, loads of sanitizer spots and one way systems.
All in all a great week and would definitely recommend and go back ourselves if we’re up that way in the future.
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Date of stay: August 2020Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Yes people on a Scotter can watch and can also spend time in the spa having treatments or spending time in the spa experience always notify customer care first they will support you
There are more places to choose from in the Penrith area.
ALSO KNOWN AS
center parcs whinfell forest hotel penrith
LOCATION
United KingdomEnglandCumbriaLake DistrictEden DistrictPenrith
NUMBER OF ROOMS
20
Prices are provided by our partners for one room, with variable occupancy rules as provided by the property, and reflect nightly room rates, including all taxes and fees known to our partners. Please see our partners for more details.
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Yes, it offers wheelchair access, reduced mobility rooms, and facilities for disabled guests. For specific enquiries, we recommend calling ahead to confirm.
