Travel: Family holidays in the New Forest - Travel - Lifestyle ...

Staycations have never been more popular but finding plenty to do when you can?t rely on the weather can be tough.

However, as Karen Neville found, not if you go on a family holiday to Shorefield Country Park near the New Forest

When I told a friend I was taking two young children away for the week, she said I must be mad.

But when I explained it was a holiday park just outside the New Forest and there was more than enough to entertain them for a week she conceded that perhaps it wasn?t quite such a bad idea after all.

And so it was my husband and I set off with my stepdaughter?s boys and a car full of luggage and a Nintendo DS to Shorefield Country Park at Milford-on-Sea, just under two hours drive away.

After being efficiently checked in and given a welcome pack at reception we drove around to our lodge. The park boasts lodges in various sizes to suit a variety of families and needs.

Two bedrooms, one double and a twin offered ample space, a fully equipped bathroom and kitchen/sitting room completed our accommodation ? all was immaculately maintained and comfortable and as we soon found provided an ideal home from home for the week.

The kitchen boasted a washing machine and dishwasher so it really did offer all we needed and with a seven-year-old and a three-year-old in tow the washing machine certainly had its fair share of use.

And if after unpacking you should find you?ve forgotten anything there?s a convenience store on site.

Having settled in we decided to explore our surroundings. Our lodge was just a five minute walk through the woodland to the park?s main facilities. A large swimming pool caught the boys? eyes almost at once, and proved to be one of our main attractions. We decided to eat in our lodge that evening, the boys were tired and rather over-excited so having fed them we settled for an earlyish night ready for their first treat of the week.

The next day we set off for Oakdene Forest Park near Ringwood, another park in the same group and at which guests can enjoy the facilities.

It offers heaps of activities for children to enjoy and our two were booked in for the pirate adventure and football. Full credit goes to the activities co-ordinator who led a group of 10 children through pirate songs, games, running around, face painting and a treasure hunt.

Sadly all the recent rain before our visit in July meant the football pitch was waterlogged so instead the children tried mini golf and table tennis, all with the same enthusiasm.

And far from the fun and games using up all the boys? excess energy it seemed to have generated more and when we got back to Shorefield there were soon cries of ?Can we go swimming??.

The immaculate pool had a shallow toddler?s area at one end and a jacuzzi in the centre for adults wanting to escape from the shouts and exuberance of children.

The weather forced indoor activities the next day and more swimming for Steve and the boys while I enjoyed a massage at the park?s spa. A full range of treatments is offered but mums make sure you book in advance, it?s popularity means guests come from all over the surrounding area to indulge and be pampered.

We ate in the pub restaurant on site that night and enjoyed a good family meal, children are very well catered for and the food was plentiful and went down well.

The big treat of the week was a day out at nearby Paultons Park with the added entertainment of Peppa Pig World. Little Dan could barely contain his excitement as we turned into the park and he saw a huge image of Peppa on the entrance sign.

Peppa Pig World is designed with young children in mind and we headed straight there for a variety of brightly coloured rides and attractions, there was so much to see and do it wasn?t just the roundabouts that were spinning.

After our picnic lunch, we set off for the more grown up area and it was now Christopher?s turn to be overwhelmed ? four trips down the huge water slide and three on the log flume ride among others meant he was quite wet but was loving it.

Our Shorefield base was a great location for so many attractions and was without doubt one of the main appeals when we decided to take the boys with us for the week ? we knew we?d never be short of things to do and places to go, many within an hour?s drive.

After a bit of a lie in and a cooked breakfast we packed up the car and headed to the Dorset Heavy Horse Centre, in Wimbourne. We enjoyed an amusing introduction to the heavy horses where the children were invited to help feed them before a Shetland pony offered cart rides around the farm.

Weather aside (and we had had a couple of sunny days) it was a great week all round. We survived taking the boys away for the week, they made splashing strides in swimming and their holiday scrap book was full of pictures and memories of a good time. And my holiday scrap book?...

It would have a picture of Shorefield Country Park with a big tick next to it.

Fact file:

Shorefield Holiday Park in Milford on Sea, next to the New Forest, is a 5-star rated holiday park set in 100 acres of landscaped parkland offering a wide range of accommodation from chalets and caravans to lodges and bungalows (some with hot tubs).

Extensive facilities including large heated in- and outdoor pools with small pools suitable for toddlers, gym, sauna, floodlit tennis court, football pitch, luxury day spa, shops, cafes, WiFi hot spots and more.

Shorefield rates during October half term, October 26 to November 1, start from ?244 staying in a 4-6 berth Danestream Chalet for 4 nights (Mon-Thurs) or from ?211 for 3 nights (Fri-Mon) and a week?s holiday is from ?325.

Details for the popular Christmas Cracker Weekends and 2012 Christmas and New Year?s Eve celebrations are available at www.shorefield.co.uk along with booking information.

Source: http://www.getwokingham.co.uk/lifestyle/travel/s/2121538_travel_family_holidays_in_the_new_forest

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