If you’re looking to save cash in the New Year, I have a handy hack to get more for your money if you fancy a cheeky midweek day out at Butlin’s.
It can cost as little as £40 to book a term-time break for a family of four, which makes it cheaper than day passes for two adults and two children at £60 for Skegness or Bognor, or £48 at Minehead.
So you could book a break but only go for the day and you might save money if you pick the right week.
Plus overnight guests can often access extra activities, which aren’t included if you’re only visiting for the day.
With a funfair, swimming pool, the new Skyparks and shows for all the family, it’s easy to fill a day full of fun, even if you can’t get away for a whole week.
I did exactly that just before Christmas when my sons had a random inset day on a Thursday mid-December.
Obviously it was the perfect day for us to enjoy some festive fun as weekends in the run-up to the big day tend to be busy and attract peak prices.
But with panto tickets costing £74 for four of us at our local theatre and a trip to see Santa at some nearby visitor attractions adding up to more than £80 for us all, I realised it wasn’t going to be a cheap day out, even with off-peak midweek prices.
That’s when I worked out that booking a Butlin’s break could be a brilliant bargain, even if we only ended up staying one night.
We could head over to Skegness straight after school on the Wednesday, fit in a show and some food once we arrived and then see Santa and watch the panto at the resort before going for a swim and heading home for school the next day.
All for less than the £60 we would have to spend on day passes or the £150 we could easily spend on a couple of Christmas activities near home.
Staying the night before meant we’d be up and ready for a full day of fun on our day out, rather than spending a couple of hours travelling there first.
But it’s not only the festive season when this little hack works. It’s also good for the rest of the year as you get more bang for your buck buying a break rather than purchasing day passes.
Day visitors can only watch the shows in the Skyline Pavilion, but cannot access Studio 36, Centre Stage, Reds or the Father Christmas experience, whereas all of the entertainment venues are available to guests staying on resort.
Day passes can be bought online up until midnight on the day before your visit unless they’ve sold out or at the gate on the day, but only by card, not by cash.
There’s better rates for emergency services, military and carers on the day, but you can’t book these in advance.
If you’re only going to be on resort for a day rather than the full range of your break, you need to be quick to get your activities planned as soon as booking opens on the Butlin’s app four weeks before the first day of your stay.
Otherwise you might miss out as some sessions could be full on your only day there.
It does pay to keep checking back on what options you have though, as people do cancel bookings and that could free up space closer to the day.
If you’re happy to go with the flow, you could just wait until the day and see what takes your fancy.
If you’re not arriving on a normal changeover day of Monday or Friday, it’s probably best to email customer services in advance and say when you plan to get there, just so they are in the know and don’t think you’re not coming at all.
And make sure you know what you’re booking, as if you’re planning on self-catering during the time you’re there, it’s no good booking a room that has no kitchen facilities.
We love our sneaky Butlin’s stay for a day and wouldn’t do it any other way.
