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Sherwood Forest Holiday Village, Rufford NG22 9DN England
Center Parcs Sherwood Forest
4 reviews
Getting there
Somewhat walkable
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Center Parcs Sherwood Forest provides an enchanting forest retreat, though some visitors feel the magic is slightly marred by the dated decor and upkeep issues. Nestled in a lush location, guests relish wildlife encounters and a plethora of amenities, including a well-liked pool and roomy lodges. However, high costs and navigational challenges are noted.
The service and cleanliness receive mixed reviews, with commendations for friendly staff and spotlessness in some areas, countered by reports of lackluster service and cleanliness concerns. Overall, opinions on value suggest that the experience may not always merit the expense.
Location
Secluded
Atmosphere
Magical
Rooms
Unkempt
Value
Expensive
Cleanliness
Mixed
Service
Inconsistent
Amenities
Comprehensive
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We've been to Centre Parcs, Sherwood on many occasions, it also helps that it's 20 minutes from home, although it never feels like it. The location of the lodge was perfect, we paid extra to be central, Maple 36, only a 3 minute walk to all the facilities and we could see the Pancake House from our main bedroom window. The lodge itself was perfect and cleaned to a very high standard. It would have been nice to have had more than two towels, as there was 4 of us, but it was no biggy. The heating in the lodge was well needed as it's been very cold recently. You can keep it on all day and it's not capped so you can get in after being out for a while to a lovely cosy lodge. The bedding was lovely and warm and I love how they have a gap under the beds so you can slide your suitcase under it and keep it out of the way. Moving on to the activities. The subtropical swimming paradise water seemed colder than usual, the outdoor pool was freezing. On our previous visits at the same time of the year, it's been really warm, but this time only a few minutes was enough. We always go for a night swim as they lower the lights and it's such a nice feeling. The lockers and wristbands are really good and easy to use, yes it can get very busy but there was always a locker free. The only issue is there could be more toilets as I had to queue to use them. For our last day we had to be out of our lodge by 10am. We booked a private Cabana for 3 hours for £107, this includes towels and drinks ready for you in the fridge. Okay a little steep but the place was crammed with people Turing up early and the people who were leaving staying a little longer before going home. While there we had a meal at Cafe Rouge, the food was excellent and so was the service and not a bad price. We ordered bikes at £44 each for the Fri, Sat and Sun, which is okay but we didn't use them that much. Overall the lodge was clean and so was the surroundings and the prices not to bad at all considering it's Centre Parcs.
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Date of stay: February 2025Trip type: Travelled with family
Room Tip:People queue to get in from 2pm leaving you stuck in traffic. Arrive at 4pm and drive straight to...
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 in one of the two-storey, executive lodges as a family of 3, for 4 nights, which was conveniently near the entrance and car park.
The lodge was ideal for what we needed, the downstairs all open plan living and the upstairs consisting of bedroom and bathroom; the bathroom surprisingly on the spacious side. As expected, the lodge was clean however the only disappointment being that only one loo roll was provided, which seemed a little tight.
I did notice quite a few guests seemed to think they were immune from returning their car back to the car park, however it looked like staff were quick to place notices under car wipers to ask owners to move their car.
I was impressed at the upkeep at the whole site, even during the winter months. The site was spotless and couldn’t find anything which remotely looked tired or run down. The subtropical swimming paradise was very clean and was surprised how warm it was inside. Likewise, the pool was of a decent temperature. Only struggle was finding chairs to leave our bags, something which was needed having a 5 month old with us. As expected on the last day (Friday), a lot of people seemed to get there early to maximise their day, however seemed to hoard all the chairs.
We were really impressed by the wish light village which added a magical element to the stay. I was really impressed with the special events they put on early evenings too!
As for food, we pretty much ate at every restaurant; Las Ignanas, Cafe Rouge, Hucks, The Pancake House, and utilised the restaurant runner service which is essentially their take on a takeaway option. Unfortunately the takeaway order was the biggest disappointment of the break; overpriced (beware that the advertised prices do not include VAT) and the food was terrible and my suspicion is that all the food was all microwave food.
The Parc Mart is priced as you would expect, however I was impressed with the range on offer and the provision of fresh baked sweet and savoury goods.
Being fairly limited to activities with a 5 month old, we did the baby sensory which exceeded our expectations. Special mention to Sam who was really engaging and knowledgable in the session.
Overall, we had a wonderful stay as our first break away with a 5 month old. The staff are fantastic and never had a negative interaction.
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Date of stay: January 2024Trip 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.
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It’s our 4th visit so we’re familiar with the very high costs of food, drink and activities so bring as much from home as we can fit in the car but are mindful of the lodge’s dinky fridge/ice box. It’s the school holidays but sense the site may not be full, so maybe the high prices are hurting?
There’s a supermarket on site but it’s more than double the price for equivalent Aldi/Lidal products. (Sliced loaf £1.85, chocolate spread £4.40, gravy granules £3.15 etc..) The price gouging in the bars is getting worse too as our bill of just under £16 for two drinks showed. We won’t repeat that!
However, if your kids want limitless water fun in an amazing pools complex, this is the one. They will also enjoy the almost traffic-free roads around the site as CP very rightly insist on cars being left in an outer car park after unloading. The lodges are nice and clean but tiring a bit.
We’d definitely come a 5th time but the pricing is now making us look to Europe for better value next year.
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Date of stay: August 2024Trip 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.
Pros: - Lots of pre-arrival information was given so we knew what to expect from accommodation and activities. - We paid extra for an early check-in which was great and we would do again. We were able to drive onto site when we arrived which allowed us to park really close to the accommodation and gave us access to the lodge at 2pm. - It's a really special place with all the sparking lights and great areas for taking family photos. Little ones will find it magical. - Great range of activities available (although overpriced) for our multi-generational family so we could do things together and separately to suit.
Cons: - They can't wait for you to leave! Cleaners were outside our lodge at 9.25am watching and waiting for us to leave. I appreciate they want to get on with their jobs but, as guests, we have until 10am to depart and felt we were rushed to leave. - We could hear vehicles from approx. 5am on the day of departure as people wanted to get parked close to their accommodation to be able to pack - The accommodation was tired. Sealant peeling and/or mouldy, dirty grout, bathroom door locks not working etc. It seems that they're concentrating on offering new accommodation without giving much thought to the existing which is a shame. - We would have loved a family photo with Santa as we have them from previous visits but only available to those with little ones visiting for gifts. My kids are 19 and 21 so not available to us. - I can only presume that staff in the restaurants aren't paid very well which is why an automatic 7.5% tip is added to ALL bills whether or not you've had good service. It's optional to take the tip off - and then have to deal with the unhappy staff member. The staff in the shops were just as helpful, just as attentive but they don't get tips. - We paid for the Christmas tree pack which was lovely although I don't expect it to last much longer as it wasn't in a suitable container to be able to water it. We've brought it home (TIP - take some wheelie bin liners to put it in) and it's been in a water bath since. - The lanes in the car park need to be one-way systems. We were bullied into reversing all the way round by another guest who happened to be driving a larger vehicle than we were.
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Date of stay: December 2024
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Travelled with family
Room Tip:Take your own food. The shop isn't too overly priced to be fair but we found it easier to fill a...
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.
Stayed in lodge 454. As a couple and a chihuahua. the location is perfect. Staff so very friendly, however the lodge is priced at a premium, areas were tired and there was mold in the shower, dirt in the oven, and filthy door boards and a very noisy fridge. I reported all the issues on Tuesday half were rectified, I felt dismissed by the other issues. On the Wednesday morning not being too far from home I drove back home for a shower refusing to use the bathroom facilities. When I arrived back in the park I was a little frustrated and tearful but spoke to a very kind and understanding manager called Rebecca. She fixed all the issues the same day.
The reason I have rated the overall stay poor is because until Wednesday evening I couldn’t relax due to the issues and by which point half our holiday was over. The deputy manager on site apologised and admitted that the lodges perhaps should be MOT’d more often which when your paying £600 for a 4 night break not in the school holidays in a 1 double bed lodge. I would agree.
We were compensated a free spa session each which was lovely BUT there was mold in the grout in the showers at the spa so that got my back up a bit. I’m incredibly OTT about cleanliness and had requested the lodge to specifically be asthma cleaned.
When companies charge high prices the expectation becomes more. I also didn’t find the lodge we stayed in very dog friendly, it was all open plan, no dog water bowl provided despite being a dog lodge and also half way through the week, a cleaner entered the lodge when we wasn’t there to deliver towels without any prior notice this could be dangerous for the cleaner. Please stop doing this.
If centre parcs read this feedback, my suggestion would be to look at the dog friendly lodges. The front door can be easily opened from the inside by large dogs. You charge £89 per dog, but the only difference between the lodges is the wooden dog tie at the back, there isn’t many facilities that are dog friendly. The pet industry is huge, providing doggie paw towels, water bowls, options to have adjustable baby gates between rooms and adding a paw print to the welcome sign is a small touch but for pet owners makes the difference.
And I would suggest the cleaner MOT’s each lodge and reports each visible issue on a weekly basis based on the higher prices you now charge.
Also I know centre parcs is eco friendly, white vinegar is a natural cleaner which kills most moulds. Just something to be added to the cleaning routine, and also please get rid of those coffee machines with single use pods. They’re awful for the environment.
If anyone got this point still reading 🙌👍 if you plan to eat out each night be prepared the average meal is around £15 sometimes higher and soft drinks are around £4.25 per draft coke.
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Date of stay: April 2024
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip 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.
Response from Center Parcs, Other at Center Parcs Sherwood Forest
Responded 26 Apr 2024
Good afternoon, Thank you for taking the time to write this review following your stay with us at Sherwood Forest. I was sorry to hear of the issue and upset caused by the issues in your accommodation and I am happy that you were able to report this and get it rectified, but I understand that this did put a dampener on the whole break. I would explain when we request asthma cleaning on a lodge, this means a different cleaning product is used rather than a deep clean. All lodges should be cleaned to the same standard regardless of type or whether an asthma clean has been requested. I am happy to see that the guest service team was able to offer some form of goodwill gesture but again, I am sorry that this was not as expected. If you would like to discuss this further, we would ask that you email us at Head Office via the Contact Us section on our website. I hope that we may be able to welcome you back again in the future and restore your faith in us. Kind regards Center Parcs
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Lots of positives (we like coming), but also lots of negatives this year.
When we arrived we felt that the site was free from litter, lodge was clean and nice (although the dishwasher was not working correctly so we had to wash everything when we arrived as the crockery and cutlery hadn't been washed correctly), the light show on the Monday night with the entertainers was exceptional, the revamped country club looked great. Beds are comfortable. Check in very good. Starbucks service in the pool was great.
What really let the place down was their food. It's not good. £26 for ribs in Hucks, it was shockingly bad, plus there were a dozen tiny bones in the meat about size of a match head and they were sharp. Small portion, very salty. Awful. Breakfast in the Jardin de Sport was horrific, £17 for a breakfast where the poached eggs were rock hard (although the service in here was good, where the service in Hucks was a joke). Some of the pool areas were dirty and the children's play area often wasn't available. Also it was cold inside.
Yes, we will be back, but Hucks won't be on our agenda and hopefully the pool staff will take more pride in their facility.
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Date of stay: January 2025
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip 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 arrived at our new style executive lodge at 4.45 and the front door was wide open. On entering the lodge we were greeted with the curtains hucked up and a sweeping brush in the middle of the floor with white sealant all over the table ,floor and window ledge. On further investigation the windows were all tacky with new sealant along with dirty hand prints on the windows from the workmen. We went straight to customer services to report this and the lady was verbally sympathetic but didn’t offer any compensation or a change of accommodation. It is now Thursday and of course I have cleaned all the mess up left by the workmen as centre parcs did not send their cleaning team to rectify this issue. The accommodation is very tired and sad with lots of patching up , creased flimsy curtains and uncomfortable beds and seating. These extremely poor standards and lack of customer care are not what I would expect for a midweek break in a new style executive lodge costing £700.
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Date of stay: June 2024
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Travelled with family
Room Tip:Upgrade if you want comfort this accommodation must of been new style in 1999 .
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.
I am a regular Center Parcs guest but over the last couple of years standards have reduced each time I have stayed. This time being the worst. It is now massively overpriced, with the high prices charged, you would expect above quality food and service. This was not the case. We visited Rajinda Pradesh where the meals had a massive reduction in meat. There were 5 very small pieces of chicken in 3 of the curries ordered. This was mirrored in Las iguanas where the food was massively carb heavy with little or no meat / vegetables in the dishes. Nachos ordered were stale and the salads looked past it. In las Iguanas we ended up waiting over an hour for food. Whilst there I noticed an overabundance of waiting staff not doing a lot and not in any rush. This was echoed in most places, staff were very inattentive, slow and frankly not interested. A good example of this was in the sports cafe where glasses around the pool tables were not cleaned up for over two hours. The icing on the cake for this visit was waking up on exit day to no water in the villas. Our family couldn’t get water or shower. When I called guest services they didn’t seem to care. It was very clear there was going to be no offer of bottled water for free etc. After being told by guest services it was isolated to certain villas, we went to the sports cafe to be told there was no water there either and had to pay for drinks. My biggest concern was they were still serving hot food and would have been handling raw meat with no sufficient way of washing dishes or hands ! Due to this we decided not to have breakfast and cut our day short and left at 10am. Considering we spent 2k for a four night break it is unacceptable. I have been to budget holiday resorts for half the price that had better services than I received on this occasion. This time Center Parcs you have lost a repeat customer of many years. You really need to look at staff service training and not cutting corners, cheapening food to charge the prices you do.
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Date of stay: October 2024
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Travelled with family
Room Tip:Take your mattress topper the beds are really uncomfortable.
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 Center Parcs, Guest Services / Front Office at Center Parcs Sherwood Forest
Responded 3 Nov 2024
Thank you for taking the time to share your review. It's very rare to receive feedback like yours as the feedback regarding our staff and restaurants is very complimentary. We are therefore very sorry for any disappointment you had during your break. Kind regards Center Parcs
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We booked a four bedroom lodge with a sauna and a games room complete with a pool table. Was a lovely sized lodge with table and chairs and a barbecue area outside. Each bedroom had a toilet, downstairs bedroom just had a shower, and the same in one of the rooms upstairs. But two of the rooms had a bath and a shower as well as a balcony. Two of the room where double beds and two twin ones. The lodge was very clean on arrival. This was mine and my little girls first time at sherwood forest but we had both been to whinfell forest two times before. The layout of sherwood is very different to whinfell, this was the first thing i noticed, all places restaurants, swimming etc our outside instead of under one building, so not ideal if the weathers not on your side, which it wasnt the week we went. Theres plenty of activities for the little ones, which you can book and pay for before you arrive via your booking online. Its quite pricey to be expected, but one activity (the chocolate academy), you can leave your child for 3 hours, so gives you some time to relax. Theres also pottery painting, bowling, mini golf, cupcake making, mini trek, just to name a few. Theres also some good food venues on site, and a few soft plays. There a lovely beach, and some parks. Theres a great mini disco on which my little girl loved. A warning the drinks are really expensive, a pint of lager cost me £7.50 and was nearly a fiver for a soft drink. The food prices arent too bad. The swimming is brilliant, theres a few slides, rapids, waves and a great place for the little ones to play in, its the best part of centre parcs i thought. To sum up this was my favourite centre parcs and well defo be back.
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Date of stay: July 2024Trip 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.
I do not normally write reviews but I feel I need to share my honest experience of centre parcs. We travelled in December as a couple with an 8 month old baby. This was our first visit to centre parcs and I am sad about how we found the whole experience, we would not rush back.
We booked a 3 bed NEW style woodland lodge. I can certainly say the lodge was far from ‘NEW’ as it is advertised. It was quite frankly disgusting.
There was mould all over the place (including on the walls in each of the bedrooms), it smelt fusty, dirt and food splattering left on the walls from previous guests, the plug in the sink in the bathroom was broken, hair was left in the bath/shower from previous guests… the list could go on… In addition to this it had not been hoovered or cleaned properly prior to our arrival which we ended up given the whole place a clean so that our baby could crawl about etc. I must add we did complain to Guest Services about how disgusting the lodge was and we were offered £185 refund due to the issues and they were very apologetic which we appreciated. They also came back to clean the lodge again the next day.
It is evident due to the turnover of guests from the weekend going into the week and vise Versa the housekeeping staff are not given enough time to properly clean these lodges. Centre parcs also advertise these as ‘new style’ lodges however given the build up of mould in the place it’s far from new! I dread to think what the old ones are like.
The food in the restaurants was average and extremely expensive for what you get. It is massively inflated so if you plan on going and eating out I would certainly budget for this. We did order a Indian takeout one night and I am 99% certain these were just microwave ready meals. Would not recommend ordering an Indian takeaway. The sports bar has a great soft play area for younger children but be warned the place is full of chavs.
Swimming - this was the best part of the trip and is great for kids. However all I would say is the inside pools need to be slightly warmer as our baby was shivering and cold. We ended up spending most of our swimming experience in the inside part of the outdoor pool as it was warmer and more suitable for babies.
Winter wonderland - This is great if you visit November/December and I would recommend however we did feel the Santa experience was VERY rushed. We were in and out the building within 5 minutes. The lady at the photo kiosk was rude and clearly annoyed we were asking to look through the photos more than once to pick which one we wanted!
Overall for the money I would not pay to go back in a hurry
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Date of stay: December 2023Trip 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 Center Parcs, Other at Center Parcs Sherwood Forest
Responded 6 Dec 2023
Good morning, Thank you for taking the time to write this review following your stay with us at Sherwood Forest. I am very sorry that we failed to give you a memorable first break with us. Cleanliness has always been a huge priority for us at Center Parcs and offering clean, tidy, and well-presented lodges/ apartments for our guests is something that we have always prided ourselves on. We describe the accommodation you booked as "New Style" to differ from the original style also offered. It’s not necessarily a new lodge, but the interiors do differ in style from the original ones. That said, again, our lodges should always be up to a high standard, and I am sorry again for the issues raised. We have an ongoing, rolling process of refurbishment across the whole village and, as a general rule, look to upgrade lodges every three to four years, or sooner if our maintenance team feels it's appropriate. I am happy to hear that you found the Subtropical Swimming Paradise and Winter wonderland enjoyable and I hope that there were some other aspects of the break that you found enjoyable. Kind regards Center Parcs
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There are more places to choose from in the Rufford area.
ALSO KNOWN AS
center parcs sherwood forest hotel rufford, center nottingham parcs, centre parks nottingham
LOCATION
United KingdomEnglandNottinghamshireRufford
NUMBER OF ROOMS
7
Prices are provided by our partners for one room, with variable occupancy rules as provided by the property, and reflect total costs of the stay, including all taxes and fees known to our partners. Please see our partners for more details.
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What are some restaurants close to Center Parcs Sherwood Forest?
Conveniently located restaurants include Bella Italia Sherwood Forest, Las Iguanas - Centre Parcs Sherwood Forest, and Cafe Rouge - Center Parcs Sherwood.
