I had a degree of anxiety about our stay at Alton Towers, our last Theme Park Holiday wasn't the best and the Mr HATES theme parks! So I felt a bit like the odds were stacked against us!
My worry was totally fruitless though as even the Mr claims he'll happily come back to stay! High praise indeed.
So let me tell you all about it, The Enchanted Village consists of Lodges and Tree Houses, the Tree Houses are set separately and are a bit higher in price as they sleep more people and a have a kitchen area, hot tub and several extras.
The lodges are set around the resort in little circles of about 10
lodges each. In the centre of the circle is a small grassed play area
with either a swing, see saw or climbing frame.
Check in was swift and helpful, we were offered a breakfast time slot and asked if we wanted to book dinner too, the receptionist was happy to describe the food on offer and prices in each of the available eateries but there is a self serve booking system which contains all the menus as well.
There are no cars on site but a porter will help you with your bags if you drop them at reception or you can use the drop off points then park in the designated area when you are settled. We opted for getting the kids in and then me hauling luggage later, divide and conquer is our usual plan of action.
The lodges have a double bedroom bathroom and kids den, the real beauty though is each of the cottages are made to look like a a fairy/elf cottage with a crooked chimney and rounded entrance, inside you will find a woodland theme and the children's bedroom is decorated with forest walls, little elf footprints on the floor and there's even a fairy door that lights up in the wall of the main room.
We were greeted with cosy beautifully crisp bedding, fluffy towels, toiletries and a fully stocked tea station. The only thing missing (but read more on how to fix this later) was a small fridge for chilling milk wine or beer.
The kids were so excited to discover that they would be sleeping in bunk beds and even more excited to discover a third bed which rolled out from underneath. Three excitable kids in an enchanted room meant for a late night but they were all very comfortable and cosy, the cottage is very warm and has enough space to feel like you aren't stuffed in. The tv is a super techy flat screen with wavy remote (yep there is a real term but basically its like a wii but for the TV) and the kids were pleased to watch Despicable Me 2 for free, but there are other movies to rent at reasonable rates.
We decided that the prices in the all you can eat were (that's in another hotel about 5 minutes across the complex) a bit too steep for us given that the littlies don't eat a huge amount, and looking at the Crooked Spoon (on site restaurant) menu there was plenty of choice at reasonable rates but the kids were tired and grumpy and room service looked very appealing. The menue has Pizzas, Sides and Ice Cream, nothing flash but
We ordered a pizza a garlic bread and 2 lots of chips with all the seasoning and sauces that could be carried and it cost £25 was delivered piping hot to our door in 10 minutes and tasted lovely, plenty enough to feed 5 of us and we loved sitting in the terrace which feels just like an extension of the room. In fact if the terrace had a gate to stop wandering toddlers escaping we'd have gladly kept the door open and relaxed on the terrace all night.
Housekeeping deserve a special mention the room was scrupulously clean and they are one of the few hotels who stick to the rule of only replacing towels places in the bath which score brownie points with hippy me! The beds were straightened and bins emptied while we were in the park so the room was neat on our return. One team member in particular who helped me with the luggage, without without being asked, offered information on where to find cold wine (truly important) and happily brought extra cushions and towels and a bed guard also taking away our pizza boxes while she passed! I apologise for my terrible memory if you are reading this but I did ask your name at reception and promptly forgot (Paula maybe?!?) but you really did go beyond 'just a job' and that makes a world of difference to us when choosing hotels. Customer service is truly a make or break for us so thank you lovely lady.
Throughly the evening 'forest helpers' offer a multitude of free activities including circus skills, bug safari, archery, treasure hunts and sports .
Breakfast is a buffet affair and there's plenty on offer, cereal, fruit, hot breakfasts and pasties tea and coffee from a machine as are the apple juice orange juice or water. The breakfast was nice, plentiful and hot a perfectly reasonable offering similar to many chain hotels we've stayed in.
To get from the hotel to the park involves a short walk past splash landings hotel and alton towers hotel, then a swift monorail ride. this in my opinion is the only bit that needs real improvement of the whole stay, the signage isn't brilliant to the monorail and could be fabulously improved with some footprints or ground markings leading from reception.
The monorail had a huge queue but it went down really quickly and so swiftly we were on our way to
CBeebies Land....
Overall we were super impressed with our stay, comfortable beds, spacious layout, great activities, free wifi, great room service and fab customer care rate this hotel a great 4.5/5 with us.
Worth noting before your stay if the hotel offer extras like bed guards, extra pillows etc which can be booked in advance and if you need one you can request a fridge in your room. Sadly we learned this too late, had we known I could have brought Termite some dairy free snacks and milk but we will know for next time, and there WILL be a next time!
You can read our recommendations for a stay at The Enchanted Village and a visit to Alton towers here
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