Monday, February 12, 2018

CenterParcs Longleat, with Thomas - Day 1: Lost in space

The journey to CenterParcs started, as all holiday journeys do, not with a single step, but 20 minutes loading the car.  We decided to take the petrol vehicle, mainly because it has more space. Also, because I haven't got as far as signing the electric one up for charging points yet.  Then we traveled six miles in the wrong direction to meet with Liz, Ray and Thomas and to pick up some of their luggage.  The convoy (just two vehicles) set off down the A13 to the M25. For most of the journey the traffic was reasonable, there were only ne or two small jams.  We stopped at Fleet Services on the M3 for lunch - Burger King.  The temporary facilities are really quite nice, very open and airy, but warm enough none-the-less.  The most notable thing about the services, which I could just about have got to, was that all the re-charging points appeared to be cordoned off. The remainder of the journey was uneventful, and Thomas slept for most of the journey.  Then we drove into Longleat Forest, the signs are clear enough, but I had no idea where I was in relation to anything else.  Maps are provided, but they need magnification to be of real use. 
The accommodation is clean, warm and modern - much nicer than I was expecting. There are TV's in every bedroom and also one in the lounge / diner / kitchen.  The storage space in the bedrooms looks small, but is more than adequate. The bathrooms are also very modern. The first order of business after exploring the rooms is to get the devices connected to WiFi - that was much easier than expected.
Waiting for us was a large box of Krispy Kreme Donuts - very welcome, and logs for the wood burner (more on that later).  The donuts just underlined what lunch had already proven - sticking to the diet this week is going to be impossible.
After a while, Liz and I took the cars off site and parked them in the car park, then walked into the Plaza. Jo, Ray and Thomas walked from the chalet and we met at the bowling alley for a drink.  Prices are a little high, but I suppose that is to be expected.  At least they have Doombar.
The walk back in the dark was confusing for me, but Liz knew where she was going.  We are about 1.6 miles from the Plaza, so a return trip should be enough for my daily walking requirement, though I will have to move faster than I did tonight.  I would have expected to get a better view of the Milky Way on a clear cold night, especially as the lights are all dim, low level and mainly under fir trees, but it wasn't so different from Billericay.

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