Sherwood Castle Holiday Forest — Local services in Newark and Sherwood

"Wise business executives listen to their customers" [Forbes magazine, online 2017].All the reviews are true so why has nothing changed? Highlights: Cabin layout is good with a central area at front and bedrooms at back. Bunk rooms are near parents rooms and it feels secure with fencing around boundary of park and sensible parking system in operation.There is a great woodland to explore and many activities to participate in if you desire.The site is generally peaceful and well laid out.There is plenty of equipment, utensils and brilliant dishwasher to make it feel like a home from home. HOWEVER......This could be a fantastic holiday park with simple changes but the focus seems off target somehow. Customers are made to feel as though the company is doing them a favour by letting them stay rather than centering the business round it's paying customers.Some examples: 8 man cabin for 3 nights only provided with 2 half-used toilet rolls (awful quality). The same terribly thin toilet tissue could be purchased at the shop for £1.75 for 4 rolls but just why?! Easy win number 1.Concrete badminton courts were chargeable at £5 For half an hour but nobody else was booking them in the time we were there, there was no competition for courts and the shuttlecocks and raquets were sub standard. Why charge at all? Easy win 2.The dated and frankly quite disgusting and cold swimming pool operated on a ridiculous scheme whereby if the capacity of 16 people (For maybe 45 cabins, so maybe 180 people) was reached we had to wait (given a time we could go in) but if we left in that time period the slot would be given to people who came in afterwards. This meant that at busy times customers could easily have been spending their holidays sitting around watching other people having fun instead of enjoying their own free time, for a considerable period. With children, it was very frustrating since they were told we were going swimming and then had to sit around waiting for 30 minutes before even being permitted to go in the changing room. The changing room was filthy and cramped so only 1 family could realistically change in there. If a booking scheme was in operation everyone interested in swimming would get a turn and know what time to return and there would be no frustrating waiting around unnecessarily. Easy win 3. (That's if you want to go in a cold, below par facility like that.)There was a large wet patch in our bedroom coming from the shower area on the other side of the wall. It was pretty clear that either the shower was or had been leaking before we arrived. The cleaning staff (not sure what they do in the 10 mins we saw them spend in a cabin after another family left) should have picked up on this before we arrived but it was overlooked. The wooden table had open grooves on the table top. There was a collection of crumbs in there that Paul Hollywood would have been proud of, built up of many weeks of bread eating at the table by many families. Easily solved by a hoover before the next family turns up. You could mop the floor too. Easy win 4.The tyre swings in the forest were amazing fun but there were sharp wires sticking out at the base of the rope on at least 2 of the swings which drew blood from our children. Use alternative method of connection or attach a plastic plug of some type over this area (the red tape is clearly not working but it shows they know about the issue).I could go on.Overall it's a shame because location and concept are brilliant and the potential is tangible. As it is however, with poor management and couldn't-care-less staff, this park is currently average. Profiteering is too obvious and the service is just not there.Come on Sherwood castle! We would love to recommend you. We have a large family and Nottingham is a perfect central meeting point for us. Please get your...

All is not bad with this place, however there are some things that need to be considered. ||Do NOT buy the Wowcher voucher that states luxury, the cabins for the vouchers are NOT luxury. There is one bedroom with a double bed and then other rooms all have bunk beds! Not great if travelling with just adults. The complimentary chocolates were toffifee! Unfortunately I had booked before reading reviews then dreaded coming BUT all was not bad. ||After we en reread our lodge and saw the bedroom set up, I called reception to ask if another cabin was available without bunk beds. There were non available as the Wowcher cabins were allocated and they all had bunk beds. The only cabin available was a ‘wizard’ one which had a ‘secret garden’ but came with an upgrade fee of £100. We went with that in the end and I’m glad we did. |The cabin was slightly bigger however the dinning table and kitchen was just as small as the normal cabin. And the sofas (even in the 1st cabin) are just too big/bulky for the size of the cabins. |The wizard cabin has a log fire which meant no heating BUT we didn’t need heating so that was fine for us. The bedrooms had one double bed and two singles which was better than bunk beds. ||The secret garden was weird but made us smile. Harry Potter ‘themed’ with some banners added and a throw. It has a large tv and hot tub and a bed and seating which was nice. ||What you need to consider is you’re staying in a forest area so yes there will be bugs and leaves will be outside and everywhere, you know that when you book a place like this. The same is for centre parcs. ||The cabins (both) were clean and had cleaning stuff provided like washing up liquid, dishwasher tablets, a sponge and tea towel. Bedding and towels were fresh and clean. |Cutlery and plates etc were provided and did the job. |The bathroom in the 1st cabin was very basic but then again so was the one we had at centre parcs. |Sherwood does have some fancy/modern looking cabins opposite a pond so if you do get one of those then I’m sure the size and bedrooms won’t be an issue. ||Overall a decent stay once we paid extra for a different cabin. I’m sure the 1st one would be ok if you have small kids. ||Hot water in the shower stopped (I was only in there a short time conscious about what other reviews said) and was cold for the next person but after a 30mins wait seemed to be fine again. ||Take some games or Blu ray dvds as there is no WiFi provided and the smart tvs don’t work as there is no WiFi. There are some basic channels but not bbc and the tv reception in the secret garden can be hit and miss.||Would I book again, yes and no. No because there isn’t much to do on site and the place could do with a refresh in places. This place has HUGE potential. The cabins were...

The Cabins could be charming if they were updated and the carpets replaced and added a few home touches. Although clean there was a strange smell in the living room. The beds weren't very comfortable and the pillows were very thin indeed! The towels were also poor quality. There's a full size under counter fridge as well as a freezer, cooker, hob, microwave, toaster, pans and utensils and a dishwasher so you can do proper self catering. However the crockery could do with being replaced as scratched and mismatched. All cabins have a balcony, BBQ stand and a picnic table. It needed brushing down as covered in leaves and cobwebs. For those that want a break from cooking, we fully recommend Paddyfields Chinese take away. (They deliver to your cabin door and it's cash on delivery.) Plenty of space for kids to run around in the playgrounds, there's also den building ,a walking path through the woodland as well as an animal corner with a few sheep and pygmy goats. The cabins run pretty much along one road so you won't get lost finding your cabin after a day off site. It is worth noting the road is narrow and unsafe for children to cycle on, you can't drive around the park or to reception. The swimming pool needs to be booked in advance and you only get a half hour session. You share your allocated time slot with another family. There are other activities such as tennis available but you need to pay for this. You really need to bring a football and a couple of board games with you as there's no WiFi anywhere on site and signal for mobile data is poor. There's also no dvd player and only Freeview channels available on the TV which would often loose signal. To make our stay more comfortable a launderette would have been welcomed as well as a little hoover in the cabin to keep on top of house keeping. There is a broom and dust pan and brush but the living room has a carpet and soon became quite dirty with us traipsing in and out. Would we come back? If they took down the naff wall canvases, stopped disinfecting the dining table so it was sticky, replaced the mattresses, bedding, towels and carpets, extended the swimming pool times, added soft play and provided a few more home touches then yes as the location is perfect as are...