So in the last month there have one or two mentions of my daughter’s birthday party but I haven’t had chance to share what we got up to as a family to spoil her rotten. There was a birthday with presents, cupcakes (of course) and a trip to a local farm where you can meet the animals, and there was the weekend before where we went away as a family and stayed in a hotel with the kids for the very first time.
Of course we’ve been away before but it’s always been self catering – this was the first time that we’ve been brave enough to go somewhere without a kitchen and a separate bedroom for the munchkins. We decided to go to Thomas Land as we went last year for a special showing of the King Of The railway Thomas film and the kids loved it. Thomas Land is part of the Drayton Manor theme park in Tamworth Staffordshire and has a lovely hotel right opposite the entrance. The Drayton Manor hotel has lots of Thomas the Tank Engine themed areas including figures as you walk into the foyer and engines on the walls of the landing areas. You can stay in standard family rooms or upgrade to themed Thomas the Tank engine rooms for that extra special experience. When we visited they had entertainers for the kids in the evenings on Saturday and Sunday and over the summer holidays they will have nightly entertainment. A play area with swings and other wood built equipment is available and our kids had a great time playing each night.
If you’re looking for a short break with your family I would highly recommend a weekend spent here. we travelled down on the Friday, stayed overnight and went into the park all day Saturday. We chose to stay an extra night and travel home on the Sunday morning meaning we got home in time for lunch with no rushing and no overtired kiddies. The whole experience in the hotel was great once we figured out that we had to scan our room keys to make the lifts work. Breakfast was a buffet style which was great fr the kids and during dinner there were train tables for the kids to play with (just remember to bring your own engines).
The park itself is great for both young and older children, our 3 and 4 year old loved the big wheel, the trains and the helicopter ride. When they’re older I’m sure they will love the roller coasters and the giant log flume, although I May be sending them on those with their dad!!
We received a discounted room rate in return for reviewing our experience however all opinions are our own.
