Well, having spent a weekend here, I'd definitely go back. However for a five star site? Well, it's not quite as luxurious as I'd expected.
On arrival, everything appeared to work out well. We'd been allocated a tent pitch which was absolutely tiny. Nowhere near big enough to pitch the monster of a tent that I own. However a quick call to the office meant we were allocated a new pitcha huge one! So, complete with electric hook up and allwe were happy. In fact, I'd go so far as to say we'd been offered the best (and biggest) pitch on the site. Yes, we were very happy!
It was that evening when we attempted to enter the female toilets that we encountered our first trauma however. For a £5 deposit, we'd been given a toilet and shower room keybut we couldn't get it to turn in the female toilet lock. Now, after consuming muchos cider (a welcome reward after having spent multiple hours pitching the huge tent and luxury furnishings which we'd strapped to the roof of the car), we really COULDN'T cross our legs until the following morning until the office opened again to resolve our key issue. However it turned perfectly within the mens' toiletsso into the mens' we plodded. We were caught out whilst trying to escape when a bloke tried to enter, however he took it in good humour and we escaped unscathed. We later figured out that the key DID work in the womens' toilets, however a certain insert/pull/turn knack was required. Ahem.
After a rainy night, and a couple of kids who'd decided an early morning trip to the football pitch was in order, we acquired a set of VERY muddy clothes. Okay, so this is where we tested out the laundry room. Insert money. Done. Turn the dial to the correct setting. Ermmmmnothing. The machine didn't switch on, and our clothes were locked into the machine. A two hour wait for the 'technician' (who didn't seem to have a clue) to arrive and try to fix the problem ensued. And if it weren't for the fact that another guest who'd come into the laundry room to wash his dishes hadn't suggested kicking the machine a few times, we could well have spent the entire afternoon in there too (as if wasting a whole morning in there wasn't enough). Technical business, eh? We were later advised that there was a better quality laundry room at the entrance to the sitebut this information was given a little too late.
Oh, and I should maybe mention the fact that the hairdryer in the womens' toilets decided not to work anymore after the very first day. Five star luxury, indeed.
The on-site shop was very well equipped however. I was very impressed by this. It wasn't your bog standard camp site shopit was large, well stocked, and perfect for picking up those essentials that you'd missed.
The family entertainment lounge was mediocre to say the least. We didn't venture into here of an evening - however there was entertainment provided over the weekend. But the layout and decor felt bland, uninspired, and not all that welcoming. This was a bit of a disappointment as the building looked very appealing from the outside. It had a bit of a school dinner hall type atmosphere. The camp site became deserted of an evening however, so we can only assume that the evening entertainment made up for this - everybody seemed to venture along there. The fact that you had to pay extra to go into the entertainment complex of an evening was rather disappointing however. We'd have hoped that our site fees and passes would have covered this.
Hot water in the showers was plentiful, and the toilet block was kept well maintained.
Thurston Manor is a friendly, family run holiday park, and is definitely worth a visit, however I wouldn't give it the five stars that it's been allocated. For that rating, I'd expect the facilities (such as the washing machines and hair dryers) to actually work. The staff were very amenable however, and the layout of the site was ideal, so I'd still very happily go back. read more
