Ribby Hall Review – Perfect for a relaxing Northern escape

We had visited Ribby Hall in 2013 and even though we had a lovely time there we felt there was still some room for improvement.  In summer 2017, we revisited the holiday park and were keen to see how the park had developed since our last visit.  We had heard there had been lots of investment by the holiday park, so we thought we would test it out.  Here’s what we thought.. carry on reading for our Ribby Hall review.

What is Ribby Hall Village

Located in the beautiful Lancashire countryside in the village of Wrea Green you will find the 5-star holiday park, Ribby Hall Village.  The park is only located a few miles from the bustling seaside resort of Blackpool so you can easily build in a quick trip the beach.  Ribby Hall is a family-run business and continues to develop and grow with new and exciting attractions being added all the time.  We noticed that the site had developed significantly in the last four years with lots more choice and activities for families.  As we often travel with teens, I was really impressed that Ribby Hall had lots for children of all ages.  The arrival at Ribby Hall is much more different than say Center Parcs as you go inside and talk to a member of staff and have a proper check-in, rather than being one in a huge line on a conveyor check-in system.

Ribby Hall Review – Location

With us being based in the North, location wise getting to Ribby Hall easily beats any of the other holiday parks we have visited in the UK.  The park has all the facilities that the other holiday parks offer, and instead of spending hours upon hours travelling, this journey took us less than 30 minutes to arrive at the resort.  We left around 5 pm from home and were still able to have a full evening of swimming, getting used to the site, comfortable dinner and still put the children to bed at a normal-ish time.

Ribby Hall Review – Accommodation

 

Here is where Ribby Hall really offers something a little unique compared to other holiday parks.  The site is not only home to lots of different self-catering choices, but also is home to a 5-star hotel and spa so there is something for everyone.  During our visit we stayed in the Poppy Cottages and although it looks small from outside, it was huge from the inside with 3 bedrooms, a lovely open-plan kitchen and lounge area and huge grass area to the rear of the property which would be lovely to relax and unwind in summer.  There was ample space for us and even in the master bedroom, we had loads of space which makes a big change from some of the other holiday parks.  The bedrooms all came with their own TV and my little adventurers were in heaven, not that we used it much but the little adventurers loved it.

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I do like that you are able to park your car outside of your accommodation.  It makes it so much handier for arriving, leaving and if you want to do day trips off site.  The flip side to this is that that you will always need to be wary with children as cars are driving throughout the site.

Ribby Hall Review – Swimming pool

On our last visit in 2013, this was the area which I thought needed the most improvement.  Ribby Hall Village undertook a huge £1.5 million pound renovation of the swimming area in 2017 and installed a lovely play/slide area which included buckets which overflow (never seems to get tiring for the little adventurers to eagerly wait and watch it fall over!) more suited for younger children and two different slides for older children.  The first is an interactive slide which has music and lights in the slide to make it more enjoyable.  The second was by far our favourite, the racers.  We loved the new facilities and even though we visited in the summer holidays the queues and number of people in the pool were a really comfortable number.  We never felt rushed or nor did the pool ever feel packed.  The actual swimming pool is not huge but there are loads of floats, hoops, woggles and other items for the children to play with.  There is also a couple of jacuzzi areas which the little adventurers were allowed to use.

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Ribby Hall Review – Activities

The last time we visited we did hardly of the activities as Zayn was only a few weeks old and we visited on a freezing weekend in March.  So we were keen to try out the different activities this time and as we visited in Summer there is a whole range of activities which for children to take part in.  As our children are different ages we tried to choose activities which they all enjoyed and also could all do together.  During our weekend, we tried the art session, science fun, green fingers, balloon modelling and the Water Walkerz.  The price of the activities was between £5-7 each per child.  The sessions lasted about an hour and the children were able to take whatever they made with them home so were made perfect souvenirs/gifts from the weekend.  I thought the activities were lovely, really interactive and the children got to make a range of things.   I thought it was great value for money especially the art session and balloon modelling, both have really good activities and the children were able to try and learn new things.

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These were only so many other activities we could have chosen and would love to try them.  They had indoor and outdoor activities galore and are always adding to them, with Segways tours for older children to a new animal/petting area.  The site is relatively small so you are never too far away from activities.

Ribby Hall Review – Free activities:

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  • Swimming pool: this is always a huge pull for families and now with the new and improved pool, it is proving to be even more popular.
  • Outdoor play areas: there are 3 plays are located at the front of the site and there are choices from sand to slides, ziplines to climbing frames.  The little adventurers loved all of these
  • Indoor soft play area: There is a one for guests under the age of 12 to use.  Ideal for somewhere to burn off some excess energy if it is raining outside.
  • Walks: there are several lovely walks in the woodlands and around the Ribby Hall site.  they have a few trails set up so you can easily spend a few hours there.
  • Bike rides: Ribby Hall has bike trails, you are able to hire bikes on-site (for a charge) but you are able to bring your bikes from home
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Ribby Hall Review – Food

We were staying in self-catering accommodation so would have our breakfast in the cottage but we decided to have lunch and dinner in the various food places on-site.  We loved that there was a range of different restaurants from fast-food style options like Papa John’s offering pizzas to the Bar & Grill, restaurants such as the Tapas Restuarant or for those seeking more peace and quiet adult only dining at the hotel.  There are also a couple of coffee/tea room options with Starbucks and The Tea Room.  During our stay, we tried several of the food places and were impressed with them all.  Our highlight was definitely the Tapas restaurant which had seating outside, located opposite the sand play area and we visited on a gloriously sunny day so could wait for our food whilst watching the child at the same time.

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Things to be aware of:

  • Swimming pool: remember to bring your fitness centre cards and also towels.  There are no towels at the centre so bring some from the cottage/home.  If you are visiting at particularly busy times like school holidays, you are able to book a time slot for the pool.
  • Swimming Slides: at weekend, the swimming pool is open till later but the slide closes an hour before the end of the session.  We arrived just before 7 on the first night an managed a few slides before the area was cordoned off.  The good thing about visiting later in the
  • Booking activities: You can book activities before your visit and I would recommend that you do this as it makes your days much better to plan out.

Here is a short video of our time at Ribby Hall.

 

Overall we had a lovely weekend at Ribby Hall and I think it is a lovely way to spend a weekend away. If you are based in the North, it is the perfect escape and even though we were only 30 miles from home, it felt like we had escaped hours away.  There are lots to do for families to do and the site is continually being developed.  We noticed so many improvements in the last 4 years and I am sure it will just get better and better.

 

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Nisbah

I am a traveller, mother and blogger. We love to go on adventures (big and small, near and far) and strive to show our children how amazing and beautiful the world is! I caught the travel bug many moons ago and despite having three little adventurers, I still suffer from "itchy" feet. We love the great outdoors and one another. Come and join the fun :)

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1 Response

  1. MummyTravels says:

    It sounds a great family getaway – I had seen a little about the renovations they had made, the waterpark especially looks fantastic.

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