Center Parcs Whinfell Forest
Center Parcs Whinfell Forest spreads across 400 acres of pine forest near Penrith in Cumbria, next to the Lake District and the most northerly of the five UK villages. It's a car-free forest of two-storey lodges built around a covered central village, where the warm Subtropical Swimming Paradise, the shops and the restaurants sit together under cover against the Cumbrian weather. It's the cheapest of the five villages, and the only one with a wild red squirrel population.
On this page
Is it worth it?
The quick read before the detail: who this village suits, how the money works and the facts to skim first.
If you're choosing a Center Parcs village with a baby or toddler, Whinfell makes its case on three things: it's the cheapest of the five, it has the only wild red squirrel population in the network and its warm pool and shops sit together under a covered central village that helps when the Cumbrian weather turns. The catches are specific. It's the most remote of the five, a long drive from the Midlands and the South. It's hilly, so a scooter and a central lodge beat bikes-with-trailers. The lodges are two-storey with stairs, and their condition varies a lot by tier, so book a refurbished one. Get those right and it's a strong pick, especially for a family in the North of England or Scotland.
Best for
You want a car-free forest, a warm pool mostly under cover and the only UK village with wild red squirrels, and you're within reasonable reach of the M6 in the North or southern Scotland.
Maybe not for
You're driving up from the Midlands or the South and don't want the miles, you need flat ground and single-storey rooms or the paid extras would push a tight budget.
Best ages
Babies and toddlers upwards. The splash zone and Children's Pool suit the littlest, and the paid toddler sessions run from around thirteen months.
What stands out
The wild red squirrels, the covered central village for wet Cumbrian weather and being the cheapest of the five villages.
What to check
Book a refurbished lodge tier rather than the older Forest Lodge, and ask for a lodge near the central village to cut the hill-walking with a buggy.
Where is it?
In 400 acres of pine forest near Penrith in Cumbria, next to the Lake District, just off the M6 at junction 40.
Quick facts for families
What the village is like
The forest setting, the lie of the land and the choices that make getting around easy or hard with a buggy.
Whinfell Forest spreads across 400 acres of pine forest near Penrith in Cumbria (postcode CA10 2DW), by the village of Hackthorpe, next to the Lake District National Park rather than inside it, and it's the most northerly and remote of the five UK villages. The trees are predominantly coniferous, in the Caledonian style associated with Scotland's native pinewoods. It holds 861 lodges with room for around 4,668 guests at once, which makes it the largest of the five by capacity despite covering a similar acreage to the others, though the forest around them keeps it feeling quiet. Once you've parked, it's car-free, so children can scoot and cycle the paths with no traffic to watch for. The shops, restaurants and the pool sit together in a covered central village, which reviewers pick out as a real advantage when the Cumbrian weather turns wet.
Whinfell is a hilly site, more so than Elveden or Sherwood and less than Longleat, with a maximum gradient of around 5%, mostly on the shared roads that cars and bikes use. The dedicated walking footpaths are a different story. They're smooth and level enough to push a fully loaded buggy without getting out of breath, so a buggy on the footpaths is the easy way around. Where the hills bite is cycling with a child on board, a toddler seat or a trailer up the main-road slopes, which is hard work. For that reason families here tend to recommend a scooter or a balance bike over a bike for small children, and many find everywhere walkable anyway. If you'd rather cycle, bike hire opens on the same twelve-week window as the activities.
The one choice that shapes the week most is how close your lodge sits to the central village, since that walk ranges from a couple of minutes to around twenty depending on where you land. A central lodge cuts the hill-walking with a buggy, so it's worth requesting one when you book. The lodges are two-storey and Scandinavian in style, which means stairs, unlike the single-storey chalets at some villages. A stairgate is supplied, but a baby sleeping in a downstairs cot in a two-storey lodge still needs a bit of stair awareness overnight. If stairs worry you, ask Center Parcs about the layout or a ground-floor option before you book.
The Subtropical Swimming Paradise
The warm indoor pool and its toddler areas, then the two-storey lodges and the tier that decides how your week feels.
The Subtropical Swimming Paradise is included with every lodge, kept warm all year at 29.5°C, and it's where a family with little ones spends most of its swimming. Most of it sits under cover, which suits Cumbrian weather and a young child who feels the cold. The water is splash and spray-led rather than themed. There's a dedicated Children's Pool, a shallow area with a small slide that carries an under-one-metre height limit, so it's built for little ones, and a splash zone with cushioned flooring, ground-level spray fountains and watering cans and buckets, which is the main space for crawlers and early walkers. Whinfell doesn't give its toddler water a branded name the way some villages do, so you'll see it called the Children's Pool or the splash zone, and there's no pirate ship here if you've seen one at another village.
A few pool rules matter with young children. Children under four need one adult each in the water, buoyancy aids are free to borrow and swim nappies with a second layer over them are the rule for babies. The big flumes have a 1.22-metre height limit, so they're out of reach for this age group anyway. Baby Dolphins is a free session for nought to threes about half an hour before the pool opens to everyone, with one adult over eighteen per child and swim nappies required; places are limited, so book it the moment your window opens, the same free pre-swim you get at every village. A network-wide Quiet Hour on Wednesday and Sunday mornings at 9am turns the water features down for children who find a busy pool too much. The pool does get crowded at peak times and school half-terms, when the wave sessions can leave it hard to move, so an early or Quiet Hour swim is the calmer bet.
On one published comparison of the five villages' pools, Longleat's ranks top of the five at 4.8 out of 5, with Whinfell's second at 4.7 and Sherwood, Elveden and Woburn tied at 4.6. Whinfell's water stays splash and spray-led rather than themed and almost entirely under cover, which matters more on a wet Cumbrian week than a place on that ranking. The Activity Pool, used for swimming lessons and booked water sessions rather than the toddler areas, had a refurbishment recently. It's where those booked water activities run, so if you're booking one that needs it, check it's running when you're there. The day-to-day toddler splashing is separate and doesn't depend on it.
The lodges
The lodges are self-catering and come in tiers. The village opened in 1997 as Oasis Lakeland and became a Center Parcs around 2001, so its base lodge stock is among the older in the network, the fourth-oldest of the five villages. That age shows up in the biggest single complaint about Whinfell: lodge condition varies a lot by tier. The older, entry-level Forest Lodges are the ones reviews call tired, with worn carpets and chipped paint in the weaker units, slow shower drainage and in the worst reports a stained carpet, a dingy bathroom or a blocked sink. The refurbished tiers review well. It's a lottery worth loading in your favour by booking a refurbished tier.
| Lodge tier | What it is | Condition and family fit |
|---|---|---|
| Forest Lodge | The older, entry-level tier. | The one most reviews call tired, with worn carpets and chipped paint in the weaker units. A gamble on condition. |
| Woodland Premium | A refurbished, higher-specified tier. | Reviews well, and the surer choice if lodge condition worries you. |
| Grand Forest | The top refurbished tier. | Reviews well, and the most comfortable base if the budget stretches. |
Whatever the tier, two things are worth packing. There's no washing machine in the lodges, so a baby or toddler who gets through several outfits a day means bringing more clothes than the trip length suggests. The lodge curtains are thin and the forest gets light early, so a portable blackout blind is the most repeated tip across Center Parcs reviews and the difference between an early start and a very early one.
Eating and food shopping
How the self-catering and paid dining work, what a baby or toddler gets out of the village and the sessions worth booking.
There's no all-inclusive board here. The lodges are self-catering with a full kitchen, which is the easiest way to feed a baby or a fussy toddler, and then there are restaurants and cafes across the village for the meals you'd rather not cook. The Lakeside Inn and the Sports Café are the names that come up most, with the fuller line-up on the village's own site. On-site food, drinks and activities are priced steeply, a recurring complaint, with drinks singled out as the biggest markup of the three, automatic service charges added and prices rising year on year. The on-site grocery is handy for a top-up but dearer than a supermarket, so most families do a big shop in Penrith on the way in, about five miles from the village, and keep the restaurants as a treat.
Babies and toddlers
Each lodge comes with a travel cot, a high chair, a stairgate and a toddler step for the bathroom as standard. Bed rails are supplied only on request and subject to availability, so ask at booking rather than assuming, and bring your own cot sheet. There's pushchair storage too.
For soft play, the Lakeside Inn has the largest at Whinfell, a free multi-level climbing frame that suits under-tens, with more in the Sports Café and a dedicated under-fives area in the Leisure Bowl. The Lakeside Inn also has free Ella's Kitchen baby food and bottle-warming, which is handy for a weaning baby.
Plenty of what suits the youngest costs nothing and needs no booking: the covered village playground, the Ranger's Lodge wildlife area, a small beach at Lake Beck to take a bucket and spade to, feeding the red squirrels and birds from your lodge patio and a free baby disco most evenings.
On resortThings to do
Beyond the free playgrounds and paths, there's a programme of paid toddler sessions to book at the twelve-week window: Mini Musical Movers for eighteen months to five years, Sensory Play for thirteen to thirty-six months, Mucky Pups messy play, which parents consistently praise, Chestnut's Picnic parachute games for two to fives, Fun Pots With Tots and a Teddy Bear's Picnic. Mini Trek, a little treetop harness walk for two to fives up to 1.2 metres, splits toddlers down the middle: some love it and some refuse at the first platform, so treat it as a maybe. The Entertainment Hive, an indoor entertainment space that opened in mid-2025, draws good comments in newer reviews.
Whinfell also has a set of activities you won't find at the other villages, most of them aimed at older children and adults: a golf driving range, karting, The Bat Cage, an immersive gaming space called The ARENA and an escape room, The Plant Room. There's a spa on site too, for a break without the children.
Booking the activities
Activity bookings open twelve weeks before you arrive, and the popular things go within the first hour or two: Baby Dolphins, the busiest restaurant slots and the toddler sessions. Bike hire opens on the same window. Log in the morning it opens, and if you miss a slot the pool, the playgrounds and the forest paths still need no booking, so it only costs you the paid extras.
Red squirrels and forest wildlife
The red squirrels that set Whinfell apart, where to see them and the Lake District on the doorstep.
The red squirrels are a Whinfell draw no other UK village offers. Whinfell is one of only sixteen official UK red squirrel refuges and the only Center Parcs village with a real red squirrel population, with grey squirrels kept out; a count in 2025 found 215, up from 174 the year before. Sightings are common but not guaranteed, so it's worth managing a squirrel-mad child's hopes. The reliable spot is the bird hide near the Cycle Centre, especially around half past five to six in the evening, and a few monkey nuts on your lodge patio or a suction window feeder bring them close. A bookable Red Squirrel Family Adventure walk exists, though it involves a fair bit of walking for toddler legs. The forest holds other wildlife too, with badgers turning up on patios, along with roe deer, rabbits and bats.
The area and days out
Whinfell sits right next to the Lake District National Park, which is the obvious day out; our Lake District guide covers the family side of it, from the lake cruises to the gentler walks. Penrith, the nearest town, is about five miles away and roughly fifteen minutes by road, and it's where you'll find the supermarkets for a proper shop and anything you've forgotten. The forest is quiet and self-contained enough that many families barely leave it for the week, but the Lakes on the doorstep are there if you want them.
Getting there and when to go
The drive and the catchment, the weather month by month, what guests rate and flag, how it compares and the health bits.
Whinfell is easy to reach by road: leave the M6 at junction 40 and you're at the village in about five minutes. That makes it a straightforward drive from the North West, Yorkshire, the North East and southern Scotland. From further south it's a longer haul, roughly an hour and a half from Manchester and around two and a half hours from Birmingham, which is the trade-off for its quiet, remote setting, and something to weigh with a young child in the back.
On timing, the village is open all year, and term time costs a lot less than the school holidays. On one published comparison, three nights in February priced at around £519 against roughly £950 for the same three nights at a peak school-holiday week (last checked July 2026), close to half price for going in term time. That's the biggest saving available, and you can take a pre-school child whenever term time suits you. The covered central village means the weather here matters less than the crowds and the price.
Month by monthThe weather
The figures below are long-term averages for the Lake District, the nearest weather reference, and they show a cool, wet climate, which is exactly why the warm pool and the covered centre matter here.
| Month | Daytime high | Overnight low | Rain | Wet days |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 6.5° | 1° | 100 mm | 15 |
| February | 7° | 1° | 87 mm | 13 |
| March | 9° | 2° | 70 mm | 11 |
| April | 12° | 3.5° | 46 mm | 10 |
| May | 15.5° | 5.5° | 56 mm | 11 |
| June | 17.5° | 8.5° | 66 mm | 11 |
| July | 19.5° | 10.5° | 75 mm | 12 |
| August | 19° | 10.5° | 79 mm | 13 |
| September | 16.5° | 8.5° | 78 mm | 12 |
| October | 13° | 6° | 107 mm | 15 |
| November | 9° | 3° | 100 mm | 16 |
| December | 7° | 1° | 116 mm | 16 |
Typical monthly averages from weather-station records.
Loves and gripes
Across the reviews we read, the warmest praise is for the forest and the wildlife, the warm covered pool and the staff, while the steady complaints are about condition, price and signal.
What families love
- The forest setting, the peace and the car-free paths.
- The warm pool, mostly under cover and easy for young children in poor weather.
- The red squirrels, a real draw no other UK village has.
- Friendly, helpful staff, mentioned again and again.
- The covered central village, which keeps a wet day workable.
- The Lake District right next door.
- The Entertainment Hive, the newer indoor entertainment space, which recent reviews rate as a good addition.
Common gripes
- Lodge condition varies by tier, with the older Forest Lodges the weak spot.
- On-site food, drinks and activity prices are steep, with automatic service charges and year-on-year rises.
- The pool gets crowded at peak times and school half-terms.
- Mobile signal is poor across the site on every network.
- It's a long drive for most of England south of the North West.
As a rough steer, and these move about, guest ratings as of mid-2026 sit around 4 out of 5 on TripAdvisor across roughly 14,000 reviews, and 4.6 on Google. Trustpilot's score is far lower, around 2.3, but that page is brand-wide and mostly collects booking, billing and cancellation complaints across the whole company rather than the on-site holiday, set against occupancy that ran at 97.3% for the year to April 2025. TripAdvisor and Google, which capture the actual stay, are the better guide.
Against the other villagesHow it compares
The five villages share the same core, so for most families the nearest one is the sensible choice. What separates Whinfell is the price, the wildlife and the distance north. On one published comparison of a matching week's stay, Whinfell came in noticeably cheaper than Longleat, by around a fifth: a standard lodge for a week in August priced at £2,148 at Whinfell against £2,648 at Longleat (last checked July 2026). Its paid activities also priced a little lower than Woburn's, Elveden's or Longleat's. For a buggy-bound family who want the flattest, easiest site, Elveden is the gentler option; Whinfell wins on being the cheapest and having the best wildlife, and on being reachable for a family in the North or Scotland. Here's how the five line up.
| Village | What sets it apart for a family with little ones |
|---|---|
| Whinfell Forest | The cheapest of the five, the most remote and the only one with a wild red squirrel population. Its lodges are two-storey, and the site is hilly on the roads but level on the footpaths. |
| Elveden Forest | The flattest village, so the easiest site for a buggy or a bike trailer. Our fuller look is the Center Parcs Elveden guide. |
| Woburn Forest | The newest village, with the largest pool and a pirate-themed toddler area. |
| Longleat Forest | The hilliest village. On one published comparison its pool ranks top of the five. |
| Sherwood Forest | The original village, open since 1987. |
Health and practicalities
For anything medical, Penrith has an Urgent Treatment Centre for minor injuries and illness, roughly five to seven miles from the village and about ten to fifteen minutes away, but it's a minor-injuries unit rather than a full A&E and it isn't open around the clock. The nearest full A&E is Cumberland Infirmary in Carlisle, roughly 25 miles north and about half an hour's drive. It's worth saving both routes before you go, and dial 999 for anything serious.
One practical thing to expect: mobile reception is poor across the site on every network, a steady complaint with no fix, so don't count on a reliable signal once you're in the forest.
Questions
The things families ask most, the official pages worth a bookmark and when this guide was last refreshed.
Is Whinfell really the cheapest Center Parcs?
Yes, it's the cheapest of the five, and its paid activities sit a little lower too. Timing moves the price more than the village does, though: a term-time break can cost close to half a school-holiday one, and a pre-school child lets you go then. If budget is the main thing and you're up north, price Whinfell first.
What won't the lodge have that I'll need to bring?
A cot sheet, first of all, because the travel cot turns up without bedding. A blackout blind is the other one worth packing, since the curtains let plenty of light in and the forest is bright early on a summer morning. There's no washing machine either, so bring extra outfits for anyone still going through several a day. Bed rails come only if you ask and stock allows, so add them when you book rather than counting on them.
Should we bring bikes or scooters?
For a baby a buggy does everything on the footpaths, which are smooth and level even though the roads are hilly. For a toddler a scooter or a balance bike beats a bike here, because the road gradients are hard work with a child on board. If your lodge is central you can skip bike hire altogether.
Which paid sessions are worth booking for a toddler?
Mucky Pups messy play is the one parents praise most, and the sensory and music sessions go down well with younger toddlers. Mini Trek, the little treetop harness walk, is more of a gamble, since some children take to it and others want straight back down, so it's not one to count on.
Is the Activity Pool open?
It had a refurbishment recently. This is the pool used for swimming lessons and booked water sessions, not the toddler splashing, so if you're booking a water activity that needs it, check it's running first. Nothing your little one uses day to day depends on it.
Are we guaranteed to see a red squirrel?
No. They're around in good numbers, with 215 counted in 2025, but they come and go as they please and plenty of families see none. Your best chance is the hide by the Cycle Centre towards dusk, plus a few monkey nuts out on the patio. It's worth keeping a squirrel-keen child's hopes in check so a no-show doesn't spoil the day.
Where's the nearest hospital?
The closest option is Penrith's Urgent Treatment Centre, about fifteen minutes away, which deals with minor injuries and illness but doesn't run overnight and isn't a full emergency department. For anything more serious the nearest A&E is at Cumberland Infirmary in Carlisle, roughly half an hour up the M6. Put both in your phone before you set off, and call 999 in an emergency.
See more Center Parcs Whinfell Forest photos
Open the Center Parcs Whinfell Forest photo gallery →Useful links
- Center Parcs Whinfell Forest: the village's own page for lodges, the pool and directions.
- Whinfell village news: what's new, what's open and any current closures.
- Subtropical Swimming Paradise: the pool zones, Baby Dolphins and the Quiet Hour.
- The Lake District with little ones: our guide to the national park next door.
Last updated 13 July 2026. Lodges, prices, activities and what's open change, so check with the village before you book.
