Back in October I was lucky to spend five days at the beautiful Center Parcs Elveden Forest location with my family. We've visited Elveden a few times before now and each time I fall in love a little more with the outdoors and a little less with my phone and the internet while I'm there which can be incredibly refreshing and thought-provoking. Look at me getting all deep!
If you've never been to Center Parcs before then let me give you a little insight. There are now five locations set in the most gorgeous of forest around England and each are like their own little village with a town centre, huge indoor leisure pool and a small collection of shops and restaurants. The best thing about Center Parcs for me is the no-car rule. Everyone hires bikes to ride around on and you won't see a car on the road except for check in and check out days and there are plenty of paths and trails to ride on. The atmosphere is so relaxed that I rarely wear make-up or change out of sweatpants and a hoodie during the whole stay, I also indulged in some activities that I'd never normally get stuck into this year like archery and a lot of badminton each day.
We stayed in a stunning four-bedroom villa in the Ash area of the village which was set back in the forest with a private hot tub, sauna and steam room which we definitely made the most of. There's an abundance of wildlife to witness when you're staying in the forest and while we played pool in the games room each morning we had the odd visitor or two!
Have you visited Center Parcs in the UK or Europe? Let me know in the comments below what you love most about the villages.
