The Britcitchris Family Theme Park Holiday 2011 - Park 1: Warwick Castle

[britcitchris]

After saving up our Tesco Clubcard Vouchers for a long time, we used them up on some Merlin passes. The plan was was 3 fold. 1: Over the period of a week, during the summer holidays; Journey up to Warwick to visit Warwick Castle and then Alton Towers, the next day. (Hotel in Solihull as base.) Part 2 was to journey south to Kettering and meet my folks at Wicksteed Park, a park I used to frequent as a kid and one that I have lots of memories of. Part 3 was to carry on south to the inlaws in Essex and use that as a base for Thorpe Park and Chessington. A busy week but one that I was hugely looking forward to.....So, on to our first park/attraction then - Warwick Castle.After parking in the very unusual car park (no defined spaces, just woodland,) we trekked to the entrance. Some of the walk is quite pretty though This Archer outside the entrance was doing a brilliant job of entertaining the arrivals.Quite a character.Now I have to say that I was quite taken aback by the pricing and money grabbing tactics at Warwick Castle. This was our first visit and I was hoping for something cultured. Those that have been will know I was in for a surprise then..... Non pass holders had to pay a whopping £24 to get in and then cough up a further £7.80 for the Dungeons and another £4 for the new Merlin: The Tower Even Standard Annual Pass Holders had to cough up for these attractions. Shocking..... Once inside, there are countless stalls/attractions that charge you for something. I quickly realised that this was not much more than a glorified theme park, minus the rides..... Once I had gotten over this realisation, I relaxed into the day and the family all enjoyed themselves. The sun was out and there were lots of people enjoying themselves. Some more pictures. The following shots are from inside the main hall and is really great to look around.Family shot.The Birds of Prey display was excellent.The Battle re-enactment was great but you had to sit a mile away from it.The walk around the towers is brilliant but tiring.Stunning views.The Towers walk ends with an underground section where you get to try on different helmets and see various weapons. This by far, was my favourite bit.My son, Ben really liked this bit, too The teens try some head gear on.As do I.Love the hat, Kane These chaps were brilliant. They did a show which exposes all the cobblers in Hollywood stage fighting. Comical and informative.We bought Ben a small wooden sword Warwick Castle's trebuchet is a marvel and it's a must, to see it launch a fireball. Sadly I fluffed my photo of the launch, so here is a photo before the actual launch itself.So, a great day out but I must say that the pricing and money grabbing took some getting used to. £6 car park fee, too!! We did treat the teens to the Dungeons and they enjoyed it but said the London ones were better. I can't say that we'll be hurrying back to Warwick Castle but we did enjoy it. The actors are top notch and there is plenty to see and do. Just take plenty of moola in your wallet.Chris.

[pluk]

As a museum type of place it looks like it is a good day out, but I don't understand the short-sightedness of their money grabbing tactics. If they said it cost £x to enter and this was enough for them to cover their costs and make their profit guest would know where they stood, relax and enjoy themselves. Instead they trick you there with a low headline price and slowly fleece you throughout the day stressing you out. No matter how good the attraction is it's going to leave you with a bitter taste in your mouth and strongly dissuade you from returning.