This year we have the privilege of being Ambassadors for Warwick Castle and as such we hear about their news and events … which is great if like me you like a good bargain.
Recently Warwick Castle announced they have opened their wooden doors to their themed accommodation in their woodland knights lodges and offered medieval themed entertainment at the Tiny Knight’s Club especially to toddlers and pre-schoolers. However never having been to Warwick Castle we had the pleasure last week of trying out their offerings ourselves with Jacob and Joshua.
The new medieval themed sleepovers offer not only the accommodation and Tiny Knights entertainment but also 2 days access into Warwick Castle itself offering even more fun for the family with its history soaked activities around the site.
As part of the package you also get free parking (normal price £6) a buffet breakfast of cereals and pastries and full English breakfast items! … oh and did I mention the free tea, coffee and refillable soft drinks in the banqueting hall?!
Our Stay
We arrived in time to access our lodge for the night so headed to main reception – If you are booking a stay it is worth noting that parking in bays 8,9 or 10 is probably better as these are nearer the accommodation than parking nearer the castle.
In reception we were greeted by lots of cheery faces and were booked in and on route to our lodge in a matter of minutes. We were even able to book our evening meal in at the All-You-Can-Eat Mediaeval Dinner Feast (£18.95 adults & £9.95) which is normally an optional extra but for us you can’t have a knights stay without a banquet!
From the moment we arrived at the site we were thrilled with the level of detail, with its coats of arms from Warwick’s history shared on the shields and detailing and with its wooden walkways round the site it certainly made us feel like we were on holiday!
We were in lodge 120 that faced the river and it was beautiful with its stunning outlook and shaded location it really did feel like we were staying in the forests!
The lodge was beautiful appointed with carved detailing in the bed and with swords and shields and it had been really well thought out with a super comfy bed, bunkbeds.co.uk and under bed trundle in the children’s room the most sparkling bathroom with an epic shower.
After unloading our things and getting the kids PJ’s ready we headed up to the reception where the Banqueting Hall is located too and we were greeted not only with more smiley faces from the staff but also the most beautiful hall complete with thrones and medieval flags and accessories!
For tea we had booked the all you can eat medieval buffet that consisted of around 6-7 starters, which you ordered at the table and they were brought to you (as many time as you liked) along with the meat skillet which came with the most humongous rib I have ever seen in my life, chicken and pork steaks all topped off Yorkshire puddings, roasts, onion rings, veggies and masses of gravy all refilled if you empty them! … it was honestly one of the most epic feasts we had ever eaten! … with profiteroles, cheese cakes and puddings all aplenty we were thrilled with the offerings.
There was also a specific kids meals with fish fingers, chicken dippers and sausages with chips that also works the same way as they can be refilled too!
After tea we were listed by Knight Robert who asked Joshua if he wanted to train to be a knight and he jumped at the chance.
The Children were given small wooden swords and were given a lesson on how to use a sword to battle and the children were even knighted which Joshua loved.
After tea and training we headed back to the lodge to put the kids to bed and noticed one of the only teeny tiny negatives of the lodge … with heavyweight curtains and no street lighting it made the lodge pitch black with no lights on … which is great … however the light bulbs in the main ceiling lights and side lights were bright so it was either all or nothing so we did struggle in the early am with a baby feed trying not to make it too light. Thankfully the lovely folks at Warwick have taken this on board and are going to make some of the side lights a little dimmer to help during night time feeds.
Breakfast was part of the Tiny Knights package and after such a good meal the previous night we were really hopeful that breakfast would be on a par and we were not disappointed. With half a dozen cereals on offer, fruits, pastries and full English breakfast items there was something for us all. Again this is all buffet style and eat what you like so even the biggest of eaters would be thrilled.
The quality of the breakfast was again something we were thrilled with as the cooked items were immensely tasty and well cooked and certainly set us up for a visit round Warwick Castle!
Firstly however was our Tiny Knights invite to join in with some fun and a treasure hunt!
Princess Helena took the children on a treasure hunt round the glade with some really great wooden shields at the end all ready for decorating!
The children loved painting their own designs on them and then it was time for a story.
The Little Knights session was so well thought out and I loved the shields, I expected some paper and cardboard not proper wooden shields so top marks Warwick Castle!
After our Tiny Knights fun we headed off to the Castle to explore.
We watched the birds of Prey displays and Joshua and Ollie headed up to the top part of the castle walls where you can see over and take in the wonderful view.
Lunch was a sandwich in the Conservatory tea rooms followed by some more walking round the Horrible Histories maze had planned to visit inside the castle itself but Jacob fell asleep in his pushchair and we weren’t allowed to take it in the castle.
We loved the trip so much we are planning on heading back in the next half term with a carrier for Jacob and a picnic so we can explore some more of what Warwick has to offer.
Disclaimer: We were given a complimentary stay as part of our Warwick Castle ambassador role. All thoughts and opinions were independently formed by members of The Oliver’s Madhouse. All prices were correct at time of visiting
This looks fantastic. I’d love to visit here at some point xx