Our Bluestone Break – Things to Do

Ad disclosure: We were provided with a lodge and use of the facilities free-of-charge in order to review Bluestone, and paid for all additional activities, food, travel etc ourselves. This post reflects my unbiased opinion of the holiday park.

In addition to the huge range of activities you can book at Bluestone, there is loads to do on site for free – even if it’s raining.

In fine weather you can tackle one of the two nature trails (or if you’re like my Dad, do two in one morning before anyone else even gets up), head to the Treetops adventure playground, enjoy the beautiful walks around the resort, or head to the village. In wet weather, you can take refuge at the Blue Lagoon swimming complex, or head to the Adventure Centre which has a whole host of indoor fun, including the Circus Room. We managed to pack so much into our five days at Bluestone!

Blue Lagoon

We visited the Blue Lagoon swimming complex twice while we were at Bluestone, once just the four of us, and then again with my parents. The girls have both had mixed reactions to swimming in the past but they absolutely loved the Blue Lagoon.

The toddler area looked great with plenty to play with, but both our girls prefer to be submerged in deeper water so we went round and round the lazy river loads, and played in the waves. James managed to sneak off to enjoy the flumes, too.

Adventure Centre

The Adventure Centre is fantastic – a huge building filled with loads to do, and a lot of it free. Without paying any extra, your kids can enjoy a bouncy castle, an absolutely huge wooden climbing frame with three spiral slides, a little kids soft play area with two slides and a ball pit, a lego area, and even a little mini golf area too.

We visited the Adventure Centre every day during our stay at Bluestone and the kids really loved spending time there. By the end of the week Georgie had completely mastered the climbing from, scrambling up to the top and reappearing at the bottom of one of the slides a short while later. The Centre is full of comfortable sofas and picnic bench style seating for parents (and grandparents) to sit, relax, and enjoy watching the kids play.

Circus Room

Upstairs at the Adventure Centre you can find the Circus Room, which was one of our favourite places to go at Bluestone. With a small soft play area for tots, a bubble tube filled with “fish” and reflected by mirrors, lots of fun toys and some squashy sofas to relax on. The circus theme is obvious throughout the room, with tents and colourful fabric on the ceiling and at the windows.

There is a car on a track toy at the Circus Room that the girls called the rollercoaster, and loved to play on, roping whichever adult they could into pushing them back and forth.

Treetops & Treetots

Near the Village at the centre of Bluestone, you can find two fab outdoor play areas next to one another, Treetops and Treetots. There is plenty to enjoy for all kids from toddler to teenager, with loads to scramble around on, swing on, slide down and generally expend lots of energy running around! There is even a nice stream to paddle in, so don’t forget their wellies!

The Treetops adventure playground is built around some huge trees, with wooden treehouses built around the trunks and connected by tunnels and walkways of various sorts. Georgie and Lydia spent ages enjoying both of these playgrounds during our stay.

Nature Trails

If you want to get a good dose of fresh air and some exercise during your stay, then head to one of the two nature trails. They both start at the boardwalk and end at the lake, although we walked down to the village and started by walking around the lake, before heading down the trail backwards.

Although the trails start and end in the same place, the red trail veers off and is both longer and steeper. The green trail is just about pushchair friendly in dry weather, although admittedly our wheels got a little muddy at times! We ended the trail at the boardwalk, and we were pleased that we had Georgie’s scooter and scoot n pull with us, as my Dad was able to help her along by towing her up the ramps.

There is loads to see and investigate along your walk, if you keep your eyes open to what is around you. It was lovely to see Georgie and Lydia enjoy it all, and my parents too.

The Village

Bluestone Village is right at the centre of the resort, basically just walk downhill from your lodge, wherever it is in the park, and you will probably find yourself at the village. There are a few shops; the Newton Village Stores with Dargavels Wine Store built in, Miller’s Bakery, and a toy and clothing shop, perfect for treats for kids and a good selection of souvenirs too.

As well as the shops, there is an arcade to enjoy, a spa, a milk & cheese vending machine (we loved this!), and loads of different places to eat. The resort has it’s own information centre which is staffed by super friendly staff, who were great with the girls, and really helpful with anything we needed. You can pick up a “treasure map” for your kids at the info centre and then follow the hunt around the resort to earn special badges.

As you can see, there is just so much to do at Bluestone, and we had such a busy week. The good news is that if you are there with children, plenty of these places have somewhere comfortable to sit while they run off their energy!