Inside the AMAZING new £15m activity centre at Butlin's Bognor Regis – the games will blow you away!

Because if the facilities the Bognor Regis resort already had weren’t enough to tempt you, the brand new £15million indoor activity centre PLAYXPERIENCE should be.

And I should know, because I was lucky enough to be invited to stay at the resort for its Spooktober celebration at half term and my family got to try out what PLAYXPERIENCE has to offer.

For a start, it’s absolutely massive. Covering 50,000sqft across two floors and featuring nine incredible activities, it’s unlike anything we’ve ever experienced.

From Escape Rooms, to a Batting Cage, to Digi Darts, to a VR-cade featuring all the latest virtual reality technology and Tech Putt, the most fun mini golf we’ve ever played – everything in PLAYXPERIENCE uses the best modern technology has to offer to create the most-up-to-date and enjoyable games.

For us, the absolute top of the pops was Laser Tag. We loved being able to take part as a family and play on the same team at the start, but when it came to the singles round later on, you’d better believe I was willing to shoot my children in my quest to win (I came second out of 27 people during our one-hour session, which I was pretty pleased with!). It costs £9 per person, and I honestly could have played again and again.

We also loved Digi Darts, with its cool technology and interactive play; Shuffleboard, which was addictively fun – you really don’t need to push those pucks hard; Glow Pong – because who doesn’t love ping pong under UV lights; and Techputt – three different mini golf courses (Neon, Vegas and Music themed) where you don’t have to do your own scores.

Your ‘printed’ golf ball will know it’s your go when you put it on the tee, and will automatically count your strokes. I always have to be the mini golf scorer, so it was completely liberating to play without taking a pencil and score sheet in and out of my pocket. (I won, by the way!)

We also tried Neo Games, which has state-of-the-art interactive walls. Players can choose from a huge line-up of video games, from Angry Birds Smash to Break-It Soccer. So much fun, but pro-tip – bring workout clothes as it’s exhausting!

There was so much else to do in the resort that we are yet to try the Escape Rooms, which have rooms for children from age 5 and up, the Batting Cage or the VR-cade. But there’s always next time…

So what else did we do during our four-night break? Well, the answer is a lot!

Splash, the huge pool complex, was a massive hit. I lost count of the number of times we rode the Seaside Garden Rapids, which take you from indoors to outdoors, but safe to say it was loads.

We also loved the Wave Pool and the Racer Slides, and just generally relaxing in the little jet tubs and Lido pool.

As part of Spooktober there were Halloween-themed activities to book, so my children were able to carve a pumpkin, make spooky slime and decorate a Halloween-themed piece of pottery.

A huge fireworks display was put on mid-way through the week, and the fairground was turned into the ‘scareground’ for late-night opening on Halloween itself.

In fact, my children rode the rides in the fairground every day. I have no idea how they didn’t get dizzy after their repeated rides on the chair swings, and they definitely enjoyed the dodgems and helter skelter, too.

There were sideshow games in the fairground (pay per play), which the kids also loved. We are now experts at the Arabian Derby and have the cuddly toy prizes to prove it!

Inside the Skyline Pavilion, the huge white turreted ‘tent’ complex, you’ll find bowling, pool, bars, the excellent Skyline Eats selection of eateries, character meet and greets, a huge arcade, the Skyline Pavilion stage, the entrance to the Centre Stage theatre and so much more. It’s huge and is a real entertainment hub.

We spent hours there mastering arcade games and the 2p machines, as well as enjoying entertainment laid on by the famous Butlin’s Redcoats and grabbing a bite at places like Costa, Subway and Chopsticks, which opened as part of Skyline Eats last year.

We didn’t, however, need to eat much during the day as we’d kindly had Premium Dining added onto our stay.

This means you get a buffet breakfast and buffet dinner at a restaurant near to your accommodation, for £17.95 per day for Juniors (6-14) and £31.75 a day for Adults (15+).

It was great to know food was covered and that we didn’t even have to think about what to have for dinner each night.

Speaking of our stay, we had a double room at the Wave Hotel. It featured coffee and tea-making facilities and a fridge, as well as a large balcony and a separate room with bunk beds for the children.

The fact they each had their own TV in their little cabin was the cherry on the cake. The bathroom had a bath with a shower over the top.

I haven’t even mentioned the evening entertainment yet. We saw a show every night at the fantastic Studio 36 – a huge purpose-built theatre that can seat well over a thousand people.

The headline show of our stay was The Masked Singer, a spin-off of the popular TV show. It was so fun to see some of the real costumes in the flesh, and to guess a couple of famous faces. But that’s all I’m saying as I don’t want to ruin the show for you.

We also love, love, loved Electric Wonderland. It’s worth seeing this show for the last 15 minutes alone, with its spectacular lights display featuring dancing and acrobatics.

And Festivals Rock, a concert-style production that’s a massive celebration of rock legends, and Platinum Queen, celebrating the music of Freddie Mercury and Queen, were both real feel-good, sing-along shows.

There’s also shows in Centre Stage, Reds – nightly fun, games and entertainment led by the Redcoats, and the Skyline Pavilion. It’s literally impossible to see everything and there’s something for everyone to choose from.

What made the shows extra special for us were the Early Access VIP wristbands we were provided with. These can be bought for £32 per person for a four-night stay and they allow you to book shows and activities three days before our booking slots open on the Butlin’s app.

They also allow you to enter the venues 15 minutes before everyone else, so you can grab great seats and get your drinks first from the bar, which was great for our impatient children!

To top off our amazing visit to this fabulous West Sussex holiday resort, we were given the All Inclusive Drinks Package.

For £30 per person per day, and £10 per child per day, you can have unlimited drinks from a wide menu of soft drinks, hot drinks, mocktails, cocktails and other alcohol.

It was so easy to use, just show it to the staff member at the till and you’re good to go. I can see that having drinks prepaid makes the trip easier to budget for and hassle-free.

I haven’t even mentioned the excellent Butlin’s app, through which you can book all your activities and buy digital tokens, which are now used as payment for many of the optional extras. It also offers a map and directions to all parts of the resort.

I could go on and on about the fun we had, and how our five days and four nights at Butlin’s left us exhausted but so, so happy.

But all you really need to know is that you’re pretty much guaranteed a brilliant trip. And best of all for all of us living in Sussex, it’s so easy to get to. Win, win!

For more details about what Butlin’s has to offer, and to book your stay, visit www.butlins.com/resorts/bognor-regis