Richard on duty at Butlins Ocean Drive
Well strictly speaking I don’t think Richard is a Redcoat but he really was just about the only person I found pleasant and helpful. He always had a cheery smile which is more than can be said for the rest of the staff.
If you think you are going to find lots of Butlins Redcoats with happy smiling faces, think again. Most of the staff are Polish or Lithuanian, with a smattering of other Eastern European Countries. About half of them are polite and doing their best with inadequate English. The other half are miserable as sin and can’t wait to leave Butlins and go home.
We saw comparatively few Red Coats and they bore no resemblance to the Redcoats of old. My grandson was frightened to death when one of them bounced up and down and shrieked and shouted, trying to get him to look at the camera so they could take a photo with Bob the Builder.
You might wonder why the Redcoat was so keen to get the photo. Well that’s because they charge £5 for it. What a surprise! (See Butlins Cheap Deal for the truth about just how much you can really spend at Butlins.)
Back to the Butlins Redcoats. I apologise to those Redcoats that are good at their job – unfortunately I didn’t meet you – the rest are just going through the motions and are more interested in their sex life than looking after the holiday-makers.
Although not Redcoats either, you may want to hear about staff at the Butlins Spa I had after using the Fitness Suite.