Go-it-alone parents discover park perks
Single parents who sign up to a park holiday are escaping some of the main stresses which can mar an eagerly-awaited break.
That's the view of one of Britain's largest park operators, Park Holidays UK, which says that single parents represent a fast-growing proportion of guests at its 25 holiday centres.
"Single mums and dads with youngsters, be they toddlers or teens, find that a park environment ticks all of the boxes which hotels leave blank," says company director Tony Clish.
"One of the most frequent comments we hear is that the absence of pressure on keeping children amused is one of the biggest stress-busters for everybody.
"The dread question of "what can we do now?" simply doesn't arise when you have a host of different options right outside the front door of your holiday home," he said.
Often, said Tony, single parents on his company's parks form impromptu communities which encourage single parents also to mix with others of a similar age.
This can help avoid the sense of isolation which some singles say is a negative factor of holidays - in the UK or overseas - when guests rarely, if ever, get a chance to meet informally.
Depending on how old they are, children can also spend time alone with their own age-group - even if the parent is quite happy just enjoying quality time alone with a good book.
"Kids are naturally gregarious, much more so than most grown-ups, and will strike up friendships with other children at the drop of a hat," said Tony.
"Single parents often say that they feel most relaxed when they know that children are happy, engaged and safe, and a holiday park provides exactly the right setting," he points out.
With no surcharge for under-occupying a caravan holiday home or lodge, single parents need not feel they are being penalised for sleeping fewer than the accommodation provides for.
Budgeting is also made easier by the all-inclusive nature of the holidays, so the mother or father need not set any limit on the number of visits made to the pool or other attractions.
These include nightly entertainment which is suitable for all ages, and enjoyably fills out the sometimes empty hours in an hotel between the evening meal and bed-time.
Meals can also be pre-booked at a significant discount, making spending on the holiday easier to control.
The parks owned by Park Holidays UK, says Tony, are more intimate than many major centres meaning that parents and children quickly become familiar with the surroundings.
"Almost all of our single parent bookings are repeat visitors or are made as a result of a recommendation from another mum or dad who has been here," said Tony.
"Unlike hotels, parks are created purely for pleasure - and we've yet to hear anyone complain that they miss the mini-bar, trouser press or early morning wake-up call!" he added.
The group has parks in Devon, Dorset, and southern and eastern England, and short-break prices in spring start at £108.00 for a fully equipped two-bedroom holiday home.
Visit www.ParkHolidaysUK for more details, prices and the latest special offers.
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Media enquiries to Geoff Barnes on 01424 751185
or PR consultant Jon Boston on 01768 895225
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Looks like camping, gets you close to nature, but offering style and 21st century comfort, the new 2011 LogPod is in tune with the times.
The upgraded LogPod is longer, higher, and offers a superior quality accommodation to those who want to enjoy camping, fishing, birdwatching or just to relax in the great outdoors. Glamping is becoming even more popular and the new LogPod is aimed at increasing the appeal of campsites, fishing lakes and activity holidays.
The upgraded new 2011 Log Pod has been introduced by The Log Pod Ltd and is based on the success of the original Log Pod. The 2011 model has an improved roof, with a shingle option, and is longer internally, with profiled Log Lap to give the walls a much cleaner and higher quality finish.
Managing Director, Trevor Richardson, said: "In consultation with our customers, the 2011 model has been designed to make the Log Pod even more attractive to paying guests, and therefore to our customers. From a financial perspective, our revised pricing structure has again reduced the payback period of the product, and therefore increased the profitability of our customers".
The Log Pod was developed two years ago as a mobile camping hut solution, offering a luxury interior whilst maintaining a rustic exterior to be in keeping with its natural environment. Designed and manufactured in Wales, the Log Pod is also accredited by Visit Wales; the executive arm of the Welsh Assembly Government, responsible for tourism.
For further information contact:
Mike Goulden on 01269 850005 or Email
News Release 26/11/2010
Dependable deck drainage system
Hauraton claim potential damage to buildings by standing water along façades, on walkways, accessible terraces and "green-roofs" can be elegantly avoided by specifying drainage components from their DACHFIX® range. With a much higher drainage and storage volume than gravel catch points, the numerous channel and gully sizes offered can be made from galvanised steel, stainless steel or the company's recycled polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) a tough thermoplastic co-polymer derived from post consumer and post industrial sources,
all matched with slotted or mesh gratings. Channels and gullies can be supplied with adjustable feet to allow for substrate thicknesses. Under-surface, cross-intersection channelling to connect point drainage gullies to surface channels is also included in this dependable deck drainage system.
Tim Connolly, Sales and Marketing Director is confident this unique drainage system, invented by Hauraton, not only provides reliable surface drainage but prevents the build-up of water within ballasted substrate which can cause pavers to lift in icy weather and die-back on green-roofs.
With many schemes successfully installed throughout Europe; based on this vast experience, Hauraton can provide a free hydraulics design service to help specifiers choose the correct DACHFIX® configurations, ensuring optimum drainage conditions for their projects.
The free hydraulics design service also provides technical support for the company's RECYFIX® products (main components made from recycled PE-PP), including STANDARD, SUPER and HICAP® surface water drainage channels, gullies, DRAINBLOC™ attenuation cells for Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems (SUDS), TURF STANDARD™ and TURF SUPER™ surface reinforcement grids and FASERFIX® fibre reinforced concrete drainage channels and
gullies.
23 November 2010
Dropping hints - park's "eyes down" plan to track wildlife
A wildlife-rich holiday park in Cumbria is recruiting guests to help identify animal habitats in its grounds - by signing on as "dropping spotters" during their woodland walks.
Skelwith Fold Caravan Park in Ambleside says it is keen to log the spread and density of its wildlife population which includes red deer, red squirrels, badgers, hares and a wide variety of birds.
One of the most effective ways to achieve this, believes Skelwith's Henry Wild, is to record where droppings are most commonly found.
Armed with identification sheets which the park will provide, Henry hopes that holidaymakers' field reports will help to build a broad picture of Skelwith Fold's feathered and four-footed residents.
"There are well over one hundred acres of parkland here, most of it wooded and criss-crossed by paths which guests enjoy exploring when they stay here," said Henry.
"By asking them to cast their eyes downward from time to time, we could amass a huge amount of valuable data on what species favour particular locations.
"This information will be invaluable in helping us to map our wildlife and encourage the conditions for their feeding and breeding," he added.
Animal droppings and bird pellets can be quite distinctive, said Henry, and so too can their locations. Badgers, for example, dig out pits for their droppings, while foxes leave their deposits on tussocks.
Many bird pellets can also be readily identified, he commented, like those left by owls and seed-feeding birds such as goldfinches.
Skelwith Fold was named as the Holiday Park of the Year in 2010 by Cumbria Tourism, and has won a number of top green awards for its care of the natural environment.
The park has also been praised in recent times by His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales for its successful bid to re-introduce colonies of red squirrels in the grounds.
Guests who wish to take part in dropping safaris will be issued with illustrated crib-sheets to help identify their finds, and a map of the park's grounds to mark their location.
"We're hoping that this will catch the imagination of children especially as they love exploring with a purpose and making their own discoveries," said Henry.
"Next year, we'll also be offering a small weekly prize for the youngster which records the most sightings on their safaris.
"After giving it some thought, we've decided to let them choose between a book token - or a hardback set of AA Milne stories," he said.
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Birmingham's NEC will now be the venue for the just-launched motorhome and caravan show, to take place in autumn 2011.
Following the recent announcement of a new consumer-facing caravan show at ExCeL, London, the NCC (National Caravan Council) and Clarion Events Ltd (current organisers of the NEC October show), convened to consider the best way forward for exhibitors and potential show attendees. It was clear that having two competing industry shows in October 2011 would lead to confusion for the loyal customers.
In an unprecedented move, it was agreed that the NCC will now run one national motorhome and caravan show in October and this show will be held at Birmingham's NEC. Consequently, NCC Events have agreed to move their new Motorhome and Caravan Show from ExCeL to the NEC. This speedy decision will eliminate potential confusion and ensure marketing initiatives can have clear messaging.
NCC Chairman, Rod Tucker, said: "Attendees will enjoy all the core elements of previous events, the only difference is that the October show will now be run by the industry's trade body. There are substantial long-term strategic advantages to NCC owning the largest motorhome and caravan show in the calendar. Without the commercial needs of an independent exhibition organiser, the NCC can drive innovation and value across every aspect of the exhibition to create compelling value to our customer base."
John Lally, NCC Director General, continued: "Our exhibition team has a strong understanding of the industry and we believe we can add great value to previously run shows, which are already extremely successful. We are committed to continuing the excellent service Clarion has provided and that customers have come to expect. We will now look to deliver additional value by reducing costs and further improve the customer experience."
Gary Barbe, Managing Director, NCC Events Ltd said: "We are dedicated to providing a show for the good of motorhomers and caravanners and we need to take on board feedback from exhibitors and our customers. We are delighted to host our first show at the NEC in Birmingham, offering manufacturers and dealers the ideal place in 2011 to showcase their brand new 2012 season products."
Kathryn James, Managing Director of NEC, stated: "We are delighted to welcome this new industry show to the NEC and are confident of a great working relationship with the NCC and the show organiser because we share a common goal of understanding customer experience for our exhibitors and visitors."
For more information about the show please contact Gary Barbe, NCC Events Ltd on 0844 8094694 (office hours) or 07799 030521 (out of hours) or visit www.motorhomeandcaravanshow.co.uk.
----ENDS----Maggie Media Ltd is filling a gap in the market by providing the Holiday Park and Camping Industry with a useful source of trade information and an enjoyable read. Nina Blanchard, Managing Director of Maggie Media Ltd, based in Hereford, has been involved in the Leisure Industry for many years. During that time Nina has discovered a gap in the market for a trade magazine designed specifically for the Holiday Park and Camping Industry and will therefore be launching The Holiday Parks Management Magazine in January 2011.
Nina also owns the successful website UKCampsiteFinder.co.uk and has clients and contacts of all sizes, including RMS Global, LogPod and Park Holidays UK to name but a few and the magazine was born from many conversations with Campsite and Holiday Park owners and managers and will be distributed to around 4000 Holiday Parks and Campsites throughout the UK and into Europe.
There will be an electronic version emailed, followed by an A5 glossy copy posted and will also be available to download from the website HolidayParksManagement.com.
There are a vast array of advertising packages to suit all budgets and advertisers are invited to submit editorial to ensure the magazine is an interesting read.
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March magazine is looking great, editorial welcome but need asap, as about to go to print! [email protected]. 22nd March @ 11:02
Copyright © 2010 Holiday Parks Management, Maggie Media Ltd Company No 7378641
Pictures Credited to Waveney River Centre (Norfolk) and Whitsand Bay Holiday Park (Cornwall) Invercoe Highlands Holidays (Scotland)