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5 of the best Suffolk caravan holiday parks - 2021
Suffolk doesn’t quite get the attention of Westcountry resorts like Cornwall, Devon and Dorset but it has a long stretch of coastline and some attractive towns and villages. It’s also convenient for holidaymakers from places like Kent, Essex, Norfolk and East London.
Popular places to visit include traditional seaside resorts like Lowestoft, Felixstowe and Southwold or there are quieter parts of coastline if you’d rather avoid having an ice cream dropped on your foot by someone else’s child. Popular beaches include South Beach in Lowestoft, Felixstowe Beach and Aldeburgh Beach although there are lots of quieter beaches too.
Some of the bigger and busier attractions for a day out include Southwold Pier and Lighthouse, Africa Alive (a zoo, as you may have guessed), Pleasurewood Hills Family Theme Park near Lowestoft, English Heritage’s Framlingham Castle and the National Trust’s Sutton Hoo (a burial ground with a playground, obviously) and Ickworth House (a big country house).
There’s a modest number of caravan holiday parks to choose from in Suffolk, as well as quite a few lodge parks which are a bit posher with things like hot tubs and – shockingly – full size beds.
We’ve picked out a selection of 5 of the best holiday parks in Suffolk by looking at customer reviews, location, value for money and awards. We also did a price comparison of the cheapest holiday we could find in early August 2021 for a family of four.
Popular places to visit include traditional seaside resorts like Lowestoft, Felixstowe and Southwold or there are quieter parts of coastline if you’d rather avoid having an ice cream dropped on your foot by someone else’s child. Popular beaches include South Beach in Lowestoft, Felixstowe Beach and Aldeburgh Beach although there are lots of quieter beaches too.
Some of the bigger and busier attractions for a day out include Southwold Pier and Lighthouse, Africa Alive (a zoo, as you may have guessed), Pleasurewood Hills Family Theme Park near Lowestoft, English Heritage’s Framlingham Castle and the National Trust’s Sutton Hoo (a burial ground with a playground, obviously) and Ickworth House (a big country house).
There’s a modest number of caravan holiday parks to choose from in Suffolk, as well as quite a few lodge parks which are a bit posher with things like hot tubs and – shockingly – full size beds.
We’ve picked out a selection of 5 of the best holiday parks in Suffolk by looking at customer reviews, location, value for money and awards. We also did a price comparison of the cheapest holiday we could find in early August 2021 for a family of four.
1. Broadland Sands Holiday Park near Lowestoft (beachside location, indoor swimming pool)
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Broadland Sands Holiday Park is run by a company called Park Holidays, which is a big chain with more than 30 family-friendly holiday parks in Southern and Eastern England.
This one is along the coast from Lowestoft and will tick a lot of boxes for a busy family holiday, rather than for those looking for complete silence. It gets solid reviews of 4/5 on most review websites and it’s got a lot to do onsite including a good sized indoor swimming pool with flume, a playground, minigolf, places to eat, tennis and other sports. However, it’s best feature is probably its location next to a sandy beach, as you may have gathered from the name. Price: £824 for a week in a bronze plus caravan at Broadland Sands Holiday Park for a family of four for a week in August 2021. It was a six berth caravan, but was the cheapest option when we checked. There was quite a bit of variation in customer reviews for the different grades of caravan at Broadland Sands when we checked on Hoseasons. Don’t always assume that ‘gold’ is a better choice than ‘silver’ at a caravan park, because owners tend to update and refurbish units gradually rather than all at once. |
This minigolf course is amongst the facilities at Broadland Sands Holiday Park...
...but the beach is the biggest attraction
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The same company also runs two holiday parks at Felixstowe which is further south and so is a lot quicker to get to from Essex and the South East. If that’s more appealing then you can choose between Suffolk Sands Holiday Park and Felixstowe Beach Holiday Park.
They’re both in decent seaside locations, but reviews on TripAdvisor are slightly lower for these two (3.5/5 when we checked). Suffolk Sands Holiday Park is the quieter park and it only has basic facilities onsite. However, you can use the swimming pool, restaurant, kids' club and evening entertainment at Felixstowe Beach Holiday Park which is just under a mile away (15 minute walk).
They’re both in decent seaside locations, but reviews on TripAdvisor are slightly lower for these two (3.5/5 when we checked). Suffolk Sands Holiday Park is the quieter park and it only has basic facilities onsite. However, you can use the swimming pool, restaurant, kids' club and evening entertainment at Felixstowe Beach Holiday Park which is just under a mile away (15 minute walk).
2. Carlton Meres Holiday Park near Southwold (lakeside caravan park, indoor swimming pool, family friendly)
**Winner: best value Suffolk holiday park**
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We’ve also included Park Holidays' other holiday park in Suffolk, which is a little inland but still has a lot to offer if being by the sea isn’t your priority.
Carlton Meres Holiday Park scores strongly on TripAdvisor with an average score of 4.5/5 or 4/5 on Google reviews. Whilst it isn’t right by the sea, it’s only a drive of about 20 minutes to the coast and some of the posher accommodation overlooks a lake. The park has got indoor and outdoor swimming pools as well as a restaurant, amusement arcade, gym, small modern playground, fishing and evening entertainment. The swimming pools are quite simple ones rather than the terribly exciting/noisy splash parks you get at some holiday parks. The cheaper accommodation is two and three bedroom caravans or there are two bedroom lodges which are quite a bit wider. Price: £888 for a week in a two bedroom Silver Plus caravan for a family of four for a week in early August 2021. This one is actually big enough for six, if you don’t mind squeezing into the lounge. |
Inland Carlton Meres Holiday Park is in a picturesque lakeside location...
...and it has indoor and outdoor swimming pools
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3. Kessingland Beach Holiday Park, near Lowestoft (beachside, indoor and outdoor pool, cheap caravans)
**Winner: cheapest holiday park**
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There isn’t a Haven holiday park in Suffolk, but Kessingland Beach Holiday Park offers a good (and cheap) alternative. If you like the Haven brand then your best bet is either Wild Duck Holiday Park or Hopton Holiday Park which are both just over the border in Great Yarmouth.
Kessingland is run by Parkdean Resorts, which is a really big name in the caravan park market. They merged with Park Resorts a few years ago so they’ve now got nearly 70 holiday parks across the UK, mostly in coastal locations. Generally, we’ve found Parkdean Resorts holiday parks are at the mid-priced to cheaper end of the caravan park market but many of them get solid reviews from customers. Kessingland Beach Holiday Park was scoring 4/5 on TripAdvisor when we checked and it was scoring slightly higher on Google reviews. The park has indoor and outdoor swimming pools, tennis and basketball, a good sized playground, a restaurant, kids’ entertainment, soft play and an onsite shop. It’s near to a nice stretch of coastline, or you can travel into Lowestoft in 20 minutes in the car. When we checked, there was a big range in the customer review scores of the different accommodation at Kessingland Beach Holiday Park. If you can afford an upgrade, there are lodges which were scoring better than most of the caravans. There are plenty of dog friendly options if you don’t want to pay kennel fees or can’t cope with the sad look on your dog’s face when you drop them off... Local attractions include Africa Alive (10 minutes' drive) and Pleasurewood Hills Theme Park (25 minutes' drive) Price: £629 for a week in a ‘Goose’ caravan for a family of four in early August 2021. |
Kessinglland Beach Holiday Park offers places to eat and two swimming pools...
...and it's near to a nice stretch of coastline.
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4. High Lodge near Southwold (posh lakeside lodges with hot tubs, fishing, golf)
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High Lodge offers a mix of posh self catering lodges alongside grown up activities. They’re one step up from caravans, but they weren’t all that much more expensive in our price comparisons so they’re worth considering if you aren’t looking for endless kids’ activities.
You can have a lakeside view from a lodge and some of them come with hot tubs so you can enjoy an outside bath on a summer’s evening. The activities cost extra and generally involve hitting or catching something - i.e. golf, fishing, archery and shooting. There isn’t a swimming pool onsite. Customer reviews were averaging 4.5/5 on TripAdvisor with similarly impressive scores on other review sites. In terms of location, High Lodge isn’t right by the beach but it will only take you 15 minutes in the car to reach Southwold which is a picturesque seaside resort with a pier and lighthouse. An alternative if you want a lodge and don’t mind paying extra is the Center Parcs at Elveden Forest. However, it is considerably more expensive than High Lodge in our price comparisons (see our Center Parcs UK guide). Price: £869 for a week in a two bedroom Lakeview Lodge for a family of four in August 2021. |
High Lodge near Southwold is posher than most holiday parks...
...and some of the accommodation comes with hot tubs
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5. Heathfield Lodges near Southwold (great reviews, hot tubs, playground)
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Heathfield Lodges doesn't offer a lot of onsite entertainment, but I'd take a look if your priority is getting into a hot tub in an evening and saying "ahhhhh, that's nice" or "mmmm, this is the life".
There are various sizes of lodges available, including some for couples and some for families. There's no swimming pool or teenager dressed up as a bear to entertain the children, but it does have nature trails, a playground and a shop onsite. Customer reviews are red hot at about 9/10 on most review sites and it's only about 15 minutes in the car to Southwold's Pier and Lighthouse. Price: £1499 for a two bedroom lodge with a hot tub for a family of four for a week in August 2021. That was the cheapest option available when we searched. |
Heathfields Lodges near Southwold aren't as cheap as most caravan sites, but they offer lodges with hot tubs...
...as well as nature trails and a playground.
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Price comparison of 5 of Suffolk's best holiday caravan parks
For our price comparison, we just looked for the cheapest accommodation available for a week in early August 2021 for a family of four. Obviously this wouldn't hold water as a piece of academic research but it might give you a general idea of which holiday parks and lodges are within your budget. We didn't include extras such as the cost of bringing your pet or any activities that you might pay extra for. Anyway, with those caveats here are our top 5 holiday parks in Suffolk:
- Kessingland Beach Holiday Park - £629
- Broadland Sands Holiday Park - £824
- Carlton Meres Holiday Park - £888 **Winner: best value Suffolk holiday park**
- High Lodge - £869
- Heathfield Lodges - £1149
