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Which Away Resorts Caravan Holiday Park Is Best?

There are nine holiday parks in the UK which are run by Away Resorts, including:
But which is best? 

I think we can all agree that Sandy Balls Holiday Park has the best name, but what about other factors? Let's look at customer reviews, onsite facilities, location and other factors.

If you want the summary without reading the waffle - Barmouth Bay is the most popular with customers, it's good value, it has easy beach access and it's convenient from North England, West Midlands and Wales. However, if you're in the South of England or if you want a park with more facilities onsite then I would go for Whitecliff Bay for a beach holiday or Sandy Balls if you want a woodland setting. Mersea Island also gets good reviews and is great value but it doesn't have many facilities.

Read on to see how I reached that conclusion:

Which Away Resorts holiday park is in the best location?

You might decide that priority number one is a holiday park close to home. After all, a long car journey with children can be pretty torturous. Here's the travel times from London, Birmingham and Manchester to the Away Resorts holiday parks:

  • If you're travelling from London you've got a choice of three Away Resorts holiday parks which are two hours drive away - Mersea Island, Mill Rythe and Sandy Balls. The ferry port which will take you to Whitecliff Bay is a two hour drive from London, but you'll need another hour for the crossing so it depends whether you feel like you're on holiday once you're onboard the ferry. The three Lincolnshire Away Resorts sites are three/four hours away from London (Boston West, Tattershall Lakes, Beachcomber) whilst Barmouth Bay Holiday Park and St Ives Bay are a stress-inducing five hour drive which would test even the most patient parents. ​You'll need to charge up the tablet before departing if you go for Barmouth Bay or St Ives Bay.
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  • If you're travelling from Birmingham then you can reach any of the Away Resorts holiday parks in between two and three hours. Boston West and Tattershall Lakes are the closest at about two hours drive with the others taking closer to three. Whitecliff Bay on the Isle of Wight will take about 2 hours 40 minutes to get to Portsmouth and then another hour to get the ferry and drive to the resort. Personally, I enjoy the ferry crossing particularly on a sunny day but you may feel otherwise. Let's not fall out over it. 

  • If you're travelling from Manchester then there are three Away Resorts holiday parks which are most convenient. Boston West, Tattershall Lakes and Barmouth Bay Holiday Park are all about 2 hours 40 minutes away. The rest are about 4 or 4 hours 30 minutes drive apart from St Ives Bay which is 6 hours drive.
Away Resorts Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park
Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park requires a 40-60 minute ferry from Southampton or Portsmouth
Away Resorts Sandy Balls Holiday Village
Sandy Balls is convenient if you live in Southern England

Which Away Resorts Holiday Park gets the best reviews?

We've ranked the nine Away Resorts holiday parks and holiday villages by adding together the TripAdvisor and Google review scores, as of June 2021. From highest to lowest:


As you can see, Away Resorts Barmouth Bay Holiday Park and Away Resorts Mersea Island Holiday Park are battling it out for the top spot based on customer reviews.

There are then five Away Resorts holiday parks which get identical scores around the middle. Away Resorts Tattershall Lakes Holiday Park is marginally behind but it's worth noting that TripAdvisor only gives scores in halves, so it could be that Tattershall Lakes is closer to the others than the score suggests. Its score on Google reviews is up there with the rest so I wouldn't write it off.

Which Away Resorts holiday park is cheapest?

As with all holiday parks, the price of a holiday at Away Resorts varies considerably depending on the time of year and what sort of accommodation you are booking. Some Away Resorts holiday parks have a mixture of caravans, glamping, camping and lodges. Meanwhile Away Resorts Boston West Country Park has hotel accommodation.

For the purposes of a price comparison, we will look for the cheapest accommodation for a family of four during the August school holidays in 2022 and during the October half term in 2022. 

Cheapest price for a family of four for a week in early August 2022, from cheapest to most expensive:
Cheapest price for a family of four for a week in half term October 2022, from cheapest to most expensive:
So, Sandy Balls and Mill Rythe were the most expensive Away Resorts holiday parks in both of our price comparisons. Mersea Island was the cheapest or the second cheapest

Notes about the price comparison: For the August holidays, we looked for a Friday to Friday holiday which is usually much cheaper with Away Resorts. For the half term holiday we just looked for Saturday to Saturday holidays. Prices for Away Resorts Boston West Country Park in Lincolnshire and St Ives Bay weren't available. At the moment, Boston West is more of a hotel so not really comparable although there are plans for more accommodation. We didn't include optional extras and upgrades. For example, Away Resorts will booking the Isle of Wight ferry for you if you're visiting Whitecliff Bay Holiday Park, which will cost you about £50-£100 return for a car and passengers. We excluded camping or glamping, as that's not really comparable to a caravan or chalet. 

Which Away Resorts Holiday Park is best for a trip to the beach?

Three of the Away Resorts Holiday Parks are near to beaches: 
  • Whitecliff Bay on the Isle of Wight is right next to a lovely sandy beach which is only used by a couple of holiday parks. It is one of the nicest beaches on the Island and there's a cafe where you can sip a coffee and pretend it's warm enough for a t-shirt. It's down a very steep slope.
  • Barmouth Bay in Snowdonia is next to a long sandy beach.
  • Mersea Island is next to a shingly/sandy beach​.
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Mill Rythe ​is coastal but it isn't really a beach. Sandy Balls is half an hour's drive to some nice beaches in Dorset. Tattershall Lakes and Boston West are both about 45 minutes drive to the beach at Skegness. ​I personally don't like the beach at Skegness as it's a long way from the beach to the water but some people love the open space.

Beachcomber in Cleethorpes in Lincolnshire is 15 minutes walk to the beach whilst St Ives Bay Holiday Park in Cornwall is only a couple of minutes walk to the beach.
Beach at Away Resorts Barmouth Bay Holiday Park
Away Resorts Barmouth Bay is one of three resorts near to a beach

Which Away Resorts holiday park has the best facilities?

​There's some variation in the size of the Away Resorts holiday parks and what they offer. The larger sites are ​Barmouth Bay, Whitecliff Bay, Sandy Balls and Tattershall Lakes. Mill Rythe and Mersea Island are smaller. St Ives Bay and Beachcomber are somewhere in the middle. Boston West isn't really comparable to the others as it is more of hotel with a golf course. At the time of writing, there are plans to add accommodation. All of the resorts have an indoor swimming pool apart from Boston West.

Here's our summary of facilities at each resort:
  • Sandy Balls in Hampshire is one of the large resorts. It has indoor and outdoor swimming pools, sauna and spa facilities, two main restaurants, kids' activities, sports such as archery, laser tag, playgrounds, soft play and alpaca walks.  
  • Barmouth Bay in Snowdonia is a large resort. It doesn't have as many facilities as most of the other large holiday parks but it does have an indoor swimming pool, outdoor cinema, playgrounds and a sports court. The beach makes up for the smaller range of facilities.
  • Whitecliff Bay on the Isle of Wight is a large resort. There are indoor and outdoor swimming pools, a restaurant, kids' activities, outdoor cinema, soft play, playgrounds, a sports court, crazy golf and activities such as archery and zorbing (those giant hamster balls).
  • Tattershall Lakes in Lincolnshire is a large resort which specialises in watersports such as waterskiing and a floating obstacle course (also known as an aquapark). As well as an indoor swimming pool, there's a large outdoor swimming pool (a 'lido'), a high ropes course, fishing lakes, a restaurant, minigolf and a sports court. 
  • ​Mill Rythe is the smallest Away Resorts site although it's undergoing a lot of investment. It's the only resort which offers adults only breaks, although it is open to families during school holidays. There's an indoor swimming pool, sports court and restaurant.
  • Mersea Island is another fairly small Away Resorts holiday park with a modest range of facilities. It's got an indoor swimming pool, playground, clubhouse and outdoor cinema.
  • ​Boston West is a hotel with golf facilities. It doesn't have a swimming pool but it does have a restaurant. There are plans to add more accommodation. 
  • Beachcomber in Cleethorpes was bought by Away Resorts in 2021 but had operated as a holiday park before that. I would say that it is mid-sized. It's a pretty basic site but it's got an outdoor swimming pool, playground, an entertainment room and a sports court. 
  • St Ives Bay in Cornwall is another site which was taken over by Away Resorts in recent years. The location is hard to beat, as it's next to a nice stretch of sandy beach. It's got an indoor swimming pool, tennis court, crazy golf and a restaurant. Some of the accommodation has sea views.

How can I save money on an Away Resorts holiday park?

Our favourite tricks for saving money at Away Resorts include:
  • arrive on a weekday instead of a Saturday. During peak season, this could save you as much as a couple of hundred pounds if you're staying for seven days. It might not be quite as convenient but it can be a really good saving.
  • check the Away Resorts special offers page. 
  • fill up a larger caravan. You'll find that a caravan which sleeps eight people is not usually twice the price of a caravan or chalet which sleeps four people. Bring along a couple of aunts and the grandparents and the price per head can be much cheaper. Occasionally, we've seen deals where you could save yourself £1000 over a week. Of course, a caravan with eight people can be pretty cosy, particularly as two people will be sleeping in the lounge.
  • if you're visiting Whitecliff Bay, get Away Resorts to book the ferry for you. It can be half price compared to booking it yourself. The ferry booking is an option when you book accommodation.
  • try camping, glamping or touring. Of course, these aren't for everyone but camping and touring tends to cost a fraction of the price of hiring a caravan. Glamping is usually a bit cheaper than the cheapest caravan, but it's not as much of a saving. Camping, touring and glamping is available at Whitecliff Bay whilst glamping is available at Tattershall Lakes. 

Conclusion

If you want a good value beach holiday at a highly rated Away Resorts holiday park then I would start by looking at Barmouth Bay if you live in the North of England, Wales or West Midlands. It doesn't have the range of facilities that you get at some Away Resorts holiday parks but it's the most popular with customers and it was good value in our price comparisons. 

If you live in Southern England and you want a busy resort with lots to do then I would go for Whitecliff Bay on the Isle of Wight if you want a beach holiday or Sandy Balls if you want to visit Peppa Pig World/Paultons Park and if you don't mind getting in the car to explore. Whitecliff Bay was cheaper in our price comparison, but you need to allow an extra £50-£100 for the Isle of Wight ferry.

If you live in the East Midlands or if you are keen to try out watersports and an aquapark then Tattershall Lakes is the obvious winner. It's a little way behind on reviews, but it has a lot to do onsite and was good value in our price comparisons.

If you live in Southern England and you want a smaller resort which has a beach nearby and good reviews then Mersea Island or St Ives Bay is best for you. It scored really well in our price comparison but it's not got a huge amount to do onsite.

If you're a golfer then ​Boston West is the obvious winner. 
Images are from Away Resorts.

Other guides from the Holiday Park Guru

Holiday-Park-Guru-Don't-Blame-Us-Disclaimer: All the information on this page is accurate, as far as we know. However, facilities at holiday parks change so please check with the park before booking.