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7 Best Holiday Park Swimming Pools In The UK 2026
Author: Robbie Lane | Last updated: 13 January 2026
A decent swimming pool is high on the priority list for many families when choosing a UK caravan or holiday park.
The best holiday park swimming pools go well beyond a basic rectangle of water. They often include indoor pools, water slides, flumes, wave machines, lazy rivers and splash areas that keep children entertained for hours. Other parks offer simpler pools that are fine for a quick dip, but don’t deliver the same waterpark-style experience.
The best holiday park swimming pools go well beyond a basic rectangle of water. They often include indoor pools, water slides, flumes, wave machines, lazy rivers and splash areas that keep children entertained for hours. Other parks offer simpler pools that are fine for a quick dip, but don’t deliver the same waterpark-style experience.
Below is our pick of seven of the best UK holiday parks with swimming pools for 2026. All of the parks featured have large pool complexes, with a combination of indoor and outdoor pools and a range of water features designed for different ages. Many of these holiday parks are open outside the main summer season, making their indoor swimming pools a big part of the appeal.
Holiday Parks With The Best Swimming Pools: Our Top Picks for 2026
Quick Picks: Best Holiday Park Swimming Pools
- Best Value holiday park swimming pool and waterpark - Splashaway Bay at Haven Craig Tara
- Best Haven holiday park swimming pool and waterpark - Splashaway Bay at Haven Hafan y Môr
- Best Premium-priced waterpark - Subtropical Paradise at Center Parcs Longleat Forest
- Best Butlins swimming pool and waterpark - Splash Waterworld at Butlins Bognor Regis
Comparison Table: The UK's Best Indoor and Outdoor Holiday Park Swimming Pools
Holiday Park |
Indoor or outdoor | Opening months |
Slides, rides and flumes |
Best for |
Haven Hafan y Môr, North Wales |
Indoor only | Open March to December |
Lazy river, four lane slide, buckets, swimming lanes |
Action packed beachside family holidays |
Haven Craig Tara, Scotland |
Indoor only | Open March to December |
Flumes, slides, lazy river, buckets |
Low-priced holidays |
Bluestone, South Wales |
Indoor only | Open all year |
Wave pool, flumes, lazy river, spa pools |
Cosy winter breaks at a premium price |
Haven Seashore, Norfolk |
Indoor only | Open March to December |
Flumes, slides, toddler splash |
Younger children |
Center Parcs Longleat Forest, Wiltshire |
Indoor and outdoor | Open all year |
Rapids, tropical cyclone, small flume, splash pool, wave pool, lazy river |
Year round premium holidays (i.e. expensive!) |
Butlins Bognor Regis, Sussex |
Indoor | Open all year |
Rapids, wave pool, slides, flume and raft rides, helter skelter |
Busy holidays with lots of included activities |
Away Resorts Tattershall Lakes, Lincolnshire |
Indoor and outdoor | Park open all year, outdoor pool open Spring to October |
Lido, indoor splashzone, small indoor pool, watersports on the lake |
Summer holidays lazing by the outdoor pool |
1. Haven Hafan y Môr Holiday Park, Wales (lazy river, four lane slide, swimming lanes)
**Haven's Offers: Last minute bargains from £49 + Summer 2026 from £159**
The swimming pool complex at Haven Hafan y Môr is one of the largest at any UK holiday park. It's known as Splashaway Bay and has a large indoor swimming pool, lazy river and multi-lane slides, as well as swimming lanes and buckets that dump water on your head.
You'll find it in in North Wales, about 2-3 hours from Manchester, Birmingham and Liverpool.
The swimming pool had a £3m refurbishment in 2017. We reckon it’s up there with the best holiday park swimming pools in the country. The site is a former Butlins park but has been a Haven for several years.
Overall, the holiday park scores a solid 83% from reviewers (3.9/5 on TripAdvisor, 4.4/5 on Google Reviews). It's a very large site with a beach a short walk away. Besides the swimming pool, there are nine playgrounds, nine restaurants, minigolf, soft play and several activities you can sign up for (at an extra cost).
Hafan y Môr is a good holiday park for dogs as well, as it has a Bark Yard, which is a dog agility course. You can also take dogs into one of the main restaurants.
The only downside at Haven Hafan y Môr is that there isn't an outdoor swimming pool. Although, to be honest there aren't many days each year when you'll be desperate to swim outdoors in North Wales...
Price: for a rough price comparison, we looked at the cost of a family holiday in August 2026. We searched for the cheapest accommodation available and didn't include extras such as bringing a dog. However, we did include access to the swimming pool as you don't get that with a Haven Hideaway holiday.
At Hafan y Môr, the best price available was £1149 for a family of four, staying in a Saver caravan. Upgrading to a more expensive caravan gets you more space and things like a veranda or a second television. Read our guide to Haven's accommodation grading system or read Haven's official accommodation guide.
You'll find it in in North Wales, about 2-3 hours from Manchester, Birmingham and Liverpool.
The swimming pool had a £3m refurbishment in 2017. We reckon it’s up there with the best holiday park swimming pools in the country. The site is a former Butlins park but has been a Haven for several years.
Overall, the holiday park scores a solid 83% from reviewers (3.9/5 on TripAdvisor, 4.4/5 on Google Reviews). It's a very large site with a beach a short walk away. Besides the swimming pool, there are nine playgrounds, nine restaurants, minigolf, soft play and several activities you can sign up for (at an extra cost).
Hafan y Môr is a good holiday park for dogs as well, as it has a Bark Yard, which is a dog agility course. You can also take dogs into one of the main restaurants.
The only downside at Haven Hafan y Môr is that there isn't an outdoor swimming pool. Although, to be honest there aren't many days each year when you'll be desperate to swim outdoors in North Wales...
Price: for a rough price comparison, we looked at the cost of a family holiday in August 2026. We searched for the cheapest accommodation available and didn't include extras such as bringing a dog. However, we did include access to the swimming pool as you don't get that with a Haven Hideaway holiday.
At Hafan y Môr, the best price available was £1149 for a family of four, staying in a Saver caravan. Upgrading to a more expensive caravan gets you more space and things like a veranda or a second television. Read our guide to Haven's accommodation grading system or read Haven's official accommodation guide.
The swimming pool at Hafan y Mor in Wales has a four line slide...
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...as well as a lazy river, swimming lanes and space to splash about
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2. Haven Craig Tara Holiday Park, Scotland (lazy river, water slides, waterfalls)
Haven's Craig Tara has a large indoor swimming pool complex with racing slides, two flumes, waterfalls, a lazy river and water features aimed at older children.
It is called Splashaway Bay and it had a big refurbishment in 2015. It has a similar look to the pool at Haven Hafan y Môr (see above). One of the flumes is 'interactive' meaning that it has lots of pretty lights and can time how fast you travel.
It's about an hour's drive from Glasgow or two hours from Edinburgh. We've found it is often one of the cheaper Haven resorts in the UK.
Overall, the holiday park is slightly behind Hafan y Môr on review scores. Craig Tara scores 73% overall, compared to 83% for Hafan y Môr. However, it does have six restaurants, five playgrounds, high ropes, zip wires, craft activities, minigolf and an amusement arcade. Of course, you pay extra for some things.
Many years ago, the park was a Butlins, so it has a big range of accommodation. These include chalets and apartments that you don't get at every Haven. You can also choose from several grades of caravans, which are more commonly found at Haven's 30+ holiday parks around the UK.
Price: £605 for a week in August 2026 for a family of four. That's in the cheapest grade of caravan but it's still an excellent price for a summer holiday and is about £500 cheaper than Hafan y Môr for the same dates!
It is called Splashaway Bay and it had a big refurbishment in 2015. It has a similar look to the pool at Haven Hafan y Môr (see above). One of the flumes is 'interactive' meaning that it has lots of pretty lights and can time how fast you travel.
It's about an hour's drive from Glasgow or two hours from Edinburgh. We've found it is often one of the cheaper Haven resorts in the UK.
Overall, the holiday park is slightly behind Hafan y Môr on review scores. Craig Tara scores 73% overall, compared to 83% for Hafan y Môr. However, it does have six restaurants, five playgrounds, high ropes, zip wires, craft activities, minigolf and an amusement arcade. Of course, you pay extra for some things.
Many years ago, the park was a Butlins, so it has a big range of accommodation. These include chalets and apartments that you don't get at every Haven. You can also choose from several grades of caravans, which are more commonly found at Haven's 30+ holiday parks around the UK.
Price: £605 for a week in August 2026 for a family of four. That's in the cheapest grade of caravan but it's still an excellent price for a summer holiday and is about £500 cheaper than Hafan y Môr for the same dates!
The large swimming pool/splashback at Craig Tara holiday park had a refurb in 2015...
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...and it has a three lane slide that you can race down
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3. Bluestone National Park Resort, South Wales
The Blue Lagoon at Bluestone in South Wales is a large indoor swimming pool and waterpark, featuring flumes, a wave pool for jumping up and down and a lazy river. The pool opened in 2008.
Bluestone is similar to a Center Parcs in terms of scale, facilities and prices (read our Bluestone v Center Parcs comparison).
Bluestone's swimming pool scores about 84% from reviewers. The resort as a whole gets a remarkably impressive review score of 93% from customers.
Besides swimming, you can sign up for about 100 different activities, most of which you pay extra for. There are things like high ropes, rock climbing, archery and minigolf.
Bluestone is in South West Wales, so it's a couple of hours' drive from Bristol or a bit quicker from Cardiff.
Price: £1921 for a family of four staying in a two-bedroom lodge for a week in August 2026.
Bluestone is similar to a Center Parcs in terms of scale, facilities and prices (read our Bluestone v Center Parcs comparison).
Bluestone's swimming pool scores about 84% from reviewers. The resort as a whole gets a remarkably impressive review score of 93% from customers.
Besides swimming, you can sign up for about 100 different activities, most of which you pay extra for. There are things like high ropes, rock climbing, archery and minigolf.
Bluestone is in South West Wales, so it's a couple of hours' drive from Bristol or a bit quicker from Cardiff.
Price: £1921 for a family of four staying in a two-bedroom lodge for a week in August 2026.
The Blue Lagoon at Bluestone gets a score of 84% from reviewers
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You get lots of features at the Blue Lagoon, including waterslides and rapids
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4. Haven Seashore Holiday Park, Norfolk (flumes, toddlers' pool, swimming lanes)
The Shore Waterpark at Seashore in Norfolk is a modern indoor swimming pool complex with flumes, a 'tipping bucket', a pool for toddlers and a pool with swimming lanes. The flumes have the grand names of Tidal Twist and Coastal Cyclone.
It's not as vast as some waterparks in this guide, but it's nicely done and had a £6.5m redevelopment in 2019. It's the third Haven holiday park that we think is worth a mention for its swimming pool.
You can watch a one-minute video tour of the waterpark here.
The coastal location is another positive about Seashore. Some holiday parks around the Norfolk coastline are set back quite a way, but this one has easy beach access.
Overall, Haven Seashore gets similar review scores to Haven Hafan y Môr (85% overall). It's not quite on the same scale but it does have several activities including a climbing wall, zip wire and playgrounds. Places to eat include Burger King and Papa John's.
In terms of location, Seashore is a couple of hours' drive from Cambridge and Peterborough or a similar distance from the outskirts of London. We last visited Seashore ourselves in 2025.
Price: £1109 for a family of four, staying in a Saver caravan for a week in August 2026. That's the cheapest grade of caravan so you may want to upgrade for more space.
It's not as vast as some waterparks in this guide, but it's nicely done and had a £6.5m redevelopment in 2019. It's the third Haven holiday park that we think is worth a mention for its swimming pool.
You can watch a one-minute video tour of the waterpark here.
The coastal location is another positive about Seashore. Some holiday parks around the Norfolk coastline are set back quite a way, but this one has easy beach access.
Overall, Haven Seashore gets similar review scores to Haven Hafan y Môr (85% overall). It's not quite on the same scale but it does have several activities including a climbing wall, zip wire and playgrounds. Places to eat include Burger King and Papa John's.
In terms of location, Seashore is a couple of hours' drive from Cambridge and Peterborough or a similar distance from the outskirts of London. We last visited Seashore ourselves in 2025.
Price: £1109 for a family of four, staying in a Saver caravan for a week in August 2026. That's the cheapest grade of caravan so you may want to upgrade for more space.
Haven's Seashore swimming pool had a £6.5m revamp in 2019
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It's got flumes for older children and these slides for younger children
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5. Center Parcs Longleat Forest (waterslides, lazy river and rapids)
Center Parcs Longleat Forest has a large indoor waterpark, known as the Subtropical Swimming Paradise, with slides, rapids and wave pools. You'll find similar waterparks at all five of the UK's Center Parcs, but the Subtropical Swimming Paradise at Longleat gets marginally better reviews than the rest.
The waterparks are one of the few free activities, so a lot of people have several visits during a Center Parcs holiday. The parks get overall review scores of about 85%.
The main downside with Center Parcs is that they are often very expensive compared to most UK holiday parks.
Our experience of visiting Center Parcs swimming pools in the UK has been excellent. We've found the water to be warm and the changing rooms to be clean. They do get busy, particularly during mid-morning. My advice is to visit around tea time if possible, as they are a lot quieter.
Price: £2698 for a week for four people at Center Parcs Longleat Forest in August 2026.
The waterparks are one of the few free activities, so a lot of people have several visits during a Center Parcs holiday. The parks get overall review scores of about 85%.
The main downside with Center Parcs is that they are often very expensive compared to most UK holiday parks.
Our experience of visiting Center Parcs swimming pools in the UK has been excellent. We've found the water to be warm and the changing rooms to be clean. They do get busy, particularly during mid-morning. My advice is to visit around tea time if possible, as they are a lot quieter.
Price: £2698 for a week for four people at Center Parcs Longleat Forest in August 2026.
Center Parcs Longleat Forest has an impressive Subtropical Paradise
Also consider: Center Parcs Europe (often cheaper but with some outstanding waterparks)
Center Parcs Europe offers some outstanding waterparks with indoor and outdoor swimming pools with rapids, wave pools, flumes and jacuzzis.
They are an excellent money saving alternative to Center Parcs UK that we have taken advantage of ourselves (we visited Center Parcs Erperheide in Belgium)
The European Center Parcs are run by a different company and can be considerably cheaper, even once you've taken travel costs into account.
Center Parcs Europe aren't quite as consistent as the UK parks. However, five Center Parcs Europe waterparks that get very good reviews include:
There's also a good 'Aqua Mundo' waterpark at Center Parcs Villages Nature Paris near Disneyland Paris. The waterpark scores 86%, but the park's overall review score isn't as good as some Center Parcs in France (66%).
One trick worth mentioning is that CenterParcs.fr is nearly always cheaper than CenterParcs.eu for exactly the same holiday. The saving is sometimes as much as £100 and you can ask your browser to translate it to English.
Price: A week at Center Parcs Erperheide in Belgium for a family of four in August 2026 was £1685. whilst Center Parcs Park Bostalsee in Germany was only £1478.
They are an excellent money saving alternative to Center Parcs UK that we have taken advantage of ourselves (we visited Center Parcs Erperheide in Belgium)
The European Center Parcs are run by a different company and can be considerably cheaper, even once you've taken travel costs into account.
Center Parcs Europe aren't quite as consistent as the UK parks. However, five Center Parcs Europe waterparks that get very good reviews include:
- Center Parcs Le Bois Aux Daims in France (88% on Google reviews for the 'Aqua Mundo' and an overall review score of 77%)
- Center Parcs Erperheide in Belgium - (88% for the Aqua Mundo and 82% overall) - read our blog
- Center Parcs Het Meerdal in the Netherlands (86% for the Aqua Mundo and 80% overall)
- Center Parcs Vossemeren in Belgium (84% for the Aqua Mundo and 81% overall)
- Center Parcs Park Bostalsee in Germany (82% for the Aqua Mundo and 81% overall)
There's also a good 'Aqua Mundo' waterpark at Center Parcs Villages Nature Paris near Disneyland Paris. The waterpark scores 86%, but the park's overall review score isn't as good as some Center Parcs in France (66%).
One trick worth mentioning is that CenterParcs.fr is nearly always cheaper than CenterParcs.eu for exactly the same holiday. The saving is sometimes as much as £100 and you can ask your browser to translate it to English.
Price: A week at Center Parcs Erperheide in Belgium for a family of four in August 2026 was £1685. whilst Center Parcs Park Bostalsee in Germany was only £1478.
Center Parcs Park Allgau in Germany has rapids and rides...
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...whilst Center Parcs Le Bois Aux Daims in France also has a highly rated 'Aqua Mundo'
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6. Butlins Bognor Regis, West Sussex (seven rides and slides, lazy river, lido)
Splash Waterworld at Butlins Bognor Regis is a large indoor waterpark with multiple rides, flumes and themed slides.
It reckons it has the 'only Helter Skelter water slide in the world', which is rather cool. There's an outdoor rapids, which has a choice of two routes heading back to the main swimming pool.
The pool is a bit like a watery playground with seven 'rides', which are things like water slides shaped like sticks of rock and flumes.
The pool at Bognor Regis is called Splash Waterworld and it opened in 2019 after a whopping £40m investment. That's more than 10 times as much as was spent refurbishing Haven's Hafan y Môr.
Its overall review score is 80% (we calculate review scores for Holiday Park Guru by adding together TripAdvisor and Google Review ratings to give us a bigger data set).
If all that sounds a bit noisy, then there is a quieter 'Lido' area where you can laze around.
Butlins Bognor Regis is well located for much of Southern England. It's about an hour from Southampton or Brighton or a couple of hours from London.
There are two other Butlins in the UK competing for your attention at Skegness and Minehead. We've visited them both and were particularly impressed with the pool at Butlins Skegness. However, Butlins Bognor Regis has more features and deserves to be featured ahead of the others.
Price: £1197 for a self-catering apartment for a family of four, for a week in August 2026. Butlins also offers the option to add on meals if you don't fancy cooking.
It reckons it has the 'only Helter Skelter water slide in the world', which is rather cool. There's an outdoor rapids, which has a choice of two routes heading back to the main swimming pool.
The pool is a bit like a watery playground with seven 'rides', which are things like water slides shaped like sticks of rock and flumes.
The pool at Bognor Regis is called Splash Waterworld and it opened in 2019 after a whopping £40m investment. That's more than 10 times as much as was spent refurbishing Haven's Hafan y Môr.
Its overall review score is 80% (we calculate review scores for Holiday Park Guru by adding together TripAdvisor and Google Review ratings to give us a bigger data set).
If all that sounds a bit noisy, then there is a quieter 'Lido' area where you can laze around.
Butlins Bognor Regis is well located for much of Southern England. It's about an hour from Southampton or Brighton or a couple of hours from London.
There are two other Butlins in the UK competing for your attention at Skegness and Minehead. We've visited them both and were particularly impressed with the pool at Butlins Skegness. However, Butlins Bognor Regis has more features and deserves to be featured ahead of the others.
Price: £1197 for a self-catering apartment for a family of four, for a week in August 2026. Butlins also offers the option to add on meals if you don't fancy cooking.
Butlins Bognor Regis had a massive £40 redevelopment in 2019...
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...with highlights including the helter skelter waterslide
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7. Tattershall Lakes, Lincolnshire (outdoor lido, watersports)
**Tattershall Lakes Discount Code: up to 10% off via this link with code DOGFRIENDLY10 until 31/12/26**
Tattershall Lakes has a basic indoor swimming pool, but it stands out for its large outdoor lido and watersports facilities. I'll admit it's a bit of a curveball in this guide to the UK's best holiday park swimming pools, but we visited Tattershall Lakes ourselves in 2025 and were impressed with what we saw.
The large outdoor lido opened in 2020 at a cost of £1.5m.
It's essentially an outdoor swimming pool, but a lido sites alongside a beach or (in this case) a lake. It's designed with lots of seating, so you hang around and make it more of a social thing rather than just having a swim and then getting changed. Needless to say, it is more appealing in summer and closes over the winter months.
The holiday park is also known for its watersports activities, including a large aqua park, which is based at the same site. You pay separately for this.
Tattershall Lakes is built around a number of lakes and has facilities including high ropes, mini golf and playgrounds.
It's a convenient one from Sheffield, Doncaster, Peterborough and Nottingham, which are all within about 90 minutes' drive. Customer reviews average 79%, which is decent but not quite as high as most of the others mentioned already.
Price: £803 for a family of four, staying in the cheapest accommodation available for a week in August 2026.
The large outdoor lido opened in 2020 at a cost of £1.5m.
It's essentially an outdoor swimming pool, but a lido sites alongside a beach or (in this case) a lake. It's designed with lots of seating, so you hang around and make it more of a social thing rather than just having a swim and then getting changed. Needless to say, it is more appealing in summer and closes over the winter months.
The holiday park is also known for its watersports activities, including a large aqua park, which is based at the same site. You pay separately for this.
Tattershall Lakes is built around a number of lakes and has facilities including high ropes, mini golf and playgrounds.
It's a convenient one from Sheffield, Doncaster, Peterborough and Nottingham, which are all within about 90 minutes' drive. Customer reviews average 79%, which is decent but not quite as high as most of the others mentioned already.
Price: £803 for a family of four, staying in the cheapest accommodation available for a week in August 2026.
This £1.5m lakeside Lido opened at Tattershall Lakes in 2020
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Tattershall Lakes is also home to this aqua park, which is good for older children (and grown ups)
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Frequently Asked Questions About Holiday Park Swimming Pools
Which holiday parks in the UK have the best swimming pools?
Some of the best indoor swimming pools at UK holiday parks and resorts can be found at Center Parcs, Bluestone in Wales, Haven, Butlins and Parkdean Resorts. Center Parcs and Butlins offer consistently large swimming pools, whilst swimming pools at Haven and Parkdean Resorts vary significantly. Some are simple rectangles of water whilst others are large complexes with flumes, slides and lazy rivers.
Are holiday park swimming pools open all year in the UK?
It depends on the brand. The pools at Center Parcs, Bluestone and Butlins stay open all year - although Butlins cut down the number of breaks that are available in winter. Haven and Parkdean Resorts close most of their resorts (including the indoor pools) for a couple of months over winter, but some of the bigger ones are open over Christmas. Outdoor pools - such as the Lido at Tattershall Lakes - are often only open from around Easter or May until October.
Which Haven holiday park has the best swimming pool?
Several Haven holiday parks have excellent indoor swimming pools, but Hafan y Môr in North Wales is often regarded as the strongest overall. Its called Splashaway Bay waterpark includes a lazy river, multi-lane water slides and swimming lanes.
Other Haven parks with particularly good swimming pools include Craig Tara in Scotland (for large slides and flumes) and Seashore in Norfolk (for younger children and splash areas).
The second tier of Haven pools - in my opinion - includes Haven Primrose Valley in Yorkshire, Perran Sands in Cornwall, Devon Cliffs in Devon, Combe Haven in Sussex, Golden Sands and Cleethorpes Beach in Lincolnshire and Weymouth Bay in Dorset (see our Haven top 10 guide).
Other Haven parks with particularly good swimming pools include Craig Tara in Scotland (for large slides and flumes) and Seashore in Norfolk (for younger children and splash areas).
The second tier of Haven pools - in my opinion - includes Haven Primrose Valley in Yorkshire, Perran Sands in Cornwall, Devon Cliffs in Devon, Combe Haven in Sussex, Golden Sands and Cleethorpes Beach in Lincolnshire and Weymouth Bay in Dorset (see our Haven top 10 guide).
Which Parkdean Resorts holiday park has the best swimming pool?
Trecco Bay Holiday Park in Wales and Vauxhall Holiday Park in Norfolk are our two favourite Parkdean Resorts swimming pools. Trecco Bay has a large indoor pool with slides and a splash area. Vauxhall Holiday Park has indoor and outdoor swimming pools, as well as a flume and lots of seating around the pool. Both get quite busy, but are good fun if you can cope with that!
We last visited Parkdean's Vauxhall Holiday Park in 2025
We updated review scores in July 2025. Most of the photos on Holiday Park Guru are original photos that we’ve taken ourselves from our own visits to 100+ holiday parks around the UK. Please don’t use them without permission. Other photos on this page are from Away Resorts, Haven and Butlins.
