A Holiday Made In Haven
Recommendation added: 02/09/2006 05:56
By: krispy13 (YSUK rating +29)krispy13 has been thanked 6 times for this contribution
"Having just recently arrived back from my weeks holiday at the Presthaven Sands Campsite, just outside of Prestatyn in North Wales, I thought it would be a good idea to write down my thoughts and give you a little insight into the park running, layout and value for money.
Booking The Holiday
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So as all holidays start you first need to book your holiday so we decided that the online approach was most appropriate for our needs. The Haven Holidays website itself was so easy to navigate around. First of all you can read up on all the available sites around the UK and you can check what facilities they each have to offer as some may differ from others. The facilities available can however prove to make the campsite cheaper or more expensive dependant upon what facilities are there (Always remember that some facilities may cost extra so always take this into account when booking and if unsure always check first) Unfortunately even your UK holidays cost more in the height of season i.e in mid summer the prices are sky high. Once all these decisions are made you are ready to book your Haven Holiday. Quite simply click to go through the online booking service, choose your park, fill in the details required and dates you wish to go then HEY PRESTO, it's done!! Believe me it is as simple as that, even I could do it! You will then be taken to a screen that gives you the total cost of your holiday including any supplements. Our holiday cost a total of £261 which was extremely competetive in price compared to similar holidays. This you can either pay in full or you can put down a deposit of 5% of the full price and pay in installments. If you wish for the more personal touch you can jot down the reference number and ring the telephone number provided. Right, now that is done you can sit back and wait for the fun part.
My Virtual Tour Of The Site
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We were told that we should be there to collect our keys no earlier than 4pm so not wanting to miss out on any valuable time we arrived there bang on time. Arriving at the site the first thing we had to do was find out where we were to pick up the keys. As we drove through, following the well placed signs, I really got a feel for just how big this site was. It must be at least 1 mile from end to end and there had to have been 800 - 1000 caravans on this site so you can imagine the amount of ground it covers. The camp reception is located just at the entrance to the park, any problems you encounter no matter what it is should be reported here as soon as possible.
As you carry on through the park you come to the Anchorage Pub just on your right as you pass the reception building. This place looks more like a sort of middle class kind of pub complete with bistro. Backing onto this is a large glass conservatory to add to the dining space and capacity of the pub. Then just outside that is a beer garden, this is complete with a fenced off childrens play/activity area so you can enjoy your drinks in peace. It's also great knowing you have peace of mind that your child/devil is in a safe environment (although it's always a good idea to keep a beady eye out)
As you head further inwards on your right hand side you will find all the tent pitches and bays for the touring caravans. There is a mains electricity supply for all the tourers, and although I never went in I would assume (and hope) a clean toilet and shower facility. The grass is kept well trimmed and tidy from any litter to make the camping side much more pleasant, although personally I would always much prefer to be in a nice cosy caravan cos I just have to have my creature comforts you know.
You then start to edge towards the very heart of the camp. This is where a lot of the entertainment amenities seem to be concentrated. First you reach the Leisure complex, this consists of the indoor and outdoor pools (open 1st June - 6th Sept) but the indoor pool is open all season and is a free facility which is great for a cheap afternoons entertainment. Also inside the building is the soft play area for the younger kiddies and an indoor fun palace with ball pools and loads of other fun stuff. It's sort of like an Indiana Jones scenario with rope bridges and tunnels for the kids to go wild in. You can also hire family 4 wheel bicycles for 6 quid plus a 20 quid deposit (refunded upon return of the bike) You get an hour altogether on these bicycle thingies and believe me you will be glad to get off as we were knackered after 10 minutes. To the exterior of this building is the Play World adventure playground. This is sort of like a larger and outdoor version of the indoor area, but with some kick ass slides that I WANTED TO GO ON!!! Why can't we have play areas like this for adults?
Then you head a little further and on your right is the main entertainment venue housing the heart of the sites entertainment. This is where the fun is really at!! It's the place to be!! You have all the bars and arcade attractions you could ever want for (but it might empty your wallet)
Firstly you have the strikes bar. Here you will find four lanes of mini ten pin bowling which is sort of more like skittles. The kiddies will love this as it is fairly easy to knock down a few pins but if there are a few of you it could cost a bit as it is £1.50 each per game. This means that if you have the average family size of four you will end up shelling out £6.00 per game........OUCH!! (just send them to the 2p falls instead) There is also a more adult orientated bar here, this comes complete with a large screen TV perfect for the football mad Dads as they also have SKY television. There are a few pool tables which are also quite steep at £1.00 per game. Around the edges of the room there are yet more fruit machines which you will notice there is an abundance of, these monstrosities are everywhere for you to contend with.
Further around the building you find yourself standing outside the main entrance to this complex. "Passes please" You will need your passes to obtain entrance to this part as you don't want non-payers to enjoy the entertainment you have worked hard to pay for. These passes are issued to you upon arriving and registering for your caravan or chalet keys (and included in the holiday fee) You wil also be supplied with a site map and guide to all the different attractions, shows, bars and various activities, as well as opening and start times of everything available. Be aware as you will need to come down to this complex to collect all these things and not the reception at the entrance to the camp. Also if you require any linen there is a £10.00 refundable deposit required before they are issued to you.
As you enter through the first thing you will be met with is....... guess what?..........Yep you've guessed it, an arcade cramed full with more fruit machines and interactive games than you could shake a stick at. But I did noticed something that could save you a few pennies, the machines in here are mainly 10p play with a £5 jackpot however, if you go around the other side of the building the machines are also a £5 jackpot but only 5p to play. Work that one out! I also noticed that the 5p play ones seemed to pay out more fairly too and on a more regular basis. I really skinned The Simpsons machine.
Once through this gauntlet you have 3 entertainment bars to choose from. One of them is only open two nights a week (Friday/Saturday 7pm-1am) This is the Sands Showbar, which unlike the other bars has live music on aswell as all the fun and games at intermittent periods to keep the kiddies happy. Then there is the Carousel Bar which is mainly aimed at the little ones. The only problem at this bar is that it is pretty much the same line up every night. Childrens games go on for a couple of hours, then a goodnight parade from all the Haven stars such as Rory the lion and Anxious the elephant, followed up with a kiddie orientated cabaret. Then last but certainly not least we have the Dunes Bar. This is the main bar out of all three. This bar always starts off the night exactly the same with firstly a few kiddie games to get all that early evening energy out of all those kiddiewinks. Then it is eyes down for a spot of cash prize bingo at around 18:30 which believe me is well worth winning as it can be quite a large holiday changing sum. Unfortunately with the bar prices they command it may not end up going very far though, but hey what do you expect? This place keeps to nightclub hours without the entrance fee, so why not put up the prices? It's OK by me! As for the rest of the entertainment line up, I believe it is subject to change each season (as you would probably expect) The one thing I do know which is a permanent fixture on the weekly line up each year is the Search For A Star competition. This is a bit like their version of Stars In Their Eyes. Guess what else?......... I entered it and sang Mustang Sally. Well I don't mean to brag but**********I W O N************
Now we shall leave this area before my head is too big to get out the door, although I did do rather well if I might say so myself. So back out the way we came and once again you have the arcade to contend with, oh go on then, just the one go mind we haven't got all day. Ok so you're back now and a bit lighter on change though I would assume, well I did warn you didn't I? Back out the main entrance we go, then we turn to the left and head towards the restaurant named The Oasis Diner.
Although The Oasis Diner is a really nice place to eat, believe me the food tastes great, the only problem is the price. We only ate there the once and had a Sunday Lunch which, for the two lunches, came to over £15.00, but like I said the quality of the food was bar none. However, I ordered a coffee after my meal which although was a really nice brew I found there was loads of crap at the bottom of the cup. Yuck!! This made me heave and was altogether not a pleasant experience, but I did complain to the waitress and was promptly offered a replacement which I turned down as I could not possibly have eaten or consumed one more thing. There are also plenty of highchairs for the little kiddies and a very colourful and well thought out childrens menu. This compared to the adults menu is actually very reasonably priced and the kiddies even recieve a free colouring sheet with crayons and wet wipes to clean em off with after their dinner. Brilliant eh? Which then brings me to a possible down side to this site. There is a big lack of choices of places to eat at within the camp which means that you feel slightly side tracked into having to eat here. But like I just said, although it's pricey the food is damn good.
We then leave the restauraunt and once again we turn to our left. We then proceed towards the other food outlet for the site. This however is a take-away outlet and is none other than Harry Ramsdens. This chain of shops has won nearly as many awards as it has actual outlets and that is a bloody lot. However once again the price is slightly high, so what I would suggest is to buy the main part of your meal outside the camp then simply buy the chips from here to go with it. This will save a lot of time and effort in the long run, besides that the chips are so moreish (But I would avoid the gravy, mine was really lumpy when I got it)
Oi!! Come on you!! Stop gawping at that fit person behind the counter, we do have a tour to finish don't we. Right we leave the fish shop and again we turn left, only this time we go around the corner. Here we come to find a sort of mini fairground, complete with a little train ride and kiddie carousel, Trampolines, bumper cars and a big blow up childrens death slide thingy (which I really thought looked quite fun) Once again though it was that bloody price factor, each activity costs £1.50 per person (even if you are just riding with your child to keep them secure) There is also a basketball court, this is free to use by anybody at any time. Oh yeah and look, there's that arcade I was talking about, the one where the machines are cheaper and seem more fair. Like I said you need to take notice of these little things as it is here where you can help to save a few of those precious pennies. Yes I know you are tired now but we are nearly done now, honest!
So what's next? Ah yes, the sites convenience store (open 8am-8pm daily) The site does have two of these like I also mentioned previously. One is right at the entrance to the site and the other one is here, although this is obviously the main one as it is much bigger. It's a bit like a mini Asda, this is because it has it's own bakery and all the goods are baked in store which for me is a huge plus. Other than that it is much like any other local convenience store, also carrying a wide variety of products aswell as the cheapie own brands. I would well recommend the pre-packed bacon and sausages, they really go down well as part of a homemade (I mean caravan-made) brekkie to start the day off on the right foot. But don't worry if you've got no loose change or notes, they accept all major forms of bank card. Either that or there is a free cash machine situated at the side of the shop.
This concludes the tour of available amenities at Presthaven Sands. All that is left to do is head off to the caravan, slap on a brew and put our feet up. Come on then off we go, ours is at the far end of the park, but mind those potholes in the road as you drive along. From what I can tell they do intend to tarmac over these potholes during the site closure period at the end of the year, it would seem that they only got as far as tarmacing up to the swimming pool area last year. Mind you it's probably not the easiest task to do in the middle of winter in North Wales. Ah here we are, this is our little beauty of a caravan. She looks slightly on the well lived in side but she is all ours for a week. We can depend on her to keep us warm and cosy on those windy and rainy nights (which there was an abundance of) Right then, shall we go inside and get warm? It's turning a little nippy out here again.
Oh damn they have given us the wrong key!! (Only joking)
Our Accomodation (Caravan 3 Berth *** star)
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We ll she aint much to look at really but she boasts all the things you will need to see out your stay with comfort and ease. Go on, you sit down and I will make a brew and guide you around this perfectly formed little nest. As you entered you will have noticed a door directly to your right which is the main bedroom, that's for the Mummies and Daddies only and consists of a good sized double bed. Straight in front of you is the 2nd bedroom which can sleep 3 children or 2 children and a babies cot (Cots cost £10 extra per week and should be booked at the same time as the holiday) Beware though if your baby is slightly on the large side as you will notice that the cots seem quite......well..... very small. Just to the left of this room is the Bathroom. Obviously there is a toilet and sink in here, well you would like to think so wouldn't you? In this case they have remembered to install these handy features, there is even a really good shower and a half size bath. This is really good as it enables disabled, infirm people or kiddies to bathe more easily and safely, there is a handy seat moulded into the side of the bath too. My only complaint about this room is the slight fusty smell that seems to linger slightly but that is no big problem as it is not really too bad. So as we lea..........Oh I see you found the telly then. Have you listened to a word I have just said? Good! Like I was saying, we leave the bathroom and enter the kitchen area. Here we have ample work space, a fridgefreezer and a cooker (Gas powered) It comes complete with a grill and oven which work fine, so you can easily eat in to save a few pennies. There are also all the knives, forks and utensils you need to create that cullinary masterpeice. I see you have become familiar to the lounge section here, look at you lounging like lord/lady muck. You have even mananged to establish the fact that there is a telly, well done you!!! Now then lets just sit back with our cuppas and watch a bit of Emmerdale....Ahhhh bliss!!
My Overall Thoughts
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Yes I would sooo go back to this place at the drop of a hat. I know I constantly moan about prices, but lets face it i'm from Yorkshire and we enjoy the simpler and cheaper things in life. At the end of the day you are on holiday, this place is like one giant convenience store with only fun and laughter to sell and you can't really put a price on that can you? The entertainment in my opinion was spot on. Who cares if the routine is slightly repetitive, you are only there for a week or two. Besides which, these type of holidays are more about the family and spending time with your family, you shouldn't need entertaining 24/7. The campsite facilities are fantastic and mostly free or cheapish to use. Most of the staff are friendly and polite, although there were a couple of grumpy buggers but never mind them. Anyway all I can say is that when I was there I was HAVEN a great time and it was a shame our holiday had to end. I want to go back to my little piece of HAVEN and I want to go back now."
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