Caravanning - with a difference! (Perran Sands Haven Holiday Park (UK))

Member Name: werewolf2

Product:	Perran Sands Haven Holiday Park (UK)
Date:	28/10/07 (1251 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: excellent place to stay with plenty of nearby attractions to visit

Disadvantages: can get expensive in cafes, bars and amusements

Perran Sands Haven Site was ideally situated in Perranporth, Cornwall and had its own beach - accessed from a steep hill and had no car park near the beach. However, it was excellent for body-boarding and we enjoyed this for several hours. The only down side was the climb back up !! There was no life guard - but we did got out of season, so this was to be expected.

The caravan we used was a Silver type which came with duvets, microwave and had a gas fire in the living room. The kitchenette was quite big and we had 2 toilets, 1 with a shower and the caravan had 3 bedrooms.
On site was 2 amusement arcades, a Burger King, 3 or 4 bars (we did not visit the Surf Rider to see what it contained), a mini supermarket and Crazy Golf and a ride which was similar to bumper cars but span you round and had lasers on it, which cost £1 a go and were suitable for both adults and children.

We paid £154.50 for 7 nights at Perran Sands which included

* £19 per person under the Sunday express holiday offer,
* then £20 for Entertainment Passes, which should have been £40 but were free for part of the week for 4 of us, as children under a certain age don't need their own pass.
* £20 for linen, which included a £10 refundable deposit

Perran Sands Holiday Park is near Perranporth and it's address is Perran Sands Holiday Park, Perranporth, Cornwall TR6 0AQ. Tel 01872 573551. To get there from Exeter take the A30 through Devon and Cornwall and 1 mile beyond the Wind farm roundabout turn right onto the B3285 towards Perranporth. The park is on the right before you go down the hill into Perranporth.

Enquiries can be made to Haven on 0870 2423333 Mon-Sat between 9am and 7pm or email enquiries@havenandbritishholidays.co.uk

This price compares well to the early booking offers of £155 for 7 nights on March 14, which goes up to £329 just one week later and £581 for August 2, 9 and 16.
On site was the Oasis Family Club which included a bar, entertainment every night including Family Prize Bingo, meet the Characters, and a band or dancers. Also in this building was Funworks Amusements, which included pool and ten pin bowling; Indoor Swimming Pool, and a small gift shop.

We had to check in the Show Bar in the Tropicana Centre at 3.30pm (because we had a Bronze or 3 star accommodation). Please note that this was ticketed - collect a ticket from the staff, then return at your check in time and await your number being called out so you can collect your caravan keys. If you arrive very early, you can get your ticket then use the facilities available while you wait.
There was an outdoor pool but this was closed due to it being October. I noticed that there were trampolines outside the Tropicana centre, but we didn't use them.

There was a sports bar called Stikes but we didn't venture in this either, as neither of our boyfriends are into sport. We went into Burger King, as I had some vouchers valid for that week but a male member of staff stormed out from the back stating "We don't take vouchers" and then walked back off without checking if we still wanted to order. Needless to say, because of his attitude we did not bother purchasing anything and we complained about this on our points of view questionnaire, which we submitted at the end of the week.
There was a Cafe Bar cum Restaurant which we went into for a drink. In my view the drinks are expensive on site but this bar had a large Connect 4 game outside on the patio area and plenty of seating, with more pool tables. Drinks in the Tropicana bar included Rory's which were for kids and were a special glass, which looked like an egg timer stretched out, and were £3.75 each but you could get the glass refilled for £1.95 with soft drinks. I bought Robert a pint of Guiness and myself a half of Cider and didn't get any change from £5. When I went in the cafe bar, I bought 2 drinks (a pint and a half) for £4.50. I was glad that I don't drink much alcohol and that we were self-catering, and had brought some of our own. I bought a litre of Perry and a litre of Rose from Tesco and the first was £0.94 and the second was £1.49 and Michelle and I really enjoyed them.

We did not have any food but Sandwiches started at £3.75 and served until 5pm daily, Salads started at £5.95, Jacket Potatoes stated at £4.25 and Meals ranged from £5.65 for Pasta with Tomato & Basil Sauce to Lamb Shank at £10.95 or Mixed Grill for £11.95. Deserts started from £3.15 for Raspberry Jam Sponge.
Next door was a fish and chips shop, which we again didn't use. There is an ATM on site but it charges over £1 to get your money out, so again I didn't use it. Next to this ATM is the Crazy Golf (you have to get the balls/clubs from the Tropicana centre) and as it was usually dark when we wanted to do anything on site we didn't find out how much this would have been to do. There was also an Orbiters ride, mentioned above for £1 per person.

There was a gift shop on site, with a post box outside it and public telephones. I was pleased to see plenty of bins around the site, and near the caravans were large green bins for rubbish. I was disappointed that there did not seem to be any recycling points near these bin areas though.
The map shows an adventure playground but it is near the Haven Super tents and tourer area and not near any of the other attractions on site and would have been a very long walk from our caravan, which on the map was the nearest set of caravans. We did not see this so cannot comment on it and I also didn't see the All weather multi sports court, which offered at additional cost, Football, Archery and Fencing in the Sports guide which came with the map and keys in your welcome pack. Most were £3 or £5 per person and you could also do pool activities like Aquacise, Aqua Jets (submersibles), Aqua Fun (gliders and dodgems), Learn 2 Swim and Surf Rider (bodyboarding, skin diving, snorkelling and lifeguard initiation). NB Some activities may have a 25 metre swim test and/or age restrictions.

Nearby attractions are Newquy (15 minutes drive), Bodmin Moor (30 minutes drive), The Eden Project (40 minutes drive) and St Ives (40 minutes drive) - all times are supplied by Haven in their Welcome Pack.
Reception - open daily 9am to 6.30. Security open 24 hours
Shop - open 8am to 8pm
Bakery - open 8am to 4pm
Launderette open 8am to 8pm - tokens to be purchased from store
Swimming pools open 10 to 12.45 and 2 to 5.45pm
Outdoor pool open from Whitsun to End August (summer season only)

Please note all times above subject to change according to season, please check at Reception.
Dedicated 24 hour helpline 07811 874328.

We should have had a Bronze accommodation and paid extra to upgrade - see options below.
Option 1 Upgrade to Luxury to include duvets £2.50 per person per night
Option 2 Upgrade to Luxury Plus to include extra space and a microwave. Start holiday at 2.30pm! £4.50 per person per night
Option 3 Upgrade to Super Luxury to enjoy option 2 plus heaters in the bedrooms. Start your holiday at 1.30pm! £6 per person per night.
Option 4 Book a 3rd bedroom £1 per person per night.
Option 5 Bed Linen £2.50 per person per night
Option 6 Upgrade to Super Range or above and book a 2006 model holiday home for just £20 per short break.

We had option 5 but did not book any other upgrades yet still got put in a Silver caravan with Option 2 items!!
We were told that if we booked on a Newspaper promotion we would not be upgraded and staying in a standard chalet/caravan and would have to hire a microwave from the Hire Shop.

Evening entertainment included Meet n Greet, Character Show Time Family Prize Bingo, Rory & Bradley's Fun Time and Magical Parade every evening from 6pm to 8.45pm.
After 8.45pm each evenng was slightly different but all had Party in the dark (or Party Dances) and Disco to finish off. Most had StarTime Cabaret and Game Show Time (a fun competition) or Fun Stars Forever Show instead of the Cabaret.

Michelle, Mark (baby) and myself watched a lot of these and found them very enjoyable but a bit samey sometimes. Richard and Robert enjoyed the bands but were bored with the other items that were on the bill earlier in the evenings so went to play pool or on racing games.
Mark fell asleep through most of these so if we needed him to get to sleep we took him into the shows!!

The Surf Rider club was supposed to have Cash Bingo from 7pm (sales), but it never looked open so we never ventured in.
Day time entertainment was not applicable to us - we went off site every day and would not have been appropriate for Mark as he was only 5 months old. It should have included Character Breakfasts, Making days, Story Times and Game Show Times for Kids. I cannot comment as we did not see any of it.

We had a wonderful time in Cornwall and used the caravan site as a base to visit The Eden Project, Flambards, Falmouth Maritime Museum, Penzance, Goonhilly Satellite Station (see other review), Gweek Seal Sanctuary, Perranporth and Truro.

Summary: An excellent camp and caravan site with plenty to do.