Boom time for traditional holidays

Apr 14 2009 by Karen Dent, The Journal

SALES at a Northumberland caravan park have jumped by more than 40% as credit crunched tourists look again at traditional holidays.

Northumbrian Leisure, which runs caravan parks at Cresswell, Glororum near Bamburgh and Warkworth in Northumberland as well as the Sandhaven complex in South Shields, says the boost in trade is due to consumers looking for best value during the downturn.

Nigel Thompson, who owns the company with his wife Sandra, said: “We have seen a sharp rise in the number of enquiries and sales from January to date compared to this time last year.

“We have even had to bring in a waiting list for our Sandhaven park at South Shields, it really is remarkable. More people are certainly deciding caravan holiday home ownership is a real value for money investment.”

Northumbrian Leisure recently expanded its £15m holiday park portfolio to include the South Shields and Glororum sites. The company is currently working on the first phase of a £5m redevelopment at its flagship Golden Sands park at Cresswell, which is expected to create around 40 jobs. When completed, there will be an additional 350 caravans and a new leisure complex on the site.

Mr Thompson said: “The park will have brand new facilities including a swimming pool, spa and new clubhouse, while at our other three sites we have created a total of 50 new plots and invested a substantial sum into hard standing pitches, new infrastructure and landscaping.”