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10 of the best Cornwall caravan holiday parks - 2019
Cornwall in England has more than 50 caravan holiday parks, but we've picked 10 of the best by comparing price, reviews, location and facilities.
Some holiday parks are near the more accessible and busy towns, such as Newquay and Bude whilst others are in the more remote part of the Cornish coastline around Lands End, Penzance and The Lizard Peninsula. Others are near the popular seaside resort of St Ives.
We've chosen some quieter family owned holiday parks, alongside big name holiday parks run by Haven and Parkdean Resorts.
For our price comparison we looked for the cheapest accommodation available for a week in August 2019 for 2 adults and 2 children (we searched in January 2019).
Some holiday parks are near the more accessible and busy towns, such as Newquay and Bude whilst others are in the more remote part of the Cornish coastline around Lands End, Penzance and The Lizard Peninsula. Others are near the popular seaside resort of St Ives.
We've chosen some quieter family owned holiday parks, alongside big name holiday parks run by Haven and Parkdean Resorts.
For our price comparison we looked for the cheapest accommodation available for a week in August 2019 for 2 adults and 2 children (we searched in January 2019).
1. Praa Sands Holiday Park (South Cornwall) - remote location, indoor swimming pool
**Winner: best value holiday park**
Praa Sands is one of the southernmost holiday parks in Cornwall. That means it is well placed for the rugged south coast and visits to Lands End and the pretty seaside town of St Ives, but it is an extra hour's drive from the rest of England.
The park itself is well equipped, with an indoor swimming pool (just in case it rains all week), a gym, sauna, bar and restaurant. It's also home to Praa Sands Golf and Country Club - although if you manage to fit in a round of golf whilst looking after children then you are doing a better job than me! Theme park Flambards is also a short drive away, as is St Michael's Mount at Marazion. The beach at Praa Sands is sandy and there are lifeguards in the summer months. There's also a surf school based at the beach. Reviews are outstanding, averaging about 4.5/5. Some of the accommodation at Praa Sands Holiday Park is dog friendly. There's a mixture of lodges and caravans, with the caravans being a bit cheaper. Price: £779 for 2 adults and 2 children for a week in a silver plus caravan in August 2019 |
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2. Sea Acres Holiday Park (Lizard Peninsula) - cheap caravans, family facilities
Sea Acres Holiday Park is one of eight holiday parks run by Parkdean Holidays in Cornwall, and I reckon it's their best. It's also one of the cheapest holiday parks we've found in Cornwall. It gets similarly good reviews to another one of their parks (Crantock Beach Holiday Park in Newquay) but it has a bigger range of family friendly facilities. It's on the Lizard Peninsula which is beautiful, but it is a fair drive from, well, anywhere.
There's an indoor swimming pool (with jungle run sessions, whatever that is...), as well as a soft play area, adventure playground, amusement arcade, table tennis, pool table, pitch and putt, crazy golf, kids' clubs, restaurants, evening entertainment (bingo etc) and takeaway food. There's also a scuba diving centre at the park. Sea Acres is about 500 metres from Kennack Sands beach, so not right on the beach but only a 5 or 10 minute walk (assuming you aren't carrying a wind break, three buckets and a beachball). It's also near the South West Coastal Path to Coverack. There are loads of different types of caravan to choose from at Sea Acres Holiday Park, with Cornish names like Poldhu and Lamorna. Pets are allowed in most of the caravans. Price: £759 for 2 adults and 2 children in August 2019 in a Lamorna caravan (it would have been the same price for 6, though a bit cosy) |
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3. Porth Beach Holiday Park (Newquay, North Cornwall) - central location, sandy beach nearby
Porth Beach Holiday Park is on the outskirts of the busy surfing town of Newquay. The town itself isn't as quiet and unspoilt as much of Cornwall's coast, but Porth's beach is pretty. It's also a good location for exploring (with a car) as it's roughly an hour's drive from Bude in the north of Cornwall and Penzance in the south of the county.
The holiday park is a couple of minutes walk from Porth's sandy beach, which will save you fighting for a parking space in summer. Facilities at the park are basic - there isn't an indoor or outdoor swimming pool or evening entertainment involving a crooner in a satin jacket. However, the caravans onsite are relatively posh with decent kitchens and facilities. There's also the all-important wifi, although you have to pay extra for that. It makes our top 10 Cornwall caravan parks because it gets consistently strong reviews, and because it is so close to a nice beach. Price: £1092 for 2 adults and 2 children for a week in August 2019 in a Rio caravan (although it cost the same for 6 people). |
4. Hoburne Doublebois (near Liskeard) - quieter park with some facilities, great reviews
**Winner: cheapest holiday park**
We've mostly picked seaside holiday parks for this guide, but Hoburne Doublebois is highly rated and competitively priced so it makes our top 10. It is also well located for day trips to pretty spots like Padstow and Tintagel, and it's about half an hour from the Eden Project. The nearest beach (Looe) is about 20 minutes away in the car.
Accommodation is in chalets and lodges rather than caravans, but prices are similar to most caravan parks and reviews are one of the best we've found (5 out of 5 for the lodges on TripAdvisor when we checked). The chalets are cheaper than the lodges, but they do get booked up quickly. Onsite, there's a fairly good range of facilities, though not as many as youwould get at the really big and busy parks (e.g Hendra Holiday Park, Perran Sands). Hoburne Doublebois' facilities include an adventure playground, tennis court, pool table, fishing nearby, nature trail and fitness suite. There isn't an onsite restaurant or swimming pool though (the one on the video is a different Hoburne park). Price: £630 for 2 adults and 2 children for a week in August 2019 in an Eagle lodge. |
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5. Mullion Cove Coastal Retreat (South Cornwall) - quiet, posh lodges with hot tubs
Mullion Cove Coastal Retreat is a bit more expensive than some of the holiday parks on this list, since it offers posh lodges rather than caravans (expect outdoor hot tubs and horse riding rather than knobbly knee competitions). It’s a little less busy than some holiday parks and is in a secluded wooded spot.
Facilities onsite are fairly limited (there’s no swimming pool), so think of it as a base to explore the area rather than somewhere to spend every hour. Reviews are consistently outstanding (5 out of 5 when we checked in 2017). The accommodation is classy, even at the cheaper end with Wifi, big TVs and games consoles for children who are determined to stay indoors all week. I managed to find one lodge which was dog friendly. Mullion Cove Coastal Retreat is on the Lizard Peninsula (the southernmost point in England) and is a short walk from the rustic coastline at Mullion Cove. It’s a good location for doing some coastal walking, as long as there isn’t a risk of siblings falling out whilst on a clifftop (check out iWalkCornwall for some circular walking routes). It's also near to family attractions including Flambards Theme Park. Price: £1889 for 2 adults and 2 children for a week in August 2019 in a Mullion Lodge. |
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6. Perran Sands Holiday Park - (Perranporth) busy Haven caravan park in central location
In my view, there’s not a lot between the two Haven holiday parks in Cornwall – Perran Sands and Riviere Sands.
They get similar reviews with both scoring 4 out of 5 on Trip Advisor. They’re both right by lovely beaches and they have similar facilities onsite with Perran Sands and Riviere Sands both offering indoor and outdoor pools (I’d opt for an indoor pool personally…), evening entertainment, surf and paddleboard lessons and places to eat on site. Perran Sands has a sports court and adventure golf, but Riviere Sands has crazy golf. They are both busy, family friendly holiday parks with plenty to do on site, so I would make a decision based on price and location. Perran Sands is slightly less remote (Perranporth) and is better placed for visiting Newquay’s attractions (Newquay Zoo, Blue Reef Aquarium and Pirates Quest etc). It’s also marginally closer to the Eden Project at St Austell, but then Riviere Sands is much closer to Lands End. Personally, I’d favour Perran Sands based on location. Prices aren’t very different, but the cheapest week we could find in August 2017 for a family of 4 was £1053 at Perran Sands Holiday Park or £959 at Riviere Sands Holiday Park. Riviere Sands doesn't allow pets. Price: £1137 for 2 adults and 2 children for a week in August 2019 (Perran Sands standard caravan) |
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7. Piran Meadows Resort and Spa (near Newquay) inland holiday park, loads of facilities
Piran Meadows Resort and Spa is one of two inland holiday parks in this top 10 guide. It makes the list because of its reviews, which are consistently around 4.5 out of 5 on Trip Advisor or 9.1/10 on Hoseasons.
Piran Meadows is a 5 star park and it is centrally located so is a good option if you are staying for a week or more and want to explore the whole of Cornwall without the mammoth drives you will face if you are staying in Bude or Penzance (Bude to Lands End is a four hour round trip). It’s also close to Newquay, where several of the larger attractions are based and it's only 25 minutes from the Eden Project at St Austell. Piran Meadows is also a half hour drive from St Enodoc golf club, which is one of the best in Cornwall according to Golf Holidays Cornwall. It’s also one of the best equipped holiday parks we’ve found in Cornwall, with indoor and outdoor swimming pools, sauna, fitness suite, ‘WaterWalkerz’ (those balls where you stand inside and fall over), snorkelling, indoor soft play, indoor golf simulator, archery, fencing, horse riding, quad bikes and restaurants (some things cost extra). There are posh caravans with outdoor hot tubs, or more basic ones which still get good reviews. Some of the caravans are dog friendly, but not all of them. Price: £1607 for 2 adults and 2 children for a week in August 2019 in a 'St Austell' caravan. |
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8. River Valley Country Park (near Penzance) - good value, quiet rural park
River Valley Country Park is a short way inland on Cornwall's south coast, with a mix of cheap caravans and more luxurious lodges with hot tubs.
It's a quiet holiday park, without the swimming pools and family entertainment offered at some parks. Instead, it's in a leafy country park and has been awarded conservation awards. I'd suggest River Valley might be good for those looking to put down the smartphone and escape the busyness of everyday life rather than those looking for flumes and amusement arcades to entertain the children. Reviews were 4.5 out of 5 on TripAdvisor when I checked. It is well placed for visiting Lands End and the Lizard Peninsula with a good choice of beaches if you are willing to drive a bit. It's a fairly long drive from Newquay and Bude. Price: £708 for 2 adults and 2 children for a week in August 2019 in a Swallow caravan. |
9. Hendra Holiday Park (Newquay) - busy park, lots of family facilities
Hendra Holiday Park in Newquay is a big and busy family caravan park with holiday homes, as well as camping and touring. I'd say it's a good option if you don't want to spend the week in the car, but would rather use a lot of onsite facilities and explore some of Newquay's beaches and the bigger attractions. It's not one to choose if you fancy a quiet week away from it all.
The list of facilities and things to do without leaving the park is huge, including an indoor swimming pool with three flumes, an outdoor swimming pool, family entertainment, kids' activities, bars and restaurants, soft play, adventure playgrounds, lifeguard training, skate park and amusements. These larger parks often have mixed reviews in my experience, but Hendra Holiday Park had a rating of 4.5 out of 5 on TripAdvisor when I checked. Price: £1205 for 2 adults and 2 children for a week in August 2019 in a Clowance caravan. |
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10. Sandymouth Holiday Resort (North Cornwall) - easy to reach, family friendly facilities
Sandymouth Holiday Resort is a highly rated caravan park near to Bude (quite near the Devon border), so it is much easier to access for most people travelling into the county than more remote spots around Penzance and The Lizard Peninsula. It might be one to consider for a shorter break where you don't fancy a long drive.
There's a mixture of lodges and caravans at Sandymouth, and it's a little bit posher than some of the cheaper places to stay in this guide. Sandymouth Holiday Resort has a good range of facilities, including an indoor swimming pool, an indoor sports hall, outdoor gym, ball pool, playground, archery, rifle shooting (perhaps not wise if your children aren't getting on...), outdoor activities (raft building etc), restaurant and bar. It's about a mile to Sandymouth Beach, which is a National Trust beach. It's a fair trek for exploring the south of Cornwall - it's a two hour drive to Land's End and Penzance or 1 1/2 hours to the Eden Project at St Austell. Price: £1311 for 2 adults and 2 children in August 2019 in a Prideaux caravan. |
Price comparison of 10 of Cornwall's best holiday caravan parks
We looked for the cheapest accommodation available for a family of four, for a week in August 2019. We carried out our searches in December 2018. From cheapest to most expensive:
- Hoburne Doublebois - £630 **Winner: cheapest holiday park**
- River Valley Country Park - £708
- Sea Acres Holiday Park - £759
- Praa Sands Holiday Park - £779 **Winner: best value holiday park**
- Porth Beach Holiday Park - £1092
- Perran Sands Holiday Park - £1137
- Hendra Holiday Park - £1205
- Sandymouth Holiday Resort - £1311
- Piran Meadows Resort and Spa - £1607
- Mullion Cove Coastal Retreat - £1889