UK’s best and worst holiday parks named — Center Parcs and Haven nowhere near the top

Staff
By Staff

A survey of 1,700 holidaymakers has revealed some of the best and worst of British holiday park breaks

Aerial views of Pontins Camber Sands in East Sussex which is now closed to the public
Pontins – who were bottom of the list – have closed locations including Camber Sands in East Sussex(Image: Adam Gerrard / Daily Mirror)

A survey by Which? has revealed some of the best and worst holiday parks in the UK for 2025, with well-known brands such as Haven and Center Parcs losing out to lesser-known providers.

The survey was completed by 1,700 Which? members who were asked to rate their experiences in UK holiday parks and resorts. Respondents were asked to rank details from the cleanliness of the park to the quality of their accommodation, variety of free activities on offer, and the overall value for money of their holiday.

Topping the chart for “customer score” was Potters Resorts, which offer all-inclusive holidays at two resorts based in Essex and Norfolk. While it’s an adults-only resort most of the year, children are allowed during the summer holidays in Norfolk. Potters scored an impressive 87%, with an impressive five-stars for quality of facilities and accommodation, and a perfect score for the variety of free activities on offer.

Hopton-on-Sea in Norfolk
Potters Resorts have two locations including the beautiful Hopton-on-Sea in Norfolk(Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Although Potters is the most expensive of the parks included in the Which? survey, the price includes all food and drink, activities that range from pickleball to archery and evening entertainment which is described as ‘West End’ quality, netting the parks a four-star rating for value for money.

Forest Holidays came in second, with an overall customer score of 80%. The brand has eight parks in England, three in Scotland, and two in Wales, with rural locations and accommodation such as log cabins and treehouses. Customers gave positive feedback for the quality of the accommodation and cleanliness, although they only got three-stars for value for money.

Another winner was Bluestone Wales, which is set in picturesque Pembrokeshire. Bluestone offers luxury lodges and cottages, also scoring highly for the quality of accommodation on offer. While they scored well for the variety of children’s activities on offer and the entertainment, they also scored three-stars for value for money, giving them an overall score of 77%.

Forest Holidays
Forest Holidays clinched second place(Image: Leicester Mercury)

Pontins are yet again at the bottom of the chart, having also come bottom in 2024. The brand only has one holiday park that’s currently open to guests, the adults-only Sand Bay Holiday Village in Weston-Super-Mare. Their other two parks in Burnham on Sea, Somerset and Pakefield, Suffolk are temporarily closed in order to house construction workers.

Scoring just 56% for customer satisfaction, Pontins scored just two-stars in most areas and, despite being the cheapest option, customers still felt they received poor value for money.

Sand Bay near Weston-Super-Mare
Sand Bay near Weston-Super-Mare is the only Pontins currently open to the public(Image: Rowan Griffiths)

In a Tripadvisor review of their Pakefield park, one customer said: “Worst place I have ever visited, chalet was old unkempt and dirty, holes in sheets, beds pushed together with terrible matress and pillows, to shower you had to keep pushing a button in, it leaked all over the floor”.

Another complained: “Rooms are shabby and quite dirty. Dirt on the baseboards, cobwebs in the corners and behind doors, our shower curtain had pink mold growing along the bottom seam, clearly not laundered between guests.”

However, there were positive reviews of the Pontins experience. One said: “We went beginning of October had a brilliant week! Food was great, swimming pool was really good and for the price you really can’t get any better!”

And many reviews praised the entertainment on offer, with one saying: “The Bluecoats show Vegas was amazing! They are all so talented and are always doing some activity or joining in on the dance floor and having a laugh or chatting with people.”

General view of  Towan beach, Newquay
Away Resorts have 25 family-friendly resorts including one in Newquay(Image: William Dax / SWNS)

The bottom of the list also included Largo Leisure Parks, a chain of six parks in Scotland, who scored 64%. However, it’s worth noting they had a small sample size of just 30 respondents who had visited their parks.

A spokesperson for Largo Leisure said: “Whilst this is of course disappointing, this relates to only 30 people who were surveyed about Largo Leisure over 12 months ago. On both TripAdvisor and Google Reviews, where we have thousands of reviews for each of our six Scotland holiday parks, all of them are rated 4.3 or above out of 5.

“We regularly get 5 star reviews on both TripAdvisor and Google reviews and we would encourage people to take a look on both to see a true reflection of the guest experiences at our parks. We are very proud of our track record for providing exceptional holidays for our guests but we never stop trying to improve. We are enjoying a busy year across all our parks and if people read the online reviews they will see why.”

Away Resorts had the same score. They have 25 parks across the UK, including the popular south-west of England area and the Isle of Wight.

Away Resorts got just two stars for value for money, despite offering a wide range of accommodation from caravans and glamping to luxury lodges. They also scored poorly for customer service, but received three-stars for cleanliness and quality of accommodation.

The most popular holiday park provider in the survey was Center Parcs, which scored 69%, putting it neck and neck with Haven. While it scored well for the quality of its facilities and accommodation, it received low scores for the variety of free activities on offer and overall value for money. It was the third most expensive on the list, coming in after Potters and Warner Leisure Villages, who offer adults-only breaks.

Center Parcs in Elveden Forest
Center Parcs in Elveden Forest – their parks received high scores for quality but were described as ‘expensive’(Image: Publicity Picture)

One Which? member wrote: “Very expensive for what it is. Accomodation excellent, apart from the oasis pool, everything was extra. Staff were very helpful and the children enjoyed their stay. I will not be going back.”

Haven, who have 38 parks across the UK, scored the same percentage as Center Parcs, although they did get three stars for value for money. Which? readers gave them two star scores for food and drink and the variety of free activities on offer.

Best and worst holiday parks in the UK ranked by customer score

  1. Potters Resorts 87%
  2. Forest Holidays 80%
  3. Bluestone Wales 77%
  4. John Fowler Holiday Parks 77%
  5. Hoburne Holidays 75%
  6. Hoseasons 74%
  7. Waterside Holiday Group 74%
  8. Warner Leisure Villages 71%
  9. Center Parcs 69%
  10. Haven Holiday Parks 69%
  11. Parkdean Resorts 68%
  12. Butlins 67%
  13. Park Holidays UK 66%
  14. Away Resorts 64%
  15. Largo Leisure Parks 64%
  16. Pontins 56%

Pontins, Away Resorts, Park Holidays, Butlins, Center Parcs, and Haven have been approached for comment.

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