Established 62 years ago, Haven currently has 41 caravan holiday parks and 1 cottage resort in the UK. Having changed hands several times since its inception, Haven has always been known as good-value holiday fun with entertainment built in. However, at age 43, I have never been to a Haven. Having experienced Butlins for the first time a year ago, it is now time to sample one of its well-established competitors.

After careful consideration with my 5- and 9-year-olds, we opted to follow the recommendation of a few friends and visit North Wales and the well-known Presthaven Sands caravan park. Situated between Rhyl and Prestatyn, it backs onto a quiet beach and boasts a swimming pool, a climbing wall, an aerial adventure course, and many other attractions.

Callum

Skye

We soon discovered that the Haven holiday experience offers more than just the time spent on the premises. With a Play Pass, we had priority access to pre-book activities, starting with the all-important swimming sessions. My two children selected three additional activities for the weekend, and dinosaurs and crafts seemed to capture their attention, as you will soon discover. From there, we could explore our accommodation, look at food options, and pre-decide on entertainment preferences. Perfect pre-break excitement builders.

After a rather wet and windy drive from Staffordshire to North Wales, we arrived in good time to enjoy a little meander and a meal on the Friday night before making the most of our extremely spacious and truly comfortable 3-bedroom caravan. The Gold Standard was most certainly well earned.

Feeling refreshed and ready after a good night's sleep, we got supplies from the on-site store and had a breakfast feast around a good-sized dining table before heading out for activity #1. Arriving at the creative space to do some pottery painting a little early, we quickly discovered the free-to-access soft play space – which was a real win on a wet weekend in March – and kept the kids very happily engaged until they could set to work painting their hearts out. With friendly staff and quick service, the activity was smooth and truly enjoyable, with Skye finishing before Calum; the proximity of the soft play space meant she could play while he painted. Perfect!

A dangerous first walk through the arcades proved costly but led to a lush pub lunch ahead of a gusty but refreshing beach stroll and activity #2: make your own teddy bear! With teddies of the Seaside Squad to select from – with George and Annie easily opted for by my two – the playful presenters kept all the children fully engaged and excited throughout the creative process. Although a slightly costly activity, the built-in self-made souvenirs ticked off another box on the to-do list. 

An inevitable exit via the arcades was thankfully interrupted by the need to return to our caravan to collect our swimming gear so we could explore the much-talked-about swimming pool. While the slide kept Calum happy (even if I didn't particularly enjoy its lack of pace and thrill factor), Skye was happy going between hot and cold pools, and the hour flew by.

With sweet treats accessible just outside the pool, we indulged in churros and ice cream before a lengthy play on the playground due to the children making friends, which led into a home-cooked supper and football around our caravan. With two already exhausted children needing to crash, we missed our planned evening entertainment and opted for warm cuddles instead ahead of another day of adventures.

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Our Sunday morning started with an early visit to the soft play ahead of a 9:30 swim, allowing plenty of arcade time prior to a dinosaur fossil dig! While a simple activity, similar to a home-bought kit we had done ourselves previously, the calm presenter made the activity last an hour and had all the children's full attention held for the entirety. Very impressive, even if the dinosaur was extremely challenging in terms of build value at the end!

With pre-planned activities at a close, the remainder of our day could be spent relaxing and enjoying the facilities and some downtime on the beach between rainfall. A brief foray into nearby Talacre, where the beach was closed due to the weather, led to a yummy waffle treat before the drive home. 

While we could have stayed another night in our lush caravan, the early start for school the next day curtailed our mini break but left the children asking when we can return.

Haven Holiday: prices from £179 from 27 March to 16 April (inc.). Based on 27 March & 10 April for 3 nights, and 13 April for 4 nights.