BOOKING a weatherproof autumn break with luxurious lodges, woodland spas and tropical indoor waterparks doesn’t have to be expensive.
We’ve tracked down the UK’s ultimate budget-friendly staycations this autumn to save your rainy weekends – from less than £3pp per night.
From clever Center Parcs dupes in stunning forests, to mega family holiday parks with tropical pool complexes, these sites guarantee a great time even when the British weather turns grim.
Whether you want to float along a lazy river while rain taps against the window, or enjoy a drink in a private hot tub under the pine trees, we’ve found some unbeatable breaks for the cheapest rates this autumn.
Finlake Resort & Spa
Set across 130 acres of Devonshire woodland, Finlake gives you the premium forest village feel of Center Parcs – but for far less money.
Fill your days with an action-packed itinerary of axe-throwing, Segways, laser tag, den building, horse riding and more. Activities start from £7, and there are plenty of free options, too.
When rainy days hit, Finlake Falls is your best friend. This indoor waterpark boasts a spacious indoor pool heated to 30C with a ‘beach style’ entrance for little ones, where they can gently wade into shallow waters.
For older kids and young-at-heart adults, there’s high-speed waterslides and flumes – plus activities like Seascooters, where you can twist and glide through the water holding onto a propeller.
Similar to Center Parcs, there’s also a woodland spa here, the Sirona Spa, where you can enjoy a soothing massage or Elemis skincare treatments.
The holiday resort is only two miles from Dartmoor National Park, where you can spot wild ponies, and three miles from Canonteign Falls – a breathtaking waterfall with a friendly gift shop and cafe nearby.
Four people can spend a week in Scandinavian-style woodland cabin with a log burner from £265 this autumn, working out at £9.46pp per night. A luxury woodland lodge won’t cost you much more, with a week from £305.
In contrast, we found a seven-night October break at Center Parcs Longleat Forest in their cheapest accommodation for £1,458. That’s a saving of £1,193.
Bluestone National Park Resort, Wales
If you’re wanting a luxury woodland break this autumn that won’t break the bank, book in at Bluestone National Park Resort in Pembrokeshire.
The crown jewel of Bluestone is the Blue Lagoon Water Park, a massive, heated, subtropical indoor pool complex that is completely free for guests.
The subtropical waterpark has a huge wave machine, four twisting, high-speed flumes, a lazy river and even warm, bubbling spa pools to retreat to.
Little ones can make a splash in Nippers Cove, a shallow pool with its own mini waterslide, water cannons and indoor rockpools.
You might even find mermaids and pirates at the waterpark during themed events.
Outside of the pool, you can try an indoor zipline, take an electric bike tour through the woods, tackle a climbing wall or even have a go at bushcraft skills including fire lighting and outdoor cooking.
As for accommodation, you can stay in everything from a stylish apartment, to a cosy pastel-coloured cottage, to a mega six-bedroom wooden lodge.
We found a three-night break in a silver lodge sleeping four for £420, working out at £35pp per night.
Highfield Grange, Essex
This newly-upgraded Essex holiday park reopened in spring of this year, packed with £5million worth of shiny new activities.
Parkdean has pumped serious money into weather-proofing this park, with new Bear Grylls escape rooms, an expanded soft play area, and even an indoor Chocolate Factory where families can create their own concoctions.
Another new addition is the Hat Tricks Sports Bar, where you can spend rainy afternoons indoors playing shuffleboard, darts, pool and mini golf.
To cut costs, there’s also an all-inclusive food and drinks package, starting from £25 per day for adults and £10 per day for kids.
This includes three meals a day plus unlimited soft drinks and Costa Coffee, so you and the kids can cosy up with a hot chocolate whenever you please.
This park is only 10 minutes’ drive from Clacton-on-Sea, where you can stroll quiet beaches on dog walks or take a trip to the amusements without the frantic summer crowds.
We found a deal for a two-night break in a Bronze Caravan sleeping up to six for £99. That works out at £8.25pp per night.
Haven Hafan y Mor
Hafan y Mor is one of Haven’s biggest holiday parks, and is one of the top-rated, too, as a three-time winner of the AA 5-Platinum Star award.
On dry days, head to the Dragon Lakes Adventure Village for mini 4×4 off-roading, high ropes courses, and to battle it out at a NERF training camp.
Inside, Splashaway Bay is one of the biggest and best holiday park pool complexes in the UK, with a lazy river, giant tipping buckets and a four-lane waterslide.
For food and drink you can grab a bite from Chopstix, Slim Chickens, and family restaurant The Coast House Bar and Grill.
As for getting out and about, you can take a breezy beach walk just steps from the park or take a 10-minute drive to the pretty seaside town of Criccieth, where you can explore a historic 13th-century castle.
We found a deal for a four night stay in October for six people in a Bronze Caravan for £69 total, which works out at a tiny £2.88pp per night.
Vauxhall, Great Yarmouth
Vauxhall Holiday Park is another that has recently undergone a £5million mega-revamp, and it may just be one of the best UK parks when it comes to rainy day activities.
Kids can spend hours in the massive Tropical Waterworld, complete with slides and a splash zone, or burn off energy tackling the indoor soft play.
If you visit in October you’ll see the park go all-out for Halloween with spooky ghost walks, costume contests and creative craft workshops – plus the Parkdean chain-wide Monster Ball party.
The fairground indoor golf is a real highlight here, with a sparkly-new course decorated with swirls and pinstripes just as colourful as the sticks of rock and sweets sold on Great Yarmouth‘s Pier.
Twinning with Highfield Grange, this site also has a new Hat Tricks Sports Bar – but you can also hang out in the site’s other two entertainment venues, and take part in quizzes, bingo or rock and roll nights.
You can book a three night stay for four people in a Bronze Caravan this October for £135, which works out at £11.25pp per night.
Parkdean Resorts Warmwell
Parkdean’s Warmwell Resort in Dorset is a lodge-only park, meaning that you won’t find static caravans here – just cosy wooden lodges that are perfect for autumn.
Tucked away among the trees, these cabins offer instant access to the lake for swimming and fishing. And if you want to dial up the luxury, you can book a stay with a private hot tub.
You can even practice your skiing at this Dorset holiday park, with a 110-metre dry ski slope which you can tackle via skis, snowboard or sledge.
If the weather plays up, you can whizz around in the massive indoor roller rink, spend spare change in the amusements or warm up in the heated indoor pool – and yes it has a waterslide.
Autumn stays here are all about throwing on a coat, tearing through the woodland trails on biks, and returning to a cosy, heated lodge afterwards.
You can book a three-night stay in a superior lodge sleeping eight for £266 this October, working out at £11.08pp per night.