A holiday expert says a caravan site in Cornwall offers the cheapest family holiday of its kind in the UK – and despite a lack of facilities, he was left completely speechless
The site is large, but there’s little to do, he said(Image: YouTube/Beachlife&Beyond)
A travel YouTuber who has experienced some of Britain’s most affordable caravan parks was left “speechless” following a week-long stay at a budget site in Cornwall. The Haven Perran Sands site, he claims, offers the most wallet-friendly holiday of its type anywhere in the UK.
The reviewer, who shares his escapades on the Beachlife and Beyond YouTube channel, was forced to cut his trip short due to unpredictable weather. “One minute it’s raining, then it’s sunny, and we just can’t make many plans at all,” he explained.
Elaborating on his decision to leave early, he said: “The next couple of days are going to be raining pretty much non-stop, and we don’t want to be sat stuck in a caravan. The kids have already done the activities, they’ve done the arcades, and we’re going to be bored otherwise. So, we’re just going to go home.”
Despite finding the caravan park itself a little underwhelming in terms of entertainment, he was full of praise for the stunning surrounding area: “We’ve enjoyed the holiday park. It is a little bit run-down, and there isn’t a lot to do, unfortunately. But the local area, Perranporth, St. Ives, Newquay, they are stunning.”
He went on to say: “I’ve always wanted to come to Cornwall and the last time I was in Cornwall was about 40 years ago when I was a toddler, and I don’t remember it, and it surpassed my expectations. It’s such a beautiful area. If you’ve never been, I highly recommend you come.”
For a family of five, the holiday came to a remarkably affordable £300. Despite a couple of drawbacks – most notably a mattress that was well past its best – Haven Perran Sands made an overwhelmingly positive impression overall.
Introducing his home for the week, the YouTuber remarked: “This is my caravan for the week. This is a bronze caravan. It’s a two bed, one bathroom, no ensuite this time, apparently, unfortunately. I’m a bit little bit gutted about that.
“Look at the state of it,” he continued. “It doesn’t look the best, does it? It doesn’t look the most appealing. I’ve had some absolute shockers last year. I’m hoping this one is at least decent inside.”
His first port of call was what he calls the smell test: “Caravans can be quite dodgy from the previous guest aromas when you first come in and you usually need to open a window.”
Pleasantly, the caravan smelled perfectly fine upon entry. It was generously sized too, with seating for six on its sofa. However, comfort proved to be another matter entirely: “It is a sofa bed, but the mattress is diabolical. You can feel the springs through it. I mean, this mattress is basically a glorified yoga mat. It’s that bad.”
The main bedroom was no better: “I really don’t understand the point of memory foam mattresses. Who wants a bed that remembers the previous guests?” The next morning, he confirmed that the mattress left a great deal to be desired in terms of comfort.
He added: “As I suspected, I slept absolutely diabolically. That bed is appalling. I feel like I’m bent like a pretzel this morning. My back is absolutely killing me. But one plus note is I didn’t wake up with any mysterious itches. So that’s always a bonus, isn’t it, when you’re sleeping in a caravan?”
While the caravan seemed reasonably clean overall, Beachlife and Beyond wasn’t willing to leave anything to chance: “A little tip for you before you do come to a caravan holiday is when you arrive, make sure you wash everything up before you use it because I heard that cleaners only get 20 minutes per caravan to clean the entire van. So, the likelihood of these [cups] being washed properly is probably slim to none.”
In terms of entertainment, the site offers relatively little: “We’ve got an outdoor pool and also a lazy river, which I think is really cool, but it’s only open during the summer months.
“I was speaking to a lifeguard yesterday and she was saying it’s open usually from the May Bank Holiday onwards. It’s a really small site.”
He went on to say: “It’s large in terms of actual acreage because it’s also a touring site and there’s things like safari tents here, eco glamping pods, the lot. It’s covered in all these sand dunes that stretch for miles.
“But from what I’ve seen looking around, there’s honestly not a lot here at all. It’s one of the smallest sites in terms of things to do that I’ve been to so far.” However, he noted that any letdowns regarding the actual location were more than made up for by Cornwall’s breathtaking natural landscape: “I’m speechless. My breath is completely taken away. St Ives has not disappointed one little bit. It’s just amazing,”