Our £9.50 Holidays expert answers YOUR questions
WHETHER you’re wondering which park to pick or you’ve already got yours booked, Tracy Kennedy is helping Sun readers make the most of their £9.50 holiday.
Tracy Kennedy, a Hols from 9.50 expert who has more than a quarter of a million followers online, has long been helping Sun holidaymakers plan their getaways.
If you fancy asking Tracy something else about the Sun’s Hols from £9.50, she’ll be answering your questions in her new agony aunt column in Sun Club.
One top question each week will be rewarded with a £100 Amazon voucher – use the form further down to send her your question.
Having stayed in holiday parks across the UK from the Isle of Wight to Bognor Regis, Tracy has experience staying in a range of locations.
Along the way she’s picked up some of the best tips and tricks for making the most of your break – and now she’s here to answer your questions.
Read more on £9.50 holidays
From how to plan a romantic getaway for couples, to how to find a quiet site to avoid the crowds, our £9.50 Hols Agony Aunt has got you covered.
This week, Sun reader Paula Cubitt has been awarded best question of the week – which means she’s been selected to win a £100 Amazon voucher. Congratulations, Paula!
If I am unable to go on the holiday after booking, can I alter the date or venue? How do I do it?
Denise Houghton
Once you’ve had your confirmation through, speak to your chosen holiday site.
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The £9.50 holidays website tells you to speak directly to the parks themselves.
They’re the best ones to tell you. Don’t do anything until you’ve spoken to them!
A lot of the parks are happy to change, but sometimes there’ll be a £20 admin fee or so to make amendments.
Some have rules that you can’t change dates, but some parks will change it for you. So it’s always worth asking. But they don’t give refunds.
How can I make sure I get disabled friendly caravans or chalets?
Paula Cubitt
If you need certain accommodation, use the contact form straight after you’ve booked.
You can fill it in to request the right kind of space. Make sure to contact them straight away, because there’s only so many at each resort.
It says more on the £9.50 Holidays website about how to speak to them once you’ve booked your holiday.
Where is ideal for a romantic getaway for couples?
Adam Meacham
For couples, I suggest maybe going somewhere abroad on a European holiday.
Somewhere in Italy, as there’s quite a few Italian sites. Because Italy is such a romantic country!
If you’re wanting to go away in the UK, it depends on how far you’re willing to travel and where you’re based.
But if you can, I’d say to go up to Scotland for one of the beautiful sites up there – plenty of the Scottish sites welcoming to dogs too.
Can an older couple enjoy a £9.50 holiday, or are they for families?
Tracey Wolverson
There’s lots of things to do for couples and older couples.
Check your preferred park on the website to see what they offer. You can always go for a drink, have a meal, play bingo or go swimming.
Walks along the beach are nice too, or going out to explore the little villages nearby.
For couples looking for lots of things to do, I’d recommend Billing Aquadrome in Northampton.
There’s loads of adults and kids stuff. Lakes and streams to walk around, a lovely bar. It’s absolutely amazing.
It’s also only a 10-minute taxi ride from the closest train station.
HOW TO BOOK HOLS FROM 9.50 WITH SUN CLUB
Join Sun Club at thesun.co.uk/club for £1.99 a month.
Go to the Sun Club Offers hub and find the Hols from £9.50 page.
You do not need to collect any codewords or Sun Savers codes.
Booking is already open and closes on February 15.
Tips for those who want to travel by train?
Monica Johnstone
Firstly you should look at your preferred sites to work out how to get there from where you live.
Look at how far the train station is from the park and how easy it would be to take a bus or a taxi from there.
Also you should book your train tickets as early as you can to get the best deals.
If you go to somewhere like Caerelwan, you can literally get off the train, walk out the station and you’re there.
You’re practically next to the tracks, but you can’t hear the trains, it’s great!
There you’ve got a pub down the road, arcades, and a little shop.
How to find quieter sites?
Dora White
I’d say all sites can be quiet, if you book to go out of season.
Maybe book a holiday just before the kids break up. But bear in mind that Scotland break up for school before England do.
If you go between the school holidays, the sites won’t be full of children so are usually quieter.
A good park for some peace and quiet is The Lakes Rookley on the Isle of Wight.
The views are amazing around there, and it’s definitely very quiet.
You can go off site and do plenty of walking. Even on the site itself there’s a lovely lake to walk around, it’s very peaceful.
Everywhere is reachable from there, too. You can jump on an island hopper bus and they can literally take you around the whole island.
You just buy a day saver ticket. So then you can leave the car behind if you fancy a drink.
Tracy’s top tips for £9.50 Holiday planning
Before booking, Tracy recommends researching any dates you can and can’t make ahead of time.
This includes making a note of when the school holidays are, and any key events you have coming up in the year.
You should also consider how far you’re willing to travel, and how exactly you’ll reach the holiday park.
This includes planning out the car journey, or researching ahead of time where the nearest train stations are to the holiday parks.
You should also double check that the park you want has the right facilities for you.
Whether this is accessible accommodation or dog-friendly sites, Tracy says you should definitely check ahead of time to see if the park offers what you need.
Entertainment on offer can change depending on which holiday park you choose, and which time of year you go.
Tracy recommends looking up the entertainment schedule ahead of time to know what will be available once you’re there – especially if you’re bringing kids.
And if your top picks have already been fully booked – don’t worry, they might just be back.
Lots of popular parks get snapped up the minute that booking opens, and gradually more and more places become filled.
But sometimes, later in the year, new spots open up at various holiday parks.
Tracy recommends hopping back on the website from time to time to see if any secret deals have been added.
However, there;s no guarantee that more spaces will open up – so make sure to have some backup holiday parks in mind that you wouldn’t mind booking.