Get unlimited access to the latest travel industry news and analysis, comment on articles and sign up to newsletters.
Register for free
Already registered? Login here or below.
Having difficulty logging in? Try these tips, or contact support@flymy.co.uk
Thornwick Bay in Yorkshire is Haven’s newest park, with a slew of outdoor activities for families to enjoy. Andrew Doherty finds out more at the opening.
On the green cliff tops of Yorkshire, a man is juggling axes while a woman disappears inside a coil of hula hoops. No, I haven’t stepped into a recreation of the Magical Mystery Tour movie; this is the official opening of Haven’s newest resort at Thornwick Bay in Flamborough, Yorkshire.
Haven has pumped £10 million into the site since purchasing it from the previous owners, with the cash going towards a major revamp of the park’s original facilities.
Improvements include an extension to the pool, a new restaurant and bar area, and an overhaul of the entertainment and outdoor activities packages.
Lindsey Chapman, presenter of BBC Two’s Springwatch and local Yorkshire resident, is here to officially open the resort.
“Thornwick Bay is great as it’s capitalising on the amazing environment we have on the Yorkshire coast. I enjoyed being here today; it really feels like coming home,” she says.
Daniel Coward, head of nature and environment at Bourne Leisure, is on hand to give more details on the types of outdoor activities families can enjoy.
He says: “In our new Nature Rockz package we have sand sculpting, fire lighting, water purification, fossil hunting and cave exploration.”
Coward explains that the activities were created to encourage families to get stuck in rather than experience the outdoors through television and films.
“It’s all about reconnecting with nature. In this day and age people view it all through their televisions or computer screens. Here you really get your hands dirty.”
Nature Rockz activities are supervised by a trained park ranger and most are included in the holiday package; clients will pay a maximum of £4 for select sessions such as Paint a Plate and Canvas Painting.
For families who like to be on the move there is onsite bicycle and Segway hire. A full day’s bike hire will cost clients £10 while a 45-minute Segway session is priced at £20.
Clients with a taste for action can enjoy archery classes, target shooting with an air rifle and fencing lessons.
Peter Lambert and Lisa Sampson, former Britain’s Got Talent contestants, are weaving among the crowds that have gathered in the resort’s newly refurbished Lighthouse Restaurant.
The mayor of nearby Bridlington goes to shake Lisa’s hand only to find a hula hoop start spinning round his arm. Peter, not wanting to be upstaged, grabs a hoop and whirs it round his own neck.
I peel away from the festivities with Louise Tansey, key account manager for travel trade for Bourne Leisure. We sit down to coffees in the park’s modernised café. Tansey explains that urban dwellers are top of the list when it comes to Haven’s target client list. “Thornwick Bay is ideal for young families,” she says.
“It’s a safe place where kids can come and make new friends. Instead of signs that say stay off the grass we have signs that say play on the grass."
I rendezvous with John, a park employee who will be my guide on the tour. We begin at the restaurant. The renovated area, which sits 80 guests, takes on a nautical theme with booths made to look like fishing boats and fishermen’s jerseys on the wall. John explains
that each jumper has a unique knit pattern to identify the family that they belonged to. In the corner the new pizza oven is wafting the smell of freshly cooked dough towards me.
The restaurant bar is part of Cask Marque, an organisation that offers courses in how to pour the perfect pint and help staff recognise varying quality of beers. David Blackhurst, the head chef, bounds up to us. He informs me that the salmon I will be having for lunch has been bought fresh from a local fishmonger. “We would like to use fresh fish more often in the future,” he says.
Next on the agenda is the indoor swimming pool, where the water is kept at a balmy 29C. New heating lamps have been added to the shower area, the pool has also been extended with three new water slides and a larger swimming area.
In terms of accommodation on offer, Thornwick Bay houses the Standard two and three-bed caravans; the larger Deluxe model; the more up-to-date Prestige class; and the top of the range and most expensive Platinum caravan; plus a range of Comfort chalets. It surprises me how spacious and up to-date the Platinum dwellings are, with its flat screen TV, Bluetooth speakers and modern kitchen fully stocked with cooking utensils.
The master bedroom is large too, with its own walk-in wardrobe and en suite.
Making our way to the entertainment area, John points out that guests will no longer have to pass through the arcade. “This will help stop kids getting distracted by the gaming machines and spending too much money,” he says.
A theatre troupe dressed in Victorian costume barges past me. They are the Flash Bang Wallop Group and they are here to give us a lesson in Victorian photography.
The spontaneous act is part of Thornwick Bay’s new entertainment package with the goal of bringing the action straight to the guests. Steve Donnelly, head of entertainment for Bourne Leisure, explains the concept.
He says: “We’ve gone for cruise-style entertainment and are trialling new concepts to move the product onwards.”
The resort’s entertainment room has a new stage with a high-tech lighting and sound system and new shows include MJ Legend, a dance tribute act to Michael Jackson; Evolution Rock, an interactive rock music history lesson; and the Super Trooper sing-a-long, where the
Thornwick Bay theatre cast perform Abba’s biggest hits. All of the shows are included in the holiday package.
“People want to be in touch with the things that they see on TV. They want to be spoken to and interact with the performers,” Donnelly adds.
The classic British weather of overcast skies and showers can’t dampen the mood today as glasses of champagne exchange hands and the sound of laughter fills the room. It is evident that the restoration project is close to staff member’s hearts and they seem eager to show it off to potential clients.
Just as I am saying my farewells Lisa thrusts a hoop over my head. I spend the next few minutes both horrified and thrilled to be the centre of attention. Turns out I’m quite good at hula hooping.
Book it: Haven is offering a four-night self-catering holiday staying at Thornwick Bay from £519 per family. Price is based on a family of six sharing deluxe accommodation from July 25 and includes kids’ clubs and family entertainment.
