Published: September 2, 2015
Burnham area gets summer trade boost despite poor August weather
Holiday parks and businesses in the Burnham-On-Sea area have seen a mostly positive summer of trade despite disappointing weather.
Burnham-On-Sea.com has spoken to a cross-section of local businesses this week to find out how they’ve fared over the summer as they wind down after the busy school holidays.
Burnham’s Home Farm Holiday Park says it has seen one of its busiest summers for years. Owner Steve Atkins told Burnham-On-Sea.com: “We have had a bumper season – it’s been good throughout for us from seasonal tourers and pitches. I reckon we’ve had our busiest season for six or seven years in terms of visitor numbers and spend per head.”
And Brean Leisure Park has fared well too, with Alan House saying: “Overall, the season has been very positive for us. The last couple of weeks were challenging due to the poor weather, but the first few weeks were really busy. I think we benefited from more ‘staycation’ visitors, with fewer people holidaying abroad this summer.”
In Burnham town centre, businesses have experienced a mixed season where there has been more reliance on good weather to bring in shoppers.
Lyn Laurence at the Sweet Shack in Burnham High Street said: “We had a great Bank Holiday weekend and a good summer overall. There has been plenty of spending, even though the number of visitors seems to have been slightly down.”
Shoe Zone’s Pat Bentley added: “We haven’t been as busy as some summers – people just do not seem to have been spending as much this year, but the summer season was OK overall.”
Les Barber at Bessies Sweet Shoppe in Burnham High Street added: “It’s been a funny season – we were really busy in June and July during the better weather, while August was quieter. It’s been a reasonable summer overall, though.”
Louise Parkin, at Burnham Pavilion, said: “It’s been a mediocre year for us. There has been no consistent good weather which dented trade. We’re down on last summer, but are still holding out for a late Indian Summer!”
And Colin Morris at GW Hurleys added: “The summer was fair overall – trade has been nothing extraordinary, but there’s not much money about and the weather deflated the visitor number. Burnham’s car parking is far too expensive compared to other towns and I think this puts off some visitors.”
Many Burnham guesthouses and B&Bs have reported a busy summer, with many saying their occupancy rates were up on last year.
