Brean and Burnham-On-Sea holiday park owners say the summer holiday season has been a mixed one for trade as weather and the economy had an impact.
They say holidaymakers have been keeping an eye on their spending due to cost-of-living pressures while the number of visitors has been ‘flat’ due to poor weather and the temporary closure of Brean Pontins.
Jon Harris, Director at Warren Farm Holiday Centre, told Burnham-On-Sea.com: “Warren Farm has seen a similar number of visitors staying with us to previous years, however there has been a noticeable reduction in spend, particularly at our venue The Beachcomber. There has also been far fewer day trippers to Brean and the village centre has been quieter this summer.”
Alan House, director at Holiday Resort Unity, adds: “Here at Brean Leisure Park and Holiday Resort Unity we have seen a mixed trading season. The weather has been by far the biggest challenge with the main school summer holidays being particularly poor and that’s our busiest trading period. This meant a reduction in day visitors which had a negative impact on the theme park and outdoor pool as well as outside food and drink, especially ice cream!”
“However, we are well prepared and offer an array of indoor facilities such as Brean Play and our entertainment venues which have seen very busy trading periods. Demand for UK holidays and in particular our facilities at Brean has been very strong even if the weather dampened last minute trade. Isn’t it just typical that the kids go back to school and the sun comes out!”
“The other noticeable impact on trade and footfall in Brean in general this year has been the loss of around 5,000 holiday guests per week staying at Pontins, all of which spent in the local economy. This has had a particular negative impact on many of the businesses that depended on tourism.”
Several other holiday parks in Brean and Burnham-On-Sea have reported a summer of mixed trade to Burnham-On-Sea.com, however Home Farm Holiday Park says it saw a positive season.
Steve Atkinson, owner of Home Farm Holiday Park, says: “2023 has been a strong season for us. The growth in short breaks for our touring pitches and holiday homes with hot tubs has been very high.”
He adds: Over the next couple of weeks we will be starting the next phase of redevelopment for our fully serviced touring pitches ready for 2024, along with adding more hot tubs to our glamping pods. Pre 2024 bookings are already up on the same time as last year.”
