Fit For Purpose
Look before you leap on holiday let hot tubs…
Educated estimates put the number of hot tubs in a holiday let setting, throughout the UK and Eire, at between 3,500 and 5,000 installations. Good news for some, with seven out of ten bookers looking for a hot tub with their holiday let while accommodation promoted as being supplied with a hot tub will generally sustain increased rates of around 30%.
The bad news is that any of those hot tubs, installed pre 2018, are probably out of date and do not comply with current regulations of HSG282. Not a problem, some would say, fiercely clutching their risk assessment paperwork. Not a problem, that is, until there is a high profile incident which will send the prospects for hot tubs and their non-conforming holiday park operator, down a rather large drain. “If you speak to any online booking agent they will usually place a hot tub in the top three options search or ticked; people really do want one,” says Dan Johnson of Marquis Spas, that markets a fully-compliant range of hot tubs for the holiday let market. “While some dealers have been specifying or retro-fitting continuous feeders to outdated models, the bather capacity and water turn over rates, will still make many hot tubs fall foul of HSG282,” explains Dan. “I think the big operators are paying attention as they understand the power of the HSE and thus the importance of following guidelines – it is built into their management infrastructure,” adds Dan.
POOR ADVICE
“My worry is people are getting poor advice from companies who are unaware or choose to ignore the guidelines because their product does not comply,” agrees Gareth Jones, of UK Leisure Living, the reigning UK Hot Tub Retailer Of The Year. “I would emphasise that 95% of our customers take the advice we give but there is a small percentage who disregard them dismissing them as just guidelines. “Some companies change their hot tub stock every two years however, we believe, between five and ten years is achievable, if they are properly looked after and investment has been in a quality product from the start,” Gareth emphasises.
Jessica Anthony of Award Leisure, UK distributors of Coast Spas, agrees. She warns of false economies: “If you think its expensive buying a better spa, wait until you find out how much it costs in the longer term, to buy a cheap equivalent.” Jessica also believes passionately that knowledge is power and that properly trained staff are essential. “Consistent attention to water quality that is clean and well-balanced is important,” she says. “Over-chlorinated water, which is a solution to inefficient system, effects the user’s skin, respiratory system and even their bathing costumes. “Over chlorination also has a detrimental effect on the plastics of the spa and erodes the filters,” warns Jessica. “It causes skin issues, upset stomachs, eye and ear infections, sickness and serious illness.”
The award-winning Rotospa currently have units fitted in excess of 110 holiday parks throughout the UK and Eire. “There are several important criteria when considering which spa would be best for you,” emphasises Rotospa’s Jason Smith. “If your spa isn’t fully HSG282 complaint, or you aren’t sure how to make it compliant, you really need to discuss this with the supplier as it is key when providing spas in a holiday setting.” Buoyed by 15 years’ experience supplying to the holiday park sector, Rotospa have now developed a fully compliant HSG282, holiday park specific spa.
CUSTOMER SAFETY
“As a manufacturer we have a responsibility to ensure people have a product fit for purpose and that our customers are trained in product use and ensuring safety of their customers,” Jason says. “In the early days, it seemed that people paid little attention to the compliancy and people were selling domestic spas for a commercial setting with little or no guidance,” he adds. “Since the introduction of HSG282, businesses now need to be more aware of their responsibilities and as a company this is something we shout about, as it is a major considerate when purchasing a holiday spa.” Jason believes it is imperative that site owners are informed of the benefts and opportunities that offering a hot tub as a part of their accommodation, can bring. He says: “Not only can they drive out-of-season bookings, but increasing occupancy levels by at least 25% and increasing revenue is essential.”
LEARNING CURVE
Dan Johnson of Marquis Spas agrees and warns: “I am aware that cases of infection are ongoing now, but are being settled out of court with NDA’s – I can only hope those who fall foul of poor operational controls learn from their mistakes. “I am seeing truly ancient hot tubs in situ, which is understandable as operators try to wring every last penny out of them and recoup their ROI, albeit as a false economy not only in running costs but also client experience,” says Dan.
“The real worry is someone will lose their life, that’d be tragic and pointless,” warns Dan and adds: “The damage would impact the whole sector as the HSE will come down on everyone hard and the Press will be extremely negative on hot tubs as a whole.”
COMPANY CONTACTS
AWARD LEISURE (COAST SPAS)
Tel. 07387 140283
www.sellhottubs.co.uk
MARQUIS SPA
Tel. 07722 187272
marquishottubs.co.uk/holidaypark
ROTOSPA
Tel. 0121 354 3428
www.rotospa.co.uk
UK LEISURE LIVING
Tel. 08450 343550
www.ukleisureliving.co.uk
Verdant’s holiday parks provide the perfect environment for families to spend precious time together, creating memories that will last a lifetime. Scoutscroft Leisure Park is located a couple of minutes’ walk ideally located from the breathtaking Coldingham Bay beach. Just under an hour’s drive from Edinburgh and close to the Scottish Borders, the park is ideally located for holidays and weekend retreats for all, with an abundance of attractions. Situated on the Berwickshire Coast, just an hour’s drive from Edinburgh, we then find Coldingham Bay Leisure Park. With 22 acres of beautifully landscaped grounds, the park offers the peaceful tranquillity of a countryside setting. With the beach and a host of activities and attractions just a stone’s throw away, it is a wonderful holiday retreat.
Still in Scotland, Thurston Manor is nestled at the foot of the Lammermuir Hills near the stunning East Lothian coastline, amid 176 acres of breathtaking countryside. This beautiful holiday park is under an hour’s drive from Edinburgh so visiting the capital is easily done. Set in the heart of the beautiful Ayrshire countryside, Viewfield Manor provides an ideal base from which to explore the historic attractions, thriving market and seaside towns and world famous sporting locations that Ayrshire has to offer. Viewfield Manor is situated only 20 minutes from Ayr, and with attractions such as Culzean Castle, Kelburn Park, and Irvine, Troon and Ayr beaches all within a 30 minute journey.
erdant Leisure offers a wide range of holiday options to suit all budgets, whether guests want to buy or rent a holiday home or caravan. The company has invested over £6 million in its portfolio in the last two years and customer service is very much at the heart of the Verdant Leisure ethos. All Verdant Leisure’s holiday park locations have Tripadvisor ratings of 4 out of 5 and Heather View and Coldingham Bay have Facebook review scores of 5 out of 5 and 4.3 out of 5, respectively.
his year Verdant Leisure is supporting the Teenage Cancer Trust following its success last year in raising money for When You Wish Upon a Star. Verdant Leisure aims to raise £30,000 for the charity by hosting fundraising activities at its head office and charity open days throughout the year at all eight of its parks. The company has also been shortlisted for a total of seven awards in the last 18 months – including both the Lloyd’s Bank Business Awards and the Amazon Growing Business Awards this year. Verdant has also been shortlisted for several customer service awards, in recognition of the hard work put in by the whole team to deliver exceptional customer service at all its park locations. Last month Verdant Leisure celebrated its eighth anniversary and the company is due to announce its ninth holiday park acquisition in the coming weeks. It looks like 2019 will be another pivotal year for the bespoke holiday park operator.
The park is set to benefit from further investment as Group’s Operation Manager Bruce Thomson explained: “We are excited to be upgrading facilities at the park. We will create 10 new fully serviced pitches with new state-of-the-art touring bollards as well as increasing the number of hard standing pitches available for use throughout the Winter months. “We would like to welcome families from Scotland and beyond to come and make this park their second home,” adds Bruce. Guests seem to have appreciated the makeover. This is what Steven said in his review on TripAdvisor having stayed at the park in July: “Having only stayed at Lomond woods holiday park before we were sceptical about trying somewhere new. But were we delighted with our stay in Callander. “We were greeted by Cameron, really friendly and he explained all about the park and the area. Our caravan was brand new and it was perfect, stocked with everything you could need. “The park is large and the caravans are sited in a lovely spot at the back of the site, really quiet and peacefully, perfect for a relaxing stay. We travelled into Sterling on the bus which stops just outside the park, also travelled to the safari park which is just a short drive from the park. A wonderful site that we will visit again, good luck and best wishes to the Wood family on their new site.”
Some of touring guests have chosen to put down roots at the park. This is what a lady called Lynn said in her review on TripAdvisor after she stayed at the park in July: “We came here for two weeks in a tourer and loved it so much that we bought a static from the new owners. The site is extremely clean and well ran. The shower block is lovely and lots of showers so u don’t have to queue. The play is wonderful for the kids - they had a ball. I would very highly recommend this caravan park, you will come back again and again. Within the proposed plan for 2019, in line with other Wood Leisure holiday parks, the family are enthusiastic to extend the opening at Callander Woods to give holiday guests greater flexibility. They will be adding ten extra weeks to the holiday year and remain open until the end of December, instead of closing for the season in mid-October. Wood Leisure is a family-owned holiday park group that has been welcoming visitors from the UK and beyond since 1981. Committed to maintaining and upgrading their holiday parks to meet customer expectations, Wood Leisure’s efforts have been recognised with a number of awards including ‘Family Business of the Year’ at the Scottish Outdoor Leisure Awards, Best Caravan Park Group and Best Glamping to name just a few.
STAR CAST
MULTI-APPEAL
BEST VALUE
PLAN AHEAD
Holiday Snaps
Wish You Were Here
the blooms on site. The Wales in Bloom judges commended the park’s ‘inspirational’ approach to design and plant selection, and said it had set the standard for other park businesses to emulate.
Blooming Triple Triumph
Staff Recruitment In Overdrive
Park Mascot Meets Her Match
£10 Million Investment