operating costs

KEEPING POOL HEATING COSTS UNDER CONTROL WITHOUT COMPROMISING GUEST COMFORT

Posted on August 4, 2026

Why intelligent heat pump technology is helping holiday parks reduce energy costs while maintaining perfect swimming conditions…

For holiday parks, caravan parks, camping and glamping sites, the swimming pool is often one of the biggest attractions—and one of the largest consumers of energy. Rising utility costs and increasing environmental expectations mean operators are looking for smarter ways to heat their pools without sacrificing guest experience. We spoke to Julien Galot, Head of Sales at Poolstar Group, about how modern heat pump technology is helping leisure businesses improve efficiency while keeping pools at the perfect temperature.

What are the biggest challenges holiday parks face when it comes to pool heating?
Julien Galot: The biggest challenge is balancing guest comfort with operating costs. Guests expect a consistently warm, inviting pool throughout the season, but owners also need to keep energy bills under control. Today’s heat pump technology makes that possible by automatically adjusting output to match demand, ensuring energy is only used when it’s needed.

How does the Megaline Fi differ from a standard pool heat pump?
The Megaline Fi has been designed specifically for larger commercial pools where reliability and efficiency are essential. Its Full Inverter technology, combined with Mitsubishi dual rotary compressors, depending on the pool’s heating requirements. Rather than operating at full power all the time, it works more intelligently, reducing electricity consumption while maintaining stable water temperatures. The unit also features a robust stainless-steel construction with a galvanised steel casing, making it well suited to demanding commercial environments.

How important is remote monitoring for holiday parks?
Increasingly important. Park managers are responsible for multiple facilities, so being able to monitor pool heating remotely saves both time and money. The Megaline Fi includes a large touchscreen interface for on-site control and can also be managed remotely using the Poolex app. Through Poolex Cloud, operators can monitor performance, adjust settings, identify potential issues before they become problems and optimise efficiency throughout the season.

Is installation disruptive?
Careful planning is always the key. Every holiday park is different, so installations are designed around existing plant rooms and operating schedules to minimise disruption. With good preparation, equipment can often be installed with very little impact on guests or day-to-day operations.

Beyond lower energy bills, what benefits can operators expect?
Energy savings are usually the first thing customers notice, but there are wider benefits too. More consistent pool temperatures improve the guest experience, while intelligent controls reduce maintenance demands and help maximise the lifespan of the equipment. For holiday parks looking to invest in long-term sustainability, lower energy consumption also contributes towards reducing their overall carbon footprint.

Is this technology suitable for all types of parks?
Absolutely. Whether it’s a holiday park, caravan park, camping or glamping site, any business operating a commercial swimming pool can benefit from modern inverter heat pump technology. The important thing is selecting equipment that’s correctly sized for the pool and understanding the total cost of ownership, rather than focusing solely on the initial purchase price.

Looking ahead, where do you see the market going?
We’re seeing operators place far greater emphasis on energy efficiency and smarter facility management. Connected equipment that can be monitored remotely, optimised automatically and integrated into wider energy management strategies is becoming the new standard. For holiday parks, investing in efficient heating technology is no longer simply about reducing costs—it’s about future-proofing the business while delivering the level of comfort today’s guests expect.

For more information please visit www.poolstar.fr/en or www. automatedenvironmentalsystems.co.uk

SMARTER PARKS, HAPPIER GUESTS

Posted on August 3, 2026

AI IS BECOMING A VALUABLE business tool, supporting everything from booking management to customer service.

Why AI and mobile technology are becoming essential tools for holiday parks, caravan sites, campsites and glamping destinations...

Artificial Intelligence (AI) and mobile apps are no longer futuristic concepts—they’re becoming essential business tools for holiday parks, caravan parks, camping and glamping sites across the UK. Whether it’s streamlining bookings, improving guest communication, or helping staff work more efficiently, technology is transforming the way parks operate while enhancing the guest experience.

Today’s holidaymakers expect convenience at every stage of their stay. From booking online and checking activity schedules to receiving instant updates during their holiday, digital technology has become part of everyday life.

At the same time, park operators face ongoing challenges including staffing pressures, rising operating costs and increasing customer expectations. AI and smart apps are helping bridge that gap.

Rather than replacing people, the best technology works alongside your team, removing repetitive tasks and allowing staff to focus on delivering outstanding customer service. From reception to maintenance, entertainment to marketing, digital tools are making parks more efficient while creating smoother guest journeys.

AI BEHIND THE SCENES
Many operators assume AI is all about chatbots or robots answering customer enquiries. In reality, some of the biggest benefits happen behind the scenes, improving systems that guests may never even notice but certainly appreciate.

Booking management, payment processing, channel management and automated workflows are all areas where AI is making a significant impact. Faster processes reduce manual administration, minimise errors and improve the overall efficiency of park operations.

AI IS CHANGING THE GAME — THE TRICK IS ADDING VALUE SAFELY
AI Is Changing the Game — The Trick Is Adding Value Safely Artificial intelligence is transforming holiday-park technology at pace, and it is genuinely exciting to watch. But for operators the real question is no longer whether to use AI — it is how to add value safely, with the end customer kept firmly in focus rather than chasing the technology for its own sake.

Some of the biggest gains happen out of sight. At GemaPark, AI already helps us build new features faster and resolve technical support queries more quickly. It also speeds up the way we connect to third-party providers — the behind-the-scenes plumbing that lets a booking system do far more for a park.

Recent additions show what that delivers in practice: Clover terminal payments, so guests can pay online, at reception or out on the park; a deeper Stripe integration that brings better payment terms; and full two-way synchronisation with Pitchup, so availability and bookings stay aligned across channels without double-handling.

Attention is increasingly turning to guest-facing systems, and that is where care matters most. New tools should be evaluated in your own environment, not adopted on trust. The goal is genuine end-to-end process support — not simply routing more tasks back to an already-stretched reception team.

TODAY’S HOLIDAYMAKERS EXPECT instant access to information—mobile apps help parks meet those expectations.

It pays to be honest about what AI can and cannot yet do, and to introduce it only where it removes workload rather than quietly adding to it. Search is changing too. Traditional SEO is giving way to AEO — answer engine optimisation — as AI-driven search returns direct answers rather than lists of links. One common response is to lean on the big online travel agents for visibility.

The catch is that you must play by each platform’s rules and remain exposed to their policy shifts — Google Hotels, for example, requires accommodation to have a roof, so is useful for statics and pods, but not for touring pitches. The sensible hedge is a full-functionality PMS that gives you your own online booking engine alongside broad, flexible integrations.

Data security is another aspect of safety, and reputable providers adopt strong measures to ensure cybersecurity is taken seriously and that guest and payment information stays protected. GemaPark follows security best practice and connects to a wide range of OTAs, including through Wubook, so no single platform’s rule change can strand you.

AI will only do more from here, and it is changing fast. The parks that benefit most will be those that adopt it deliberately, keep the end customer at the centre, and use it where it genuinely helps. That is the approach we are committed to: harnessing AI where it adds real value — safely.

A BRANDED MOBILE APP puts essential park
information, entertainment schedules and local
attractions at guests’ fingertips.

APPS PUT INFORMATION IN EVERY GUEST’S POCKET
While AI often works in the background, guest apps are highly visible and increasingly expected. A well-designed park app acts as a digital concierge, giving visitors instant access to everything they need throughout their stay.

Rather than queuing at reception to ask when the pool opens, where tonight’s entertainment is taking place or what time the restaurant serves breakfast, guests can simply open an app. This not only improves convenience but also significantly reduces repetitive enquiries, freeing staff to spend more time providing personal service.

App My Community helps UK holiday parks deliver a better guest experience while making day-to-day communication easier for park operators. Your fully branded mobile app becomes the central hub for everything your guests need before, during, and after their stay.

Guests can quickly view entertainment schedules, activities, events, opening times, interactive park maps, food and beverage menus, local attractions, and important park information—all from their mobile phone. Instant push notifications allow your team to communicate weather updates, activity changes, emergency information, special offers, and last-minute announcements in seconds.

GEMAPARK IS HARNESSING AI to help holiday parks streamline operations, improve bookings and deliver better guest experiences.

By providing guests with easy access to information, your reception team spends less time answering repetitive questions and more time delivering exceptional customer service. The app also helps guests discover more of what your park has to offer, increasing participation in activities, promoting on-site facilities, and enhancing the overall holiday experience.

Every app is custom-branded with your park’s logo, colours, and content, creating a professional digital experience that reflects your brand. Features can include event calendars, interactive GPS maps, digital forms, maintenance requests, staff resources, in-app purchases, loyalty programmes, QR code integration, and local business promotions.

Whether you operate a single holiday park or manage multiple locations, App My Community provides an easy-to-manage communication platform through an intuitive online administration portal. Updates can be published instantly without requiring guests to download a new version of the app. Today’s holidaymakers expect convenient access to information from their mobile devices.

App My Community helps UK holiday parks meet those expectations while improving guest satisfaction, streamlining operations, and strengthening communication across every stage of the guest journey. From arrival to departure, your guests have everything they need in one convenient place, helping create memorable stays that encourage repeat visits and positive reviews.

ECHNOLOGY CONTINUES TO RESHAPE the holiday park sector, helping businesses work smarter while enhancing customer satisfaction.

LOOKING AHEAD
Technology will continue to evolve rapidly, but the most successful holiday parks won’t necessarily be those with the newest gadgets—they’ll be the ones that adopt technology with a clear purpose. AI and mobile apps are proving their worth by reducing workloads, improving communication and delivering better guest experiences without losing the personal touch that makes holiday parks so popular.

For operators considering their next investment, the focus should remain on practical solutions that improve efficiency while supporting staff and delighting guests. Used thoughtfully, AI and apps are becoming valuable partners in creating smarter operations, happier teams and memorable holidays.

GemaPark
www.gemapark.co.uk

App My Community
www.appmycommunity.com

CALL FOR STANDING CHARGE ACTION

Posted on May 16, 2024

The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has called for the energy regulator Ofgem to take action on the standing charges paid by small businesses, many of whom have seen the daily fixed price they pay, regardless of usage levels, soar over recent months.

FSB has written to Ofgem’s chief executive Jonathan Brearley to draw his attention to the issue, and to recognise the “specific, negative impact standing charges are having on small firms”. Small businesses based in rural areas have been disproportionately affected by standing charge increases, which exacerbates the existing rural-urban divide and ‘[undermines] efforts to level up more remote parts of the UK’, the FSB’s letter says.

Standing charges are used to fund network infrastructure, operating costs, and policy costs for schemes such as the Warm Home Discount, but this can be difficult for small firms to comprehend. Business customers are not covered by the energy price cap for consumers and many small firms suspect that their costs have been hiked as a result.

FSB’s Policy Chair, Tina McKenzie, commented: “We want Ofgem to do a thorough review of standing charges for businesses as well as consumers, for better transparency and to discern whether energy companies are behaving fairly towards their small firm clients. “Small business energy customers behave in a way more akin to consumers than big businesses, lacking the resources, the expertise and the buying power necessary to get the best possible deal out of their energy suppliers.

However, they do not benefit from anything like the same level of protection as that rightly available to households, leaving them caught between two stools. “Many small businesses could be forgiven for suspecting that they have been seen as something of a soft target for price hikes in their standing charges, and they do not have a full picture of where the money they pay on a daily basis is going – something that needs to change.”