scotland

The Extra Factor

Posted on November 6, 2018

The Extra Factor - Title Pic

The Extra Factor

Under new ownership at Scottish resort…

Summer has seen the launch of a substantial investment project at Callander Woods Holiday Park, following its acquisition earlier this year by Wood Leisure. Located in the popular tourist town of Callander, the Scottish holiday park is at the Eastern gateway to the Trossachs National Park and the dramatic Loch Lomond. It is also on the Rob Roy Way and the Birds of Prey Trail and is close to the famous Bracklinn Falls and the stunning Loch Katrine – meaning holiday makers can enjoy a great range of activities in the area. Within the upgrade plan, the majority of older static caravans have been upgraded to meet the high standards set within the holiday park group. In addition, brand new 2018 caravan holiday homes were introduced to the park. Boasting an airy open plan living and dining area, spacious double bedrooms, modern kitchen and ample storage space, these modern homes are providing luxurious holiday experience to families from the UK and beyond. To meet the ever-rising demand in glamping and camping in Scotland, brand new camping pods have been installed on the park sleeping up to four and up to six people. These pods are fully insulated and come complete with a small fridge, microwave, toaster and kettle. They are well suited to couples and families looking for a little break in nature away from hustle and bustle of busy cities.

FURTHER INVESTMENT

The Extra Factor 4The 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.”

PARK ROOTS

The Extra Factor 5Some 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.

Callander Woods Holiday Park
Tel. 01250 878123
www.woodleisure.co.uk/our-parks/callander-woods

AT A GLANCE

Location: Stirling Rd, Callander FK17 8LE
Season: March - December
Accommodation: Caravan rental, glamping, touring and camping pitches, residential park homes, lodges.
Amenities: Bar and bistro, small shop, children's outdoor play area, salmon and trout fishing, dog walking area, cot hire and high chair hire, laundry facilities, putting green, heated pool from March to October. Attractions: Nearby historic castles, swimming pools, Red Kite nature reserve, golf, fishing, Adventure Planet, children’s activities.

Scottish Parks Meet At Annual Summit

Posted on January 16, 2017

Scottish Parks Meet At Annual Summit

Pictured are chairman of BH&HPA (Scotland) Colin Fraser; national BH&HPA chairman Henry Wild; Scottish tourism minister Fiona Hyslop MSP; BH&HPA (Scotland) policy director Jeanette Wilson, and director general of BH&HPA Ros Pritchard.

Pictured are chairman of BH&HPA (Scotland) Colin Fraser; national BH&HPA chairman Henry Wild; Scottish tourism minister Fiona Hyslop MSP; BH&HPA (Scotland) policy director Jeanette Wilson, and director general of BH&HPA Ros Pritchard.

Owners and managers of many of Scotland’s 200 plus park businesses attended the annual conference of the BH&HPA (Scotland) in November, at the end of what was generally regarded as a highly successful year for their sector.

Scottish tourism minister Fiona Hyslop MSP was the guest speaker at the event and was welcomed by Aberdeen park owner Colin Fraser who is chairman of BH&HPA (Scotland). Mr Fraser told the minister that an independent economic survey published last year found that Scottish holiday parks generate around £700m of visitor spending each year in Scotland.

This figure, he said, accounts for 8% of all the revenue produced by Scotland’s tourism economy, and allows the Scottish park sector to support more than 5,600 full-time equivalent jobs. In her address to delegates, Fiona Hyslop said: “The holiday homes sector is a unique but vital part of our tourism and hospitality industry.

The sector provides important geographic spread, allowing visitors to see more of our country and, in doing so, to support our rural economies.” Other speakers at the Edinburgh event included Director General of BH&HPA, Ros Pritchard, who outlined some of ways in which the association engages with politicians to help frame UK and EU laws and regulations affecting park businesses.

National BH&HPA chairman Henry Wild also gave his perspective as a holiday park owner on how the association helps its members develop their businesses and meet customer expectations.

High Praise For Scottish Parks

Posted on February 23, 2016

High Praise For Scottish Parks

The British Holiday & Home Parks Association (Scotland) was attended by many senior members of BH&HPA Scotland’s 200-plus park businesses.

The British Holiday & Home Parks Association (Scotland) was attended
by many senior members of BH&HPA Scotland’s 200-plus park businesses.

Providers of ‘fresh air holidays’ in Scotland met in Edinburgh in December to hear tourism minister Fergus Ewing praise their invaluable support of rural economies. Mr Ewing was speaking at the annual conference of the British Holiday & Home Parks Association (Scotland) attended by many senior members of BH&HPA; Scotland’s 200-plus park businesses. The event brought together the managers and owners of businesses credited with generating just over £700m of visitor spending annually. “The holiday park sector offers good quality accommodation for all types of visitors, and helps to sustain employment in some of Scotland’s most remote and rural areas,” said Mr Ewing. Mr Ewing also noted that parks had also helped contribute to increasing overseas visitor numbers which were up by 4 per cent compared with last year, and their spending up by 10 per cent.

Hub Of Activity

Posted on January 26, 2016

Hub Of Activity

With a name that derives from the sparkling stretch of beach that runs alongside the park, Silver Sands Holiday Park is a traditional seaside resort located in Moray on the Scottish coast.

Silver Sands Holiday Park is a traditional seaside resort located in Moray on the Scottish coast.

Silver Sands Holiday Park is a traditional seaside resort located in Moray on the Scottish coast.

Welcoming more than 4,000 holidaymakers each year between March and October, the park is also a busy hub of activity during the winter with almost 300 holiday home owners who visit their properties most weeks.
“There’s a very relaxed, family friendly atmosphere on park and our clientele reflects this, with a mix of families, older couples and groups of friends, mostly drawn from Inverness in the north and Aberdeen to the south. We have a number of holiday home owners which means there’s a buzz about the park at all times,” comments general manager Rebecca Grant.
Silver Sands was the fourth holiday park to be bought by the Bridge Leisure Parks group in 2014. Since completing the acquisition, the new owners have already undertaken a Grant attributes Silver Sands’ success to the dedicated team that runs the park. programme of investment in infrastructure and new facilities, leading to a fourstar quality award from VisitScotland in November.
“As with any change of ownership, existing customers were wary of a new company taking control of their park,” explains Rebecca. “But we have shown over the past 12 months that we will deliver the improvements we promised and create a super destination for all our guests. I think we’ve won them over!”

Mixing It Up

Silver Sands’ accommodation offering includes a selection of static caravans and holiday lodges, plus pitches for up to 100 tourers, motorhomes and tents.
Leisure facilities on-site include a newly refurbished entertainment venue, a games room, an outdoor adventure play area and a Kids’ Club with a regular programme of activities. There’s also an indoor heated swimming pool, sauna and steam room, as well as a state-of-the-art gym.
“We’ve got such a great mix of facilities, many of which have been refurbished over the past couple of years,” says Rebecca.
“Our entertainment venue was recently used by Britain’s Got Talent to host auditions for the TV show, which was really exciting for the local area. We feature live bands and put on our own shows and cabaret through the season.”

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