Devon’s multi award-winning Cofton Holidays which is experiencing the busiest summer in its history, with occupancy rates running at 98%, up 8% on 2019, has been named the UK’s Best Caravan/Campsite at the prestigious iTravel Staycation Awards 2020/21.
Having been shortlisted in more categories than any other tourism business in the UK, the team at Cofton attended the virtual Staycation Awards, held to celebrate the cream of the crop within the tourism sector.
After receiving more than 1,000 nominations and entries across 14 fiercely competitive categories., the virtual ceremony, hosted by Countryfile’s Sean Fletcher, whittled the list down to the final champions, with winners coming from as far North as Loch Lomond in Scotland, right down to Penryn in Cornwall.
Cofton is no stranger to the prestigious awards having been shortlisted in two categories at the 2019 awards; the last time they were held. This year, Cofton did it again, being shortlisted in the Dog-friendly Accommodation of the Year category as well as in the Best Caravan/Campsite category, in which it triumphed for its outstanding camping and caravanning facilities.
The panel of 23 judges praised Cofton for its strong leadership in the category, its extensive offering for campers and motorhomes, impressive facilities and its lockdown rewilding project.
Helen Scott, Director at Cofton Holidays, is thrilled with Cofton’s success: “2020 was a torrid time for the travel and tourism sector, but like so many we focussed on the future. Throughout lockdown we concentrated all our efforts on making improvements to the park, particularly on the camping side of the business, so that when guests returned, they could look forward to outstanding facilities. That’s why we invested over £200k to bring 48 new super pitches on board for RVs and Campervans. We also enhanced our beautiful landscape, rewilding large swathes of the park, introducing new shrubbery, creating wildlife corridors and enhancing biodiversity across the site for insects, birds, bats, butterflies, bees and small mammals.
“The transformation has really caught the eye of our guests. The look of delight on their faces when they arrive is reward enough for us, but being recognised as the Best Caravan/Campsite at the iTravel Staycation Awards 2020/21 comes a very close second. What better way could there be to celebrate lockdown restrictions easing than winning this fantastic national award.”
Sophie Lam iTravel editor commented: “Leading the field, Cofton Holidays shows what’s possible at a large site – making camping holidays accessible and memorable, while also caring for the location. We were particularly impressed with the lockdown rewilding project and introduction of nature corridors.”
In a record year for staycations, Cofton’s occupancy rates for the peak summer holiday period have hit an all-time high. The holiday park has experienced a surge in bookings from guests with caravans and RVs, up 20% on 2019, hitting a record high for occupancy levels.
Cofton’s extensive camping facilities include grass, hard standing and fully serviced pitches with newly-refurbished toilet and shower blocks. Nearby, the camp shop stocks everything campers need from freshly baked croissants to tent pegs.
Facilities include a heated indoor pool with a splash pad area and hydrotherapy loungers, a gym, restaurant, pub, steam room, sauna, fitness studio, soft play area, playground, sports wall, outdoor pools and much more. Guests also have access to five coarse fishing lakes, miles of cycle paths and nature trails that take visitors through woodland to the golden sands of Dawlish Warren beach and nature reserve. Cofton Holidays also provides luxury lodges with hot tubs, holiday apartments in a Georgian Manor House overlooking the Exe Estuary and Dawlish Warren, country cottages, on-site cottages and a range of static holiday homes.
Free kids’ clubs take place each day throughout the school holidays, and from Easter through to the October half term. Other free activities on site include the £50,000 Woodland Adventure Area which features a 25m zip line, a climbing cage, rope ladders, balance beam, balance lines and scramble nets.
Cofton holds VisitEngland’s highest standard for quality, the prestigious 5-star holiday park rating and is a previous winner of Holiday Park of the Year at the South West Tourism Excellence Awards.
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