The Joy of Holiday Ownership

Joy or Hassle? While there are a lot of things you have to be prepared to provide for a holiday home, especially if you are sub-letting it out in holiday season, it has to be joy.

We are happy owners of a 2-bedroomed static caravan on a park 5 miles from Newquay, in Cornwall. We have owned it for a year, had 4 holidays down there, and have ended up making a small profit. We didn't buy the 'van to actually make money. We would have been just as happy if the ground rent had been covered for next season, which it has.

Yes, there are charges for various things:- electric, gas, minor repairs or call outs, cleaning, etc. But all these are taken into account at the end of the year when it is balanced with the income from the sub-lets. So basicaally we have had 4 holidays for nothing and ended up with money our pockets. Result!

The park we are on, Travella Park, is a nice quiet site. There is a heated outdoor swimming pool , a games and TV room, cafe, small pet area (with resident European Eagle Owl) and launderette. But no big club room, or amusement arcade so it really is a lot quieter than the bigger camps. It also has two large well-stocked fishing lakes available for the anglers who visit.

The staff are really friendly and very helpful. The management is superb and you are kept abreast of everything that needs to be done. There are even “Owner events” which are, surprisingly, just for hoiday home owners. The holiday season is from March to October, but owners can still use their homes up to the end of December. January and February it is closed to all but staff, for maintenance.

Cornwall is a fantastic county to visit. Wherever you stay you are only half-hour from a beach. There is so much history that attractions are everywhere. Weather is a bit more temperate than the rest of the UK, but if the wind blows you know about it!

It really is an ideal place to have a holiday home, be it lodge, cottage or caravan. You can be certain of it being let out for several weeks each season, because it is so popular with holiday makers.

If anyone was thinking of buying a holiday home, I'd thoroughly recommend it. We had a lot of doubts. Hw much would the ground rent be? Would we get enough to cover it? What about the upkeep? The sales staff, for us, were excellent. Told us everything, answered all our questions and we have had no surprises sprung on us throughout the year.

Go on, go for it! You will be glad you did!