We just returned today from a four night stay with the view of purchasing a caravan and pitch at Haggerston Castle , it was a truly dreadful experience. The caravan we were given was a standard plus rating, we took along our two Yorkie dogs, apparantly you can't have anything of a higher rating if you do take your doggy with you. Fair enough,maybe some dog owners don't treat their holiday accomodation with very much respect , but we do and found to our dismay upon arrival we had to pay the price by being presented with a grubby, smelly, draughty and well hammered caravan for having our two small dogs with us, to add insult to injury we had paid an extra £20.00 for each animal too.After speaking to others who stayed
when we did and reading other reviews from those who had the top grade caravans, I am in no doubt the same standard of slovenliness, neglect and filth is the same throughout.
Upon entering the caravan for the first time we noticed at once an unclean smell and could see how grubby and ground in the front seating area was.Instead of beige upholstery it was a dark grey except for the parts which were hidden beneath where the lift out bed was. The carpet was hoovered but did smell, particularly of old urine in places as did the seating.The curtains were disgustingly stained with mould.
Three of the windows did not close properly,( two bedroom ones and one in the living area ) and considering to our dismay, that grade of caravan is heated by a single gas fire in the front living area only and we had hail storms most of the week, it was probably the nearest we have been to living in a walk in fridge.None of the three bedroom windows had any net curtains , so we had to keep the main curtains closed the whole time making the place even dingier than it was if that was possible.
I had to clean some of the pans and utensils before we could use them as they were still crusted in the remnants of food, the bottom plastic box in the fridge was sticky with food too, which I refused to clean and just lifted out and left in a cupboard until we left. There was no cover on the freezer box in the top of the fridge and so the food on the top shelf of the fridge froze up if we weren't careful, almost as frozen as we were due to the badly fitting windows actually. The bottoms of the kitchen cupboards wre thick with dust. The pillows were wafer thin and four stacked up would probably still not give you the thickness of even one, the duvets were no better. Thank goodness we were required to take our own bed linen as at least we knew they at least would be more than satisfactory.
The Park itself has a nice lake in the centre with lots of geese and swans and a ittle stable so the kiddies could have pony rides aroung the park, the only good things I can think of to mention. The complex where the bars are situated is a real shocker as you walk in. It's just one huge, noisy,chaotic, money grabbing amusement arcade. The bars are quite dingy, smelly with sticky carpets and packed to the hilt,so don't have any visions of having a few quiet drinks 'cos it ain't going to happen.
The onsite food is something else...and I do mean something else ! We had fish and chips from the on site chippie on the first night,most of it went in the bin as the fish didn't smell right and it was all covered in too much grease, promptly afterwards later that evening we were rewarded for our custom by upset stomachs. Following that episode we didn't touch anymore of the onsite food on offer at all. We noticed the staff in the chippie and some of the other takeaway food places there employed no more than spotty youths, didn't this didn't instill any sense of confidence in their cooking skills to be honest. All in all, I would say to anyone thinking of booking a holiday here, don't feel you have to be put off by our sad experience, you might get a fantastic caravan and not be knee deep in mud when you step outside it and not mind all the noise and bingo and the like, but if anything, please think carefully before sampling the fish and chips if nothing else.Somehow I don't think we will be buying into the new lifestyle at Haggerston Castle anytime soon. Pity there isn't a zero rating.
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Advantages: Great Chinese Buffet Restaurant on site. Good location. V. near A1 Disadvantages: V. near A1. Extortionate price at shops/takeaways on site.
mrs_g_p 07.10.2006 (07.10.2006)
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Review of Haven Holidays
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Nov 2nd, 2008
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