Latest posts (newest first)

The Torbay Chalet Hotel was once a thriving holiday centre near Paignton, once owned by Godfrey Davis, but was demolished for housing in the 1990s

Previously known as Gibsons Holiday Camp the South Downs camp rose from the ashes after a major 1970s fire and went on to survive until 2016

This old 1930s camp was extensively enlarged and rebuilt to become one of Pontins major south coast holiday camps

Originally a private manor house, then a hotel, then a holiday camp and now a housing estate! Discover the history of this fascinating site

Seacroft may not have the dramatic history of some of the larger holiday camps, but it played a steady role in the seaside holiday trade for almost a century

Perched on Jersey’s dramatic northwest headland, Plemont Bay evolved from a 19th-century hotel into one of the island’s most popular holiday villages

Gloddfa Ganol was a unique tourist attraction combining underground slate tours, a working mill, and a narrow-gauge railway collection

From a naturist retreat to a full-scale Warner’s holiday camp, Woodside Bay only lasted for 20 years before closing and being redeveloped into a modern resort.

Tucked away in a quiet cul-de-sac in Westward Ho!, once stood a country manor with a surprising post-war holiday history

The Butlins Heads of Ayr hotel opened with good intentions but soon gained an infamous reputation and was closed just 10 years later

The Warners Puckpool & St Clare holiday camps were next door to each other and were later merged to become Harcourt Sands

Opened in 1927 and famed for its floodlit pool, South Devon Holiday Camp at Paignton thrived under Pontins before closing in 1988 to make way for housing.

Acquired by Pontins in 1947 this camp is now the sole survivor from the once mighty Pontins empire

British amusement park accidents, covering deaths, serious injuries, fires, and other notable incidents

Warner’s Dovercourt Bay Holiday Camp, opened in 1934, and later served as a Kindertransport reception centre as well as a filming location for the BBC’s Hi-de-Hi!

The Broadreeds camp was open from 1934 to 1987 and played an important role in housing child evacuees during the war

Discover the fascinating history of the Merrie England and Pleasurama amusement parks in Ramsgate

The Rise and Fall of Pontins Prestatyn from its opening in 1971 through its slow and gradual decline

Discover the rise and fall of Holimarine Holidays, once a well known name in the UK holiday park business

From Bass brewing fortunes to miniature trains, lion safaris, and a luxury hotel, Stapleford Park’s story spans grandeur, decline, and reinvention.

The fascinating story of the history of Park Hall and how it was developed into a major attraction including Arena North and the Camelot Theme Park

The Derbyshire Miners Holiday Camp in Skegness, opened in 1939 to give affordable seaside breaks to mining families and grew into a vast complex with theatres, pools and showbars

The history of Alton Towers during the post-war years and how it transformed into the thriving theme park we see today

Opened in 1969 as one of Pontins’ new self-catering “chalet villages,” the huge Southport camp thrived for decades before falling into decline and finally closing in 2023.

Discover the incredible journey of Sir Fred Pontin and the rise and fall of his Pontins Holiday Camp empire

Discover the rise and fall of Britannia Park, a short-lived 1980s theme park in Derbyshire that paved the way for The American Adventure.

The story of what happened to White City London after the famous exhibitions ended

History of the miniature railway at Blackpool Pleasure Beach which first opened in 1933 and is still running today

This fascinating railway only lasted for 7 years but the locomotives went on to lead a varied life and both still survive today

History of the two Hudswell Clarke locos which formed the beginning of the Butlins miniature railways in the 1930s

In 1972 Llechwedd Slate Caverns opened The Miners’s Tramway, Britain’s first public underground mine ride

California-in-England, once a vibrant Berkshire pleasure park with a lake, ballroom, zoo, and holiday camp, is now a public recreation area with little trace of its colourful past.

Kessingland Holiday Camp was opened in 1929 by George Catchpole and was a popular holiday destination until closure in 1976

Explore the fascinating history of the Great Orme Summit Complex including its ownership under boxer Randolph Turpin

During the 1950s and 1960s Gwrych Castle was one of the top attractions in Wales. Learn about its fascinating history and later decline

The first and only holiday camp to be built by the National Coal Board. It later fell on hard times and was closed in 1984

From its humble 1930s beginnings to its later life under Wallis’s, Ladbrokes, Warner’s, Haven, and Park Resorts, Cayton Bay grew into one of Yorkshire’s best-known holiday camps.

The history of Pontins Pakefield holiday camp which enjoyed 100 years of success before closing down in 2025

Developed from one of the earliest holiday camps in the country, Pontins Hemsby enjoyed great success until closing in 2008

From its glamorous beginnings as the Cornish Riviera Lido to its heyday as the Cornwall Coliseum, Carlyon Bay’s entertainment complex rose and fell with the changing tides of 20th-century leisure.

Learn about the fascinating history of Caister Holiday Camp, from its unusual beginnings in 1906 to its transformation into a Haven caravan park

The trials and tribulations of the Rhyl monorail which ran on the seafront for only one season before being later demolished