Devon holiday park romps to victory in national dog friendly awards
Lynmouth Holiday Retreat near Exmoor has been named as Britain’s most Fido-friendly holiday park by Dog Friendly magazine.
The family-owned business took the title after the publication conducted a nationwide poll of pet owners, asking them to name their favourite doggie destinations.
In the camping and caravan park category, Lynmouth Holiday Retreat was voted into the number one spot, beating thousands of other eligible holiday centres.
The park, which says that one in three of its bookings are made by pet-owning guests, also took pole position in the previous year’s Dog Friendly awards.
Their latest accolade was announced at a ceremony at the Kennel Club’s headquarters in London where other destinations putting pooches on a pedestal were also honoured.
Lynmouth Holiday Retreat provides pitches for tents, touring caravan and motorhomes, plus luxury holiday homes and glamping stays – with pets welcomed in all accommodation categories.
It is one of four West Country parks which comprise the Coast & Country Parks group, founded 35 years ago by Ian James and now run by him and his son Chris.
Ian said that all of his company’s holiday parks took pride in offering the Rex Factor to guests, and that he was delighted at Dog Friendly’s prestigious award for Lynmouth Holiday Retreat.
"We saw a big growth in bookings last year from families who hate being separated from their pets, and who can’t bear thinking about them pining in expensive boarding kennels far away.
“Our Lynmouth holiday park is a great place to exercise a dog on a lead as the grounds are virtually traffic-free, and we are close to some of Devon’s most amazing coastal and countryside paths.
“Staff at the park can point guests to nearby dog-friendly attractions, beaches, pubs and places to eat, and our free app also highlights where to go for warm tail-wagging welcomes.
“In addition, our park shop stocks plenty of treats, toys and dinners for our four-footed guests, as well as pet friendly gifts created by local artists and crafts people.
"Dogs benefit as much as humans from a change of scenery, and we go all out to solve our guests’ dog dilemmas at a stroke," added Ian.
Not that Lynmouth Holiday Retreat is any stranger to awards, for it recently took the overall gold honour in the Caravanning Park of the Year category in the Devon Tourism Awards.
Following its triumph the park is now being fast-tracked into the South West Tourism Excellence Awards which take place this March.
Ian said that plans to expand facilities even further at Lynmouth Holiday Retreat in 2024 included the introduction of new luxury dog-friendly glamping accommodation.
Dog-owning families can bone-up on the different staying options available at Lynmouth Holiday Retreat on the company’s website at www.coastandcountryparks.co.uk
