It was brilliant to welcome our home owners back to our holiday parks in North Yorkshire as we re-opened after lockdown.
From early on Saturday, July 4th, there was a steady flow of vehicles as owners returned to their happy place at York House Holiday Park, Monk Park, Abbots Green, Swaleside and Old Hall.
Amanda Kenney, who manages Swaleside Holiday Park with her husband Andrew, said: “It’s been an amazing weekend. I have been like a kid in a sweet shop, it’s been just so lovely to see everyone!”
Over the past few months, our staff have been maintaining the grounds of all our parks and they really were looking beautiful when guests returned at the weekend.
Amanda said the last 15 weeks had been “hard graft” for her and Andrew, but it had paid off and the park was in pristine condition.
She added: “July 4th couldn’t come soon enough for us, getting the heart and soul back into our park. Our little community is back on track and our extended family are all back in their holiday homes, and we’re expecting more people to arrive throughout the week. It is fabulous to see and chat with them all, and we have been given some lovely gifts of thanks.
“Swaleside has been a very lonely place these last three months: the heart and soul – the people – have been missing so we are so glad our owners are coming back and putting some normality back into life.
“The atmosphere on the park has been buzzing, we have walked around the park for two days now, checking the owners are ok, all things are working in the holiday homes, just giving them reassurance we are here to help.”
John Reay, park manager at York House, said: “It was a very positive weekend and great to welcome people back to their holiday homes. Some have taken two weeks off work to enjoy more time here after being away for so long. We had comments about how people feel safer in their caravan or lodge, and also how relaxed and happy they feel now they’re back. Everyone has really enjoyed catching up with old friends, at a safe distance of course.
“We’ve also had some lovely comments and thanks from customers saying how stunning the park is looking, which means a lot to us. We’re just so pleased to have everyone back.”
All our parks have systems in place to ensure everyone is kept safe and well, and we are grateful to our holiday home owners for adhering to these.
YHL Parks director Phil Brierley said: “We are delighted to re-open our parks and it has been amazing to see everyone again. It’s been a tough time for our staff and our guests, and we’re so grateful for the support, patience and understanding we’ve received.
“Thank you to everyone on our parks who has been sticking to the rules that we’ve had to put in place to ensure we comply with the Government guidelines and legislation. We’ve worked hard to find a balance between keeping people safe and allowing them to enjoy their holiday as they usually would, and I think the weekend has shown that this has been a success.”
The re-opening of our parks to holiday home owners marked the first step in a phased return to full operations across our sites. Touring pitches at Old Hall Holiday Park, near Boroughbridge, will be re-opening on Saturday, July 11th. The Old Barn Coffee Shop, our on-site café at York House Holiday Park, is due to re-open in mid-July. Communal facilities at all the parks will be re-opening in stages, with the outdoor play areas and parks for children open already in accordance with Government guidelines.