South West

Carry on glamping

Cold nights spent shivering in a tent and fearing the ambush of creepy crawlies will be a thing of the past, thanks to a brand new caravan and camping site that is currently under construction at Crealy Adventure Park in Clyst St Mary, Devon.

An exciting new 11-acre development will provide rest and recreational facilities for the adjoining adventure park. The site will include two designated areas for caravans and tents and will be divided into 51 superior pitches and 69 standard pitches. Two brand new toilet blocks complete with family washrooms will also be built, alongside retail units and a reception area. An on-site warden will also be in attendance once the site is open to the public.

Maximum Fun Group Chief Executive, Chris Down, said:

“We have been running the adventure park for twenty-two years now and over this time we’ve built and expanded a number of the park’s facilities. However, for some time we’ve been looking for a way to accommodate overnight visitors.

“We conducted a very successful trial for campers during August 2011 and this is the first phase of putting that trial into operation. The development will offer a unique experience for visitors, enabling them to park their caravan next to our adventure park and then come and go as they please.

“We have themed tenting experiences, including a medieval tent and a safari tent. This helps to create a glamorous camping experience, or rather a ‘glamping’ experience, which has proved very popular with the pre-teen family market.”

He added: “This project is very important to us as we can continue to diversify the services that we can offer at Crealy Adventure Park. It is lovely to see how a popular demand has been met and how families can now spend valuable time together.”

Work began in October 2011 and funding has been provided by Clydesdale Bank and Maximum Fun Group. Maximum Fun Devon Ltd is the main contractor for the £1.4 million project, whilst the architect is ARA Chartered Architects.

Works carried out so far include the installation of roads and electrical power units, along with the fitting of slate roofs for the toilet blocks. The buildings feature a larch-clad timbre finish that gives an organic feel and the next stage will see fit-out works taking place on the toilet blocks.

Landscaping will include an extensive planting scheme that will introduce additional trees to the site in order to create the impression that the new site has always been a part of the adventure park.

To help achieve the Government’s 2020 carbon targets, a Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) scheme to provide hot water and heating for the toilet blocks has been implemented through the use of a biomass wood burner.

Chris Down said: “Originally we considered gas heating for the washroom areas, but because we wanted to provide our guests with good quality showering facilities the cost of gas and the amount of gas we would need to use was just too high. As a result, we have moved towards a greener alternative that also includes under-floor heating in the washrooms – a method which is far more efficient than using radiators.

“We’ve then continued the green theme by using recycled stone from a nearby site for the base of our roads and we also recycled railway signage to use on our sewer drainage systems.”

The Crealy Meadows Caravan and Camping Park project is scheduled for completion in April 2012.

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Roma Publications