Gold award for family-run holiday park

Oakdown Caravan and Camping Park, based on the East Devon coast, is celebrating after winning gold in the ‘Holiday Park of the Year’ category in the Visit Devon Tourism Awards.

The awards, which are now in their eighth year, celebrate the best of Devon Tourism.

And the announcement comes at the end of a very busy period for Oakdown, which has this year seen the introduction of shepherd’s huts and premier pods, a brand-new reception area and a redesigned coffee shop and restaurant.

Alastair Franks, whose family have owned Oakdown since the 1970s, said: ‘To win gold in these awards is an incredible result for us, and we’re thrilled to be a winner against some seriously tough competition.’

The Visit Devon Tourism Awards was celebrated with a ceremony, hosted by travel writer Simon Calder and arctic explorer Ann Daniels, at the Plymouth Guildhall on 23 November.

Judges carried out a series of mystery visits to the finalists, of which there are 75 in total, whittled down from an initial 205 entries.

The team behind the awards say: ‘Judges were as always looking for evidence not just of ‘good’ but of ‘excellent’, hence to be a winner is a very significant achievement indeed.’

Oakdown Holiday Park, which is located just outside Sidmouth, has been welcoming holidaymakers for more than 40 years. Starting with just a single caravan it has been developed by the Franks family, offering camping, glamping, caravan pitches and holiday homes, all set in lush Devon countryside.