A simple and perhaps obvious question but one that needs some serious thought is it can become very costly to change location once you have bought your holiday home. Do you want a park in the countryside or is it your dream to be by the sea? Have you thought about where in the UK you would like to spend your leisure time? Make sure you think about travelling times when you make this decision. If your holiday home is not within a reasonable driving distance from your home then getting there may become a chore rather than an exciting journey as you anticipate your weekend or holiday in your holiday caravan.

As you will be spending some time in your chosen area, you may also want to think about the local attractions to ensure the things you like to do are available.

This should be the second step you take when you are buying your holiday home as it is one of the most important decisions you must make. There are lots of ways of finding the holiday park that is right for you, the internet being the most popular and there are many caravan search websites and these are the easiest way to find a selection of caravan parks in your chosen location.

Once you have chosen a short-list of holiday parks that you think you may like you will need to take a day or two to visit these.

A holiday home is one of the biggest purchases you will make and the financial commitment continues whilst you own your caravan. It is therefore important that you ask and think about this before you commit to buying your holiday home. These are some examples of the things you will have to pay:

Site fees - This is likely to be your biggest bill. Ask how much it is per season and how it is paid. Can you pay in instalments?

Insurance - It is obviously very important for your caravan and its contents to be insured. Ask if your park has a block policy and if you have the option to look for your own insurance. If you plan to do this then ensure before hand what administration charges you may have to pay to the caravan park.

Gas/Electricity - Gas may be bottled or in some cases piped. Ask if gas and electric is metered or included in the site fee.

Rates/other charges - Ask if there are any other charges to pay in addition to the above. There may be facilities such as wifi that are an added cost.

Some caravan parks do allow you to subsidise the costs of owning a holiday home by letting you rent or sublet your caravan out to holiday makers. You should think carefully if this is something you wish to do. Ask the park owner for more details on this.

How long is the season?

Caravan parks 'open seasons' can vary widely, from eight months up to ten or eleven months. How often do you think you will use your caravan? Would you like to use it as much as possible throughout the year? Or will it be used most during the main summer season? The length of season can reflect in the amount of annual site fees you pay so it is worth seriously thinking about.

Pitch licence

How long you can use your caravan before it must be replaced or removed is another important question. Again this can vary from park to park and somewhere with a shorter licence (length of time a van can stay onsite) is not necessarily a bad thing as it means pitches could be upgraded and renovated more frequently.

Facilities

When you search for your holiday park, you should try to keep in mind the amenities and facilities that are important to you as there are a vast number of holiday parks that all offer a variety of facilities. Before you start you should think about the things that are most important to you and those things on which you are willing to compromise if necessary.

Contract

The parks contract/written agreement is also important. You should ask to see a copy of this before making your decision about a holiday park. All the points raised in this article should be mentioned in your agreement. You can also ask to see a copy of their park rules (if they have these in addition to the pitch written agreement).

By now you should have a good idea of the costs involved and have possibly chosen the holiday park you wish to site your holiday home. Your next step would be to choose your holiday home and pitch. If you are buying a second-hand caravan and you have found one on the holiday park of your choice then you are almost at the point of owning your own holiday home if not then the exciting part is just beginning. There are many makes and models of caravan and your chosen holiday park will be able to help you to choose a holiday caravan and will be able to advise you on caravan dealers and manufacturers.

Trade Organisations

Does the caravan park belong to any trade organisations, such as the National Caravan Council or BH&HPA (British Homes and Holiday Parks Association). Parks that do belong to either of these will have to adhere to a code of practice.

Contact these organisations at

BH&HPA
Chichester House
6 Pullman Court
Great Western Road
Gloucester
GL1 3ND
Tel: 01452526911
Email: enquiries@bhhpa.org.uk
www.bhhpa.org.uk

NCC
Catherine House
Victoria Road
Aldershot
Hampshire
GU11 1SS
Tel: 01252 318251
Email: info@nationalcaravan.co.uk
www.nationalcaravan.co.uk

When visiting your short-listed holiday parks it is easy to forget to ask those all important questions. At the end of this document write down any other questions you may have and take the list with you. We cannot emphasise enough how important it is that you find the right holiday park for you and your family and there are many things to think about. Below are some of the most important things you will need to think about and ask of your chosen shortlisted holiday parks.

• What is the length of season?
• Are there any rules on how often or how long I can use my caravan within the season?
• How long can I have a caravan on the caravan park?
• How much are the site fees?
• How can I pay my site fees?
• How often do the site fees go up in price and on what basis is this decided?
• Will the park arrange my insurance?
• What other costs are there?
• What facilities are there and do I have to pay extra for any of these?
• What happens during the closed season? Can I still come and do routine maintenance on my van? Etc
• Can I have a copy of the park rules and pitch contract?
• Does the caravan park belong to any trade organisations?