St. Ives Holiday Village — Attraction in Great Britain

We have just finished a 4 night stay in a platinum hot tub lodge here. Number 90. We had a great time. The lodge was clean, warm and well equipped. Most of my family had never been to Cornwall before so we made the most of the lodge as a base for exploring Cornwall. We therefore didn't attend much park entertainment or eat in the Club house. We did use the pool most days. Booking for the pool opens at 7pm on the previous evening. You can book through the John Fowler app or at Reception. You really need to download the app a couple of weeks before your trip and then keep an eye on it to see what activities become bookable. We were able to book Aquajets and Zorbing but they would have been fully booked if we had waited until we arrived on site. If you don't know your accommodation number when using the app to book in advance then just write "unknown". I couldn't book Zorbing on the app because one of the buttons you had to click went off my screen and was impossible to click. I phoned Reception to book instead. The Aquajets and Zorbing both had technical issues on the days we did them so fewer children were able to take part at a time. Each child had about a 5/10 min turn on these activities which was fine considering they were free. There was a pretty long wait if you were at the back of the queue though. My 6 year old was told by Reception that he could use the Aquajets but the lifeguards then said he couldn't. The lifeguards were correct in my opinion and I don't think the 6 year old would have managed it. My 6 and 8 year old both managed Zorbing although only one Zorbing ball was functioning. The pool was a fun activity each day. It was empty apart from us on our arrival day at 3pm so we had a peaceful swim. We often go to Butlins so I was worried that our boys would be underwhelmed by the pool but they enjoyed the little flume and playing with the pool toys. When we visited there were a few changing cubicles pool side but the pool toilets weren't working. You probably want to get the the pool as ready to swim as possible. The lifeguards were really friendly, helpful and gave useful advice. The hot tub was great and ready to use by about 5pm on our arrival day. We checked in at 2.30pm and our lodge was ready. The lodge had a utility area as you opened the front door with a washer drier, sink, shoe storage and coat hooks. Very useful for keeping wet clothes and shoes. I had brought capsules of washing liquid and used the washing machine several times as my children managed to get filthy. There's also a launderette on site if you needed it. I found it very hard to establish what would be in the lodge on arrival so have made a list below to help future guests. Our biggest shock was that Lodge 90 had 2 double beds. This could have been a nightmare. Fortunately, our children were happy to share and thought it was an adventure but they kicked each other a lot and took ages to get to sleep. The sleeping arrangements were very unclear so I recommend checking if this will be an issue... Shirley, at Reception was extremely friendly and helpful when I phoned up with some queries during our stay. The lodge had lots of radiators and an extra heater with flame effect. It was lovely and cosy. It felt clean and comfortable and was a really lovely lodge. I would happily book again.

1 set of cutlery for 4 people (we brought extra cutlery) 4 big plates, 4 small plates, 4 bowls Frying pan, saucepans, baking tray, decent amount of kitchen equipment. 2 double beds Loads of storage Hairdryer Iron Ironing board Washer drier and airer Tea, coffee, sugar Washing up liquid, tea towel, scrubber and cloth Dishwasher Knife block Scissors Hoover Microwave and oven/grill 1 roll of loo paper 3 TVs 1 with dvd player Extra flame effect heater Tea pot no coffee machine

To bring: pegs, soap, towels, dishwasher tablets, loo paper, washing...

Just returned from a two-week stay and, while I had a fantastic holiday in Cornwall, this Holiday Park is an embarrassment to British travel and tourism.

We arrived for check-in at the stated 3 PM, only to discover they had a grace period of an hour (which was nowhere in the T&Cs). Our accommodation wasn't ready, and we were told to check back every 10-15 minutes. After waiting 90 minutes in what felt like Fawlty Towers, I finally received my keys at 5:30 PM.

During my wait, several families stood out. One family returned from their uninhabitable accommodation, which hadn’t been cleaned in months, and agreed to wait in the bar with complimentary drinks while a second clean was done. Another family left and requested a full refund after finding their accommodation unacceptable. The third family had a mother return alone expressing her concerns for how dirty the accomadation was, leaving behind a pair of knickers she found in the bedroom, and was also given a complimentary voucher.

In just my 90 minutes in reception, I’d estimate that over £1,500 in food and drink vouchers and one full refund were issued due to the delays and extreme cleanliness issues.

Upon entering my accommodation, which allegedly failed a cleaning check and had received a second clean, I found it dirty beyond belief. I calmly expressed my concerns to the two receptionists, who handled the complaints with admirable professionalism, despite the chaotic situation. The general manager, who could be seen from her open office did very little to support the girls, eventually she did intervene after things escalated with other families but it was evident this was all routine for them you can tell they deal with this at most check-ins.

I was offered a £125 refund on top of an £80 voucher for the bar and restaurant, I wasn't interested in a food and drink voucher as I didn't want to eat in such a poorly maintained establishment. I left, stating I would clean the accommodation myself, as I was there for two weeks.

The next morning, I reported a broken shower and bifold doors that wouldn't open. The receptionist informed me that the £125 refund could no longer be issued since I had already received a voucher. The general manager, who claimed to have 20 years of experience in holiday parks, said, "it is what it is at this time of year," and offered me a £50 voucher for the maintenance issues but no refunds. I requested an email to express my concerns however she said it would only come to me anyway so i'm wasting time (hence the review).

One of the reasons we chose this holiday village was for the swimming pool, which looked inviting in the marketing images. However, it was the worst experience of our stay. Upon approaching the entrance, I was confronted by an unfriendly lady who questioned my booking. After showing her my confirmation on the app, she reluctantly let us in and said 'if you had booked I would know' I showed her the confirmation again but for some reason she still didn't believe me. What I encountered was a green, dirty pool that felt unsafe, prompting me to report the situation to the local council. While my young son had fun, all the parents exchanged concerned looks; it was essentially pond water with thick green scum around all the tile edges.

The location and grounds are good, but the cleanliness and maintenance of the accommodation, bar, and pool need urgent attention. The two receptionists were commendable, but the general manager seemed more focused on targets than on improving guest relations. With simple yet effective changes and holding certain staff accountable for their work ethic, this place could easily become a 4-star plus site.

Attached is the water that came off my kitchen counters after I cleaned—this was following two in-house cleans....

St Ives honest review.||3.9/ 5||Were a family of five including little ones and got here got here on Saturday after an 8 hour drive. We were all shattered and hoped there was a chance of an early check in as the website states if your lodge is ready in time you can have the keys early. This unfortunately didn't happen and obviously it isn't a given you could check in early so please don't count on it as very few were able to. We were able to leave our cases with the bar staff so that we could go do a food shop prior to checking in. ||The site itself is about 2.5 miles away from a large asda and tescos and about 4 miles from aldi. (7 minutes). Its also 2 miles away from Hayle beach which is absolutely stunning! We actually got the keys a little late, probably about 3.20pm instead of 3pm.||When we did get into the caravan we had a couple of issues and requested to move. Initially we were told there were no other lodges available unless we downgraded, however were we soon given another lodge and eventually got settled in about 7pm. We were also kindly given a £50 voucher to use at the bar / restaurant for the inconvenience. ||We stayed in one of the 3 bedroomed gold lodges with a hot tub. This was very spacious and had plenty of room for all of us. It was slightly bigger than the first one (both gold) so I guess it's just the luck of the draw. It didnt however look like the photos we saw when we booked. The hot tub was checked daily and clean when we arrived and is big enough for around 6 people. We use the hot tub every day and the kids love it! ||The cleaners could not be more helpful and left us extra towels. If you require a travel cot for hire I recommend ringing them prior to arrival to remind them so it's there when you get there. ||We hired a travel cot, an iron and an ironing board. I think it would be beneficial to be able to hire an airer from the reception too which currently isn't on the hire list. It's hard to keep drying things when your a family of 5 in and out of the hot tub every day or swimming. I do think all the caravans should also have a toilet brush, it's pretty much a basic essential, especially when you have little kids. ||The park itself it's kept really clean and is very picturesque in the woods. The kids loved seeing all the squirrels and rabbits hopping about.||There is a kids park but it's quite small and a bit dated so we haven't used it really. We have used the pool several times which is 45 minute pre booked sessions. It has a baby pool too which is handy. You can book on the app from 7pm the night before.||Initially the kids entertainment on the first night wasn't that great. The entertainers were just sort of stood around for the first half hour. I think this was more of a confidence thing though rather than simply not being bothered.||However on the Third night 'Stripey Dave' brought alot more atmosphere to the room and got all the kids involved. He was brilliant! :) ||We've ate once in the resturaunt. The food was nice, reasonably priced and a decent portion but there isn't much selection and is only open 6pm-8pm. Not really ideal when you have kids and the kids disco is 6pm-7pm. ||The site itself has a shop, a bar, resturaunt and a laundrette which we used several times. It's £6 per wash but will fit a large load and included powder/ conditioner. This is also contactless. ||All in all we've had a really nice holiday so far and although we had a bit of a bumpy start, for what we paid we would definitely come back again.||The staff are all friendly and helpful and solved our initial issue pretty much straight away and we haven't had any problems since.||You are located pretty much central to alot of things in Cornwall and not far from Newquay, the beaches and some lovley pubs...