hu Park Albatros village — Hotel in San Vincenzo

This is a very large, clean, well maintained campsite with excellent facilities which is great for families. Flying into Pisa, it's about an hour away, located in a pine forest on the Tuscan coast. You can get to the local town by train but we opted for the lazy option of private transfer. We used a local taxi driver for this recommended by the site. We booked direct with Hu and I would definitely recommend this. We are a family of 6 eldest child is 18 (not a child really) down to 7. This was our 2nd visit to this site and 3rd stay with Hu (previous site was Norcenni - also recommended). On each occasion I emailed the site in advance to request a central plot and they have always done their best to accommodate. Check in is at 4 and I knew we would arrive earlier so emailed the week before to ask can we store bags, use pools etc and told that facilities were available for us to use. Delighted to be told our accomodation was available early so we could go unpack etc. This year we stayed in a Hu Premium XL which has 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. It was a very new mobile and came with a bbq but no oven Last year we stayed in a Hu Stay Easy XL and that had no BBQ. ||As I said the site is very large but flat so easy enough to walk around. There are bikes for hire and loads of bikes, scooters etc on site. There is also a little train that goes around the site with a few stops. ||Technically you can walk to the beach from the site but we are lazy so didn't do it. Saw loads of others make the trek though so must be ok! ||There are 7 pools in total all in one complex split into 3 areas, each with bar/cafe/toilets etc. 4 of the pools are shallow lagoon type with a soft base, a few small slides, some hills and splashy bits. Great for young kids but also enough space for older kids (and grown ups) to play ball games etc. 2 standard pools about 1.2m and another very small pool in the shade. The big pools get very busy. Floaties/inflatables are also allowed which is great. You can always get a sunbed regardless of when you go down which is brilliant. I hate that mad dash for beds in the morning. ||There are loads of on site activities including a kids club but we didn't engage with any of those. ||There's a few cafe/snacks bars, one main sit down restaurant, 2 pizzarias and multiple food trucks (burgers, chicken, porchetta rolls, pasta, Tex Mex). They are all pricey enough (€5 for chips, €9 for nuggets) except the pizzas which were priced €10/12 and were filling and delicious. Tex Mex wasn't great but you don't go to Italy for that so that was our mistake. Pasta was lovely but Italian 1st course portion size so small for us. Porcetta rolls from the truck were amazing. That one is beside the pool and we only tried the last day - raging. Rodriguez restaurant was hit and miss. Grilled meats and pizza was good but pasta was disappointing and staff seemed very inexperienced. Our first night they gave us about 2 minutes to look at the menu and the last night they landed every course at the table at the same time! Pizzas from the main pizzeria were great value, tasty etc - you could be waiting a while as the most popular food option but you can order online for collection. ||Main bar has table service and is beside the playground and ice cream shop. There is live music or sport on tv. there most nights. A large beer €5.50/6 and a spritz €7/8. Soft drinks dear here. Ice cream was lovely and €2.80 for 1 scoop, €5 for a crepe and a waffle. Bar and floor staff were great. Good fun, efficient and friendly. There are pool tables here too and a games room beside it. In the playground which is sandy there is a high ropes experience, nets with giant balls for younger kids (mine loved this) and mini golf. Music for a bit samey after 2 weeks but our own fault for not being adventurous.||There is entertainment for kids down near the pools but we didn't go down so can't comment. We went to the mini disco one night and my son didn't like it - it's all one level, there isn't enough space and the very small dance area was full of adults dancing with their kids so other kids couldn't see what's going on. My child got a bit overwhelmed so we left quickly. In saying that, he was happy at the main bar with the playground etc. ||There is a large, well stocked, not outrageously priced supermarket (given they have a captive market). Good deli counter but pricey enough for some items.  Bakery lovely and well stocked. Supermarket closes in the afternoon but you get used to it. Pharmacy on site but open limited hours. Very handy though. At the pool there is a small gift shop and a large shop selling pool/beach stuff along with branded clothes, shoes, accessories. ||The site hosts a market twice a week with a few different stalls with jewelry and local crafts. This was lovely and we got some beautiful handmade gifts for family. ||The site organises tours which we did not avail of but also regular shuttles to the local town San Vincenzo. This is a beautiful little seaside town with lovely restaurants, cafes and a small number of shops. Loads of beach access here. Highly recommend visiting the town at least once on your stay. Nominal fee of €2 per person. Market on a Saturday - mainly clothes and some tat but a a great food section. The other shuttle is to Barratti beach. We did this last year. It's grand but not great. Very little there. A historic site of some sort but not great in terms of facilities. ||Wifi last year was patchy but no issues at all this year a great improvement. Mosquitos and issue so take repellent.||All in all we had a great stay and would come back. Some minor niggles but wouldn't put us off and I would highly recommend booking with Hu directly. Big shout out to the staff in the main bar who were all just brilliant, especially the...

Had a great 2 week stay at Albatros in June 23 and would highly recommend it.||Here's why:||(BTW We were an Irish family of 4 with 8 & 9 year olds)||||ACCESS||Easy drive from Pisa airport to the campsite.||Due to my driver's license expiring mid-holiday we also found out that it is very straightforward to get from the campsite to the airport using the train. It is a short €20 taxi ride from the campsite to one of the nearby towns and you can get the train from there. There was one train change in Pisa which was fairly straightforward.||||POOLS||There are 4 large shallow pools for smaller kids and 1 large 50m type pool.||The floors of kids pools are made from soft padded plastic so if your little kids fall over they will not get hurt. These pools also have some gentle slides - again perfect for smaller kids. ||In the 50m pool there is daily aqua aerobics, water polo etc. ||All pools are surrounded by a huge amount of sun loungers and umbrellas.||Only minor complaint is that it would be nice to have a larger slide for bigger kids.||||EVENING ENTERTAINMENT||There are 2 separate areas for evening entertainment.||The main entertainment area is a very nice outdoor space surrounded by trees and various food and drink options. It has live music most evenings and is a great place for hanging out during the day.||The other area is located towards the front of the resort and used for shows put on by the excellent Hu entertainment staff.||There were 2 shows each evening - first one for smaller kids and the 2nd for the older kids.||The kids loved most of the shows and the staff were brilliant.||There was a small language issue in that most of the people in the campsite were Italian or German so the shows catered somewhat for this.||Most of the time it did not matter but I think we left one show early because we couldn't understand what was going on - for us it was not a big deal.||||SUPERMARKET||The on-site supermarket was really well stocked and prices were reasonable. Plenty of vegetables, meats and cheeses. Bakery and prepared food was very good.Wine on tap for very little money. ||It closes in the afternoon between 1pm and 4:30pm so just watch out for that. ||||ACCOMMODATION||The usual selection of accommodation is available - the more you pay the better it gets.||We stayed in an Easy L Plus - not particularly glamorous but AC worked fine and it had a very nice terrace so it was perfect.||||SPORTS ACTIVITIES||There were regular football tournaments for the kids - organization was sometimes a bit haphazard.||The most important thing was that you got your medal at the show in the evening!!||||ON-SITE RESTAURANTS||Tried the onsite restaurants and takeaway a few times.It was a bit hit and miss but once you figure out what is good, it is fine. ||||NEARBY RESTAURANTS||I can recommend the following restaurants in the nearby towns:||Bar Pizzeria At Sunset: maps.app.goo.gl/pMvfgj341R3tuXf29||L'OSTEria: maps.app.goo.gl/TD6ookxcUXP5u51H8||Pizzeria Lo Scalino: maps.app.goo.gl/Cd4qgt69wTySnbY68||Sushi Queen Japanese Restaurant: maps.app.goo.gl/DWFiTWu97ZLzdPwVA||||WATER PARKS||We went to the one below and it was great.It is a small park but there were some great rides and virtually no queues and we would happily go there again.||Acqua Village Cecina: maps.app.goo.gl/UxP3hzEvf34BnBUW8||||BEACHES||There is a beach about 1km from the site. We did not make it there but plenty of people seemed to go there on foot - there might be a bus option also but not sure.||There are some very nice beaches that are a short drive away.||||NEARBY TOWNS ||Piombino: Doesn't look very promising as you approach but it is close by, it has a lovely old town and plenty of good dining options. ||San Vincenzo: Market Saturday morning at Piazza Giovanni XXIII.||Cecina: Market Tuesday morning.||Campiglia Marittima: One of the many nearby scenic hillside towns.||Pisa: Worth a visit - nice and compact and hassle free.||Siena: We didn't make it this far but I heard from other families that it is worth a visit if you don't mind the travel.||||PRICE||We found the cost of this campsite to be very good value and at the time of booking flights to Pisa were very reasonable too.||||CONTEXT||Our previous campsite experiences have been as follows:||-Altomincio, Lake Garda, Italy||-Bella Italia, Lake...

We spent 9 days at Park Albatros in a Eurocamp Azure cabin. ||The pros: ||- so many pools to choose from with a good range of age group appropriate areas. ||- the lifeguards are on it! Constantly blowing their whistles to keep people in order ||- lane swimming is in the Olympic pool from 8-10 (there are no lane ropes, pick your spot and try to stick to it - my tip, get there at 8! It gets busy quick, it’s well worth the early start)||- plenty of sun beds to choose from, it fills up by 11 ish so no mad panic to get down to the pools early ||- lots of fun pool activities - aerobics, water polo, games etc (our kids did water polo every day and loved it) ||- go karts are great fun to hire, be aware of cars / electric buggies though as they share the roads ||- arcades were great. We went during the afternoons when is was quieter - evenings are super busy ||- we felt safe giving ours kids a bit more independence here ||- supermarket well stocked with everything you need (it shuts between 1pm-4pm)||- T-pop restaurant serves lovely food (they don’t always bring out the dishes together though) ||The cons:||- B-eat takeaway place is unfortunately positioned in front of the toilets, which creates a smell you just don’t want to associate with eating ||- the Olympic pool gets unbelievably busy in the afternoon. The water clarity is suspect. With the amount of people everywhere, we didn’t feel comfortable leaving the kids playing on their own after lunch. ||- the staff didn’t seem very happy, could’ve been my poor attempt at trying to speak Italian but it’s good to try :-/ ||- Eurocamp Azure cabins are small. We had a 6 berth for 4 of us and it was still a squash. The main bedroom isn’t big enough for 2 adults. The ‘sofa’ is hard plastic, the air con only works for the whole unit if you keep the bedroom doors open, which in turn lets the sunlight in, making it a very early start. With the doors shut the rooms are incredibly stuffy. We asked for a fan but there wasn’t enough room to plug it in without it being in our faces. The pillows are awful! You get one each and they’re so uncomfortable. If you need any extras you have to pay more. ||- Eurocamp check out: there is a 10 point cleaning checklist to work through if you don’t want to be charged (no idea what these charges are). This includes cleaning the toilet, shower, inside the fridge, all tables and chairs, floors to be swept and mopped etc etc….it’s not really the relaxing holiday experience to end on. No cleaning products are provided so you basically have to buy them and potentially leave them there or wipe everything down with a towel, which seems super unhygienic. The list implies Eurocamp are not doing any cleaning themselves. ||We had a great holiday but not a relaxing stay with Eurocamp and won’t book with them again sadly. ||Tip: ||If you can request where you stay, facing a road seems to give you the most amount of space / privacy. The centre of the park is absolutely packed full of cabins. The decking areas were pretty much all facing each other.||Have a look at all the cabins available on the site. Human Travel cabins looked much nicer than ours. Maybe book direct with Hu. ||It is one of the biggest holiday parks in Europe, so prepare for a busy, high energy resort, with loads of entertainment. There’s plenty for the kids to do, it’s...