Wouldbe holidaymakers are facing a scramble to secure their stays in Norfolk, with a straw poll showing six out of 10 providers are already fully booked.
Restrictions on booking foreign holidays mean more people are opting to stay at home this summer. But this has meant the demand for staycations has soared.
As camping sites, holiday parks and beauty spots across Norfolk are quickly getting snapped up. EDP reporter EMILY THOMSON put it to the test to see just how hard it is to get booked in.
We checked for availability on camping and staycation websites, commencing from Monday, August 2, for a six-to-seven-night stay for a family of four.
Here are the results:
Parkdean Resorts
Parkdean Resorts is a UK family holiday company which has sites at Kessingland Beach, Manor Park in Hunstanton, Summerfields in Scratby, Breydon Water in Burgh Castle and Vauxhall and Cherry Tree in Great Yarmouth.
On Parkdean’s online booking site, when searching for availability from August 2, for seven nights, for a family of four, accommodation was still available – but very limited.
- Kessingland Beach: 4 options available for accommodation
- Manor Park: 2 options
- Summerfields: 1 option
- Breydon Water: 1 option
- Vauxhall Holiday Park: 10 options
- Cherry Tree: 4 options
The Pigs
A local favourite, The Pigs offers the ultimate country luxury retreat. It is nestled away in the north Norfolk countryside, just a short drive away from Holt.
The business has nineteen rooms each with its own private courtyard, firepit and in-spa room facilities including a bath big enough for two people, a drench shower, sauna and steam room. Some rooms even come with a hot tub
There is no availability for rooms until October 2021.
Staycation Holidays – Norfolk Holiday Cottages
After searching for Norfolk Cottages on the website Staycation Holidays, zero properties were available for August 2.
They offer an extensive range of cottages, from stunning barn conversions with a pool, and pet-friendly properties close to a clean beach to stylish properties suitable for a larger party.
Center Parcs Elveden
Center Parcs' Elveden site offers more than 400 acres of forest to explore, a range of indoor and outdoor activities, the largest water sports lake and longest zip wire of all of its villages.
It is also only village to have Waterside Lodges.
For a family of four, for seven nights from August 2, there is no availability.
Old Buckenham Country Park
Old Buckenham Country Park is a family-friendly site less than five minutes from the village of Old Buckenham.
The cost of a pre-booked pitch starts at £20 for wild camping.
It does have availability for families from August 2.
Airbnb in Norfolk
An Airbnb is an easy and quick way to book a getaway. Homeowners across Norfolk have listed rooms, flats or even houses for tourists to enjoy.
Searching in Norfolk, from August 2, there are 168 stays available to look at.
Whitlingham Broad Campsite
Whitlingham Broad is a boutique camping site located close to Norwich and the Broads.
As well simple camping they have bell tents, shepherds hut, yurt, converted goods wagons and its new woodland dens. Visitors also have the option to bring their own tent or campervan.
Only a tent pitches were available.
There are no stays available for the bell tents, the shepherds hut, the yurt, the goods wagons or the woodland dens for the date specified.
The Blakeney Cottage Company
The Blakeney Cottage Company specialises in luxury self-catering holidays in North Norfolk with a huge selection of hand-picked holiday cottages in stunning locations.
The properties are situated both on the North Norfolk Coast and villages inland within a ten-mile radius of Blakeney.
There are no cottages available for the date specified.
Forest Holidays - Thorpe Forest
Forest Holidays offer luxury breaks around the UK, with cabins set in exclusive woodland locations.
Thorpe Forest cabins offer a natural escape beside the banks of the River Thet, close to where the Norfolk and Suffolk borders meet.
There is no availability at Thorpe Forest for the date specified in August.
Kelling Heath
Kelling Heath sits in 300 acres of woodland and open heathland in an area of outstanding natural beauty. It is also very close to the North Norfolk coastline at Weybourne.
It had no pitches available for the dates specified.
Despite the demand for staycations in Norfolk, Pete Waters, chief executive of Visit East Anglia, said tourism is not out of the woods yet after the industry took a huge hit during the pandemic.
He said: “As self-contained accommodation was allowed to reopen first, on April 12, camping, holiday parks, Broads boats and self-catering accommodation saw a huge demand. Many people couldn’t get what they wanted so they’ve pre-booked for 2022 which is encouraging.
“Certainly the tourism industry desperately needs that to help build back the sector from the pandemic.
“VisitBritain’s forecasting suggests that domestic tourism spend this year will only be half of 2019.
“In Norfolk that would see a reduction from £3.5bn in 2019 to around £1.7bn for 2021 which could translate to the loss of thousands of jobs in the sector.
“Last year was even worse – about two thirds wiped off the value of the industry.
“We have to remember that although bookings are strong through to the Autumn, many of them are held over from last year and many establishments can’t operate at full capacity because of social distancing restrictions. Tourism is not out of the woods yet.”
*Availability on these sites may change following the publication of this story*
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here