Pontins Camber Sands

4 readers found this review helpful

Me and my family have just returned from a 4 day break at Pontin's Camber Sands and all I can say is never again not if they paid me!!
Although we got a cheap deal through The Sun, it is not a reason for the cleanliness to be so poor. Our only comfort is that we didn't pay full price for the break. I feel so sorry for the people there that had.
After reading the reviews before-hand, I went as prepared as I could be. With lots of bleach and our own bedding and cuttlery( even though it was supplied) I was so glad that I did. It just gave me peace of mind that when I was putting our 2yr old son to bed it was nice and clean for him. Our son slept in the bedroom, that was ok, apart from the mould that was under the window sill and the poor excuse for a waldrobe. However mine and my husbands bed which was the pull out sofa was a joke. It was so uncomfortable! We hardly had any sleep all week. I was just so pleased i'd brought our own bedding!!
The rest of the room was also terribly poor. The kitchen was filthy and again was glad i'd brought our own plates and knifes and forks etc. The bread bin smelt awful!! The cooker was covered in grease and hair! And there was poo on the kitchen floor. The fridge was ok apart from some mould in the door. The living room was spacious but dirty. The carpet was stained and the windows were flithy! They also steamed up every morning with condensation. We also had to use the sofa cushion to block the front door to stop the draught coming through during the night.
The bathroom had not be cleaned for a while.There was hair and dust on the bath and big cobwebs in the corners of the celling. The floor was covered in mould and I was a bit worried to wall on it bare foot! Also there was no shower attachment to wash my hair with so I ended up using a saucepan.
However once I had given it a bit of clean, we felt much better.
The entertainment was ok, me and my husband were a bit bored but my 2yr old son loved it, and would dance solid from 7-8 pm!
The sands resturant was good aswell. Not as bad as we expected. Food was good value and very tasty. Some staff were lovely and helpful and some weren't, but you can get that anywhere.
The Blue coats were also pleasant and good with the children. Although not on duty they were gobby and loud.
The actual resort is very dated which is fine it is just the cleanliness which is a major issue and is not acceptable wheather we have paid full price or not.
All I can say is risk it for a cheap holiday from The Sun but please please do NOT pay full price for this holiday!!!

2 readers found this review helpful

I was dreading going after reading the reviews on this site but we had a great week there with The Sun £9.50 deal. OK the accommodation is a bit basic but it was clean and we had everything we needed. We were hardly in anyway. Get a life and get out and about and stop moaning. The games room was a bit dated but plenty to do - darts, giant chess/draughts, table tennis, pool, crazy golf. The evening entertainment was brilliant - the Blue Coats are fantastic. We didnt eat there so I cant comment on the food because we used to use the facilities in the morning and go out for a drive in the afternoon and get dinner out and then return in time for the evening entertainment. I suppose it helped that the weather was great.

3 readers found this review helpful

I have also just returned from a weekend away to Pontins early. I could not beleive how dirty this place was.
We arrived to our room and put my baby daughter down and she found some very strong pain killers on the floor.
The bathroom was covered in mould and the smell in the room was terrible.
The evening entertainment was ok but to start after 8pm i thought was too late for the children. To be a family park i didn't feel there was another things for the children to do a part from play in the arcade which works out expensive.
The food was over priced but was ok.
I would not return.

We had put this down as our 3rd choice on the Sun holiday breaks and when I got it I decided to upgrade to the club chalet and am very glad I did.
I was really dreading going there and did what everyone else reading this site would have done checked just about everything in the chalet before I could think of unpacking. Although it wasn't great, I actually found it quite nice for what I paid. It was clean tidy and basic, yes there was a little mould in the shower and the finshes in the kitchen and bathroom could have done slightly better, but on the whole good condition.
The blue coats were friendly, helpful and very exciteable, which the children seem to love. The erntainment is aimed at the Young ones and to me thats what its all about. This is good old fashioned holiday entertainment for sure.
My recomendation would be Re-Generation, not just a lick of paint and this will be a little gold mine!!! Once all this has been done it'll be a fab place to go.
Thanks for a great 4 day break and at 7.5 months pregnant just what I needed!!!

3 readers found this review helpful

having just returned EARLY from a sun holiday break at camber sands pontins and i must say it is disgusting!!! i knew the chalets would be basic but didnt realise that it included mould on the curtains and growing in the cupboards.so many stains on the carpet that we had to keep our shoes on and more dirty,urine and dust in the bathroom than ive seen in the most gruesome of public toilets.when my husband went to complain about the dirth chalet he was told that we could upgrade but it would cost us another £99.50.
the whole of the holiday site was dirty and needs some major updating but i must add the blue coats and the entertainment provided was very good and the children enjoyed it very much

9 readers found this review helpful

Having just spent a long weekend at Pontins Camber Sands, i would like to inform everyone that it is not that bad!!!!! It is not a "hell hole" or anything as bad as that. It is very dated, however it is due a complete renovation inline with the other pontins camps. The room was damp, and there was mould in the shower however we left the room at 9.30 and returned at 5 for a quick shower and get dressed, to reutrn at midnight and sleep. so this was not a problem for us. The room was clean and warm, and had everything we could possibly want for a break away. It is not as good as Butlins, but it also does not come as expensive!!! It is in a good location for lots of activities in the surrounding areas, and onsite, there are lots of activties for the kids. The entertainment is ok, and to be honest, the kids seem to love it no matter how cheesy it is!!!! The staff try amazingly hard to keep everyone happy, and do a good job at entertaining everyone.
You are not going to get 5* accomodation for under £200 a weekend for up to 6 people! I was dreading this holiday from reviews on this place, and im glad to say, that they were all wrong. If you go with a attitude that it just a place to sleep, and enjoy everything around you, then you will enjoy your holiday.
All in All we enjoyed the holiday, and although i would not pay full price (at the moment) for this place, it is certainly worth going if you can find a cheep deal (ie in the papers or online)

2 readers found this review helpful

this is the worst place i have ever been too.the only good thing was the weather!on arrival it looked like a concentration camp.the chalet was filthy.i had to wash the kitchen utensils before i used them and cleaned the bathroom before we used it.toaster and microwave were for hire if you wanted one! these should be standard in a kitchen.there were no doors on the wardrobes(if you could call them that)and i dread to think what was on the carpet! we were provided with a floor brush to sweep up but no dustpan.then to top the whole thing of we had to pay for electric!!!!! this cost me an extra 20 pounds for the 4 nights on top of the 400 i paid for the break.
the entertainment was ok for younger kids but i wouldnt recommend for over fives.
the staff were pleasant and tried their best in a horrible place.the food was ok you got what you paid for.
i will never be back im sticking to butlins

5 readers found this review helpful

We arived at Pontins camber sands expecting the worst.We got there to early so we headed out to the beach wich was just down the road.The beach is lovly.at 4 we went to the fun factory to get our keys and the blue coat gave us very good directions to our apartment.We got there at our apartment n.146.It was cold but we found the heater and put it on and it was all better.We put our things away and my mom put in a electricity card.We ignored the mold in the shower!The next day we walked around the site.me and my dad went on the go-carts witch were very cheep only £2.50 each! We went on them the following 2 days.The entertainment is the best in the hole country.The blue coats offer a fantastic show for all the family.I would give the entertainment 10/10.but the apartment was cold and there was a birds nest in one of the walls.There is a fantastic play area for the kids and the pub is looking over it so you can watch them while you have a drink.There are loads of activitys for all the family such as:
go-carts,
rock climbing,
zip wire,
bungie jumping,
blue coat activity'sin the day,
and loads,loads more.If you have kids then i would consider going to pontins camber sands.I cryied on they way home i loved it so much.The best thing about our holiday was the blue coats and the brilliant entertainment :)please consider goingxxx

16 readers found this review helpful

Based on all the reviews I read before the trip, we nearly didn't turn up for our Sun booked weekend.
However, although the place is clearly dated,a bit run down and in need of some refurbishment, we certainly didn't find it the hell hole that many others seem to have.
Our main concern for us and our nearly 5 year old son was the hygiene of the chalet, but even though ours was a budget one, it was clean enough inside, and we felt comfortable using the cooker and fridge etc.
The entertainment was basic, but again, good enough for the money paid, and the bluecoats tried hard, especially the guy who looked and sounded like Peter Kay, who was very good at taking the rise out of himself as well as the mainly family audiences (half term).
All in all I'd say you get what you pay for, but can only speak as we found, and it was ok for us.
The main purpose of giving ths review is not to actively encourage it as a great destination, but to give a little peace of mind hopefully to those who are already booked there, perhaps through the Sun placement system.

1 reader found this review helpful

We booked through the sun, so to be fair it didn't cost the earth, and i certainly wasnt expecting 5 * but I still want my money back. It didnt even have the basic level of cleanliness. This place is shocking, it needs to be pulled down and started again. The curtains all had mould, as did the shower and windosills, there was a bare screw sticking out in the wardrobe ( if you can call it that) the carpet was filthy, the sofa bed stank. The swimming pool was disgusting with black bits floating in it, 6 changing rooms and about 20 lockers for all the people who were there, the entertainment was ok, but very samey. The staff were helpful and friendly, but i would NEVER EVER go back there in my life.