Pontins Brean Sands

4 readers found this review helpful

Went on our first family holiday, what a shock. The staff unfriendly, chalet filthy dirty. Only an hours entertainment for kids in the evening then it's all for adults. The morning shows with the characters were cancelled. Would not recommend Pontins to anyone who wants a good holiday. Will not be going there again.

6 readers found this review helpful

Went to Pontins Brean Sands on Friday planning to stay until the Monday, however on viewing our accommodation after queuing an hour to check in, there was no way my family could have stayed there. The requested and paid for cots were not in the room as promised, there was dirty laundry, cigeratte butts and broken glass outside our door, the contents of an emptied hoover around the corner, the curtains were hanging off the hooks in one of the bedrooms, damp and mould on walls, the toilet didn't flush, the carpet was filthy, the bed linen was thrown on the side.....honestly, it was so awful. We complained (queued with others conveying similar concerns for half an hour) but were offered little, so we left. We then had to travel 30 miles into Bristol City Centre late evening to find a hotel. The experience was so distressing especially for my daughter and niece who are both under 2. This well planned and much looked forward too family holiday to Pontins was a costly and upsetting disaster. Gutting. WOULD NOT RECOMMEND.

6 readers found this review helpful

My mother had booked three nights here, with my two nephews aged 6 and and 7, assuming this would be the perfect break away for the kids before they go back to school. We arrived there just after 3 o clock. As soon as we drove in, we immediately knew that the place wasn't going to be what we expected. There were piles of dirty laundry on the edge of the car park, it was not a pretty site! We parked up and went to the reception area in order to get the keys to our 'chalet'. We had booked the club chalet which was supposed to be the best accommodation in the whole park. As we were walking to the accommodation, it wasn't pleasant, you could see what people were doing in there own chalets, hence no privacy whatsoever. Once we arrived in this so called chalet, it was merely a small bedsit, with two tiny bedrooms, one with a bunk bed and one with two single beds. A small bathroom and a tiny kitchen and sofa bed with a tv. I was gobsmacked. It was nothing like the pictures I had seen in the brochure. The sofa bed had dirty stains on it, I didn't even want to sit on there let alone sleep on it. The cooker was dirty and had stains on it, there was cobwebs in the pipes, the bedding had been left on the table and had insects crawling on it, the pillows had stains, the mattresses looked 10 years old with all bobbling on them, the carpets were filthy, and it stank, the windows looked like they had never been cleaned! the walls were peeling apart, the chairs were plastic! the tea and coffee was left in plastic bags. The bath wasn't even a bath it was so small, there was no toilet roll. It was so bad, my mother was crying! we went to complain at reception but was told there was nothing that they could do, they couldn't transfer us, and all they could do is send in some cleaners to clean it up, and we were not entitled to a refund. We went back to the accommodation and sat there in disgust waiting for the cleaners but no one had turned up!! By then it was half 5, we had enough, so I got my brother who was at home in Birmingham to find us alternative accommodation. In the end, we ended up leaving the whole site and ended up travelling down to Torquay. Where we had an amazing time, we couldn't of been happier to leave the place, the whole site needs to be shut down, I don't understand how that place has not been shut down completely. Its appalling. Never ever again!

4 readers found this review helpful

we stayed for a week in a 3 bed classic appartment(shed)s to sleep up to nine with a hard and broken bed sofa which sat 2 and 4 hard plastics chairs so in total six seats when there was 8 of us ,small breafast bar which sat 3 people , blood stains on mattereses ,plastic chairs thrown about the grass outside soaking wet and dirty bed linen outside the chalets for three day gettin wet and smelly by the time they fetched them its change over day so its there again for another few days, the fun factory and the vic pub and aracade and toilets all need ripping out and new fixtures and fittings in place , take away food is awfull hard chips , bones in fish hard chicken nuggets etc, overall a very run down and shabby camp and in need of total refurb , swimming pool dirty aswell as the changing rooms. feel sorry for the blue coats who were fab because there living accomadation is even worse than the guests. its the only place i know of where you have to have a pass to go off the camp lol, i know britannia hotels have taken over pontins and rome wasnt built overnite but the basic hygiene was lacking in every pubic area of the park , would not recomend this park to anyone, If you really want to go there i would recomend you make a special journey and buy a day pass to check out the camp before you spend a lot of money on a booking.

been here four years running twice this year found all staff and bluecoats friendly always had club accommodation which has been basic but clean always somthing going on for the chidren entertainment in the fun factory in the evening had somthing for everyone childen to adults bluecoats do a great show worth watching

6 readers found this review helpful

booked a 3 night break starting 29th Aug but only stayed for 2 due to the state of the place. it's an absolute hole. trust me, im not posh in the slightest but even i felt like royalty next to the amount of chavs that seem to vacate the place. if they opened up a Sports Direct on the site they would make a killing!!
all the reviews below are true. blood stained sheets, dirty floors etc. but i found some of the entertainers extremely rude. an old guy asked the bingo caller to slow down one night and she actually bluntly refused! and another actually took the mikey out of a child for the way he talked!
the whole place is a health hazard in my opinion and it was the worst holiday i have ever been on. never again! am in the process of getting my money back via my credit card, and i advise everyone else to do the same.

3 readers found this review helpful

Family of 2 Adults, 3 Children unfortunately 1 weeks hol in August arrived at shedet that smelt of old people with about 100 cig butts at the front door piles of sheets in bundles left outside of sheds not collected from previous travellers. 3 kids in very small room adults had pull out sofa bed if that's what you would call it disgusting. Mattress thin hard plastic thing so uncomfortable asked for replacement it never arrived. Luckily my husband let me put the sofa cushion on mattress and he sleeped on hard ridiculous thing.
Breakfast and dinner times were a joke the queue and wait was unbearable we gave up towards end of holiday as so annoying. We are not very fussy but there has to be basic standards in place the carpets and seating in chalet to main entertainment hall are filthy and trying to get a seat in the hall is a mission impossible unless you are in there around 5pm which is just no good when your dinner wasn't till 7pm.
Swimming pool changing area needs sorting curtains hanging buy two hooks floor not clean and pool not bad kids did enjoy the holiday we were glad to be leaving.
Not sure what the 70 free things are to do because go karts climbing wall, bikes are all chargeable extras which are not cheap and when you have three of them wanting to do it a con.
Badly needs a complete overhaul and it could be a nice place but at the moment know I know why it was so much cheaper than Butlins it is a complete dump.
I must say that the Blue Coats do work very hard and long days and nights if I had gone for 2 weeks I may have killed a couple of them as very over the top but most of them were good. My son of 5 won a free holiday for dancing shame it is Southport for 3 days and about a six hour journey from us mentioned that it was not really suitable as so far for 3 days in November they said Oh dear not much they could do. Not good when you have excited child that wins holidsy that cant go on. Pontins in November no fear cold in chalet in August let alone then.
Avoid much nicer caravan holiday parks to go to and spend your hard earned money on.

4 readers found this review helpful

Arrived at the pontins having not ever been before as needed a quick getaway with grandchildren, never known such a filthy place in my whole life, i wouldn't even put my dog in it, we complained for two hours as it needed to be cleaned and got no response in the end we left having wasted £210 and booked into another hotel in torquay for two nights, spoilt our holiday and one day was wasted. Advertised 70 free activities and in the time we were there everything had to be paid for and the pool was like a sauna which we locked at. DO NOT GO THERE, IT NEEDS TO SHUT DOWN. pictures of the place are deceiving

3 readers found this review helpful

Well,we will start from the booking,after we booked read reviews and panicked.Rang H.Q who admitted accommodation was basic and not of a high standard.
When we arrived we were pleasantly surprised,security very friendly.
When it came to picking keys up,right place,right time my partner picked up keys within 5 mins.Arrived at chalet to find out no keys in envelope so had to go back to staff to collect keys.
Chalet not fantastic but not as near bad as reviews have stated.(reminded me of butlins chalets when i was a little boy)in need of total refit.
All staff we came across were all friendly,happy.
There was a small charge for quads,snooker,paintball but once again well worth the money,swimming pool was o.k.
We went half board,this is where the problem starts,we stayed mon-fri and for first couple of days food was to our surprise after reviews edible.
However on the Thursday i think the chef was on strike,there was this burnt smell and the cook had decided to put out this tray of burnt brocolli and pasta bake in some kind of sauce.My partner tried a small mouthful and nearly hacked,she told cook who quickly took said tray out of harms way,chips were not cooked and the menu for this day as said just as all other reviews have said not edible.
This was such a shame as the breakfast was always ok(apart from set timings,ours was 0730 for breakfast and 1700 for dinner).
Overall holiday was o.k,but would not go back until said faults were put in place.

5 readers found this review helpful

Im 13 and i got i'll off the food, I dident no what the meat was and it was floating in fat. We couldent leave the patio doors open for more than 10 minuets otherwise we would of been coverd in flying ant's. Dont even bother going outside for fresh air because you wont get any, it smells of sewage. The entertainment was bad i sujest you go to the seagul across the road, and eat there two. When we got into the shalay the sheets were moldey and the beds where form 2000, there was writing all over the beds, and they were not stable. my sister had to put his matress on the floor because she was scared it was going to claps. We orderd a 3 bedroom and there was a mix up and we unded up having two there was five of us. This is comeing from a child and children are supose to enjoy there holidays. Pontins used to be good but it was over taken bye britania. DONT waist your money go to butlins.