Issue no 6
February 2018
Sandy Balls Holiday Village presents
Park life
What’s happening at
years, starting as a seasonal Lifeguard when I was 16. Over the 18 years I have worked my way through most departments and gained experience along the way which has enabled me to work my way up the ladder. I have been in General management for the last 6 years and am extremely excited to be here at Sandy Balls. My passion is standards, service and team all of which I hope will benefit our owners, residents & holiday guests.
Clare Watkins
General Manager A very Happy New Year to you all! I Hope you’ve all had a great festive break and that 2018 has got off to great start. A big hello from me, I’m Clare Watkins, the new General Manager here at Sandy Balls. I have worked in the Holiday Park industry for over 18
Both the Christmas and New Year period were really busy and special times here at Sandy Balls, and we hope that our guests enjoyed some very memorable experiences. 2018 is going to be an exciting year and we have got lots of fantastic news to share with you! As you walk around the park, you might start to notice the arrival of some new holiday homes – in fact, a completely new holiday home, the first of its type in the UK, and we are really excited about it! I won’t say too much as there is an article on these in this newsletter.
Development When you are wandering about Sandy Balls over the next few months, you might notice changes to some of our facilities around the park.
We would like to thank you for your understanding in relation to any disruption, but I am sure like us you are excited to see the end results.
Aubrey’s Restaurant is getting a complete facelift over the winter to introduce cosy ambiance, classy interior décor, along with some little touches of the Away Resorts personality. The restaurant will now be called Aubrey’s Forest Kitchen.
You should have had a call from one of our guest Services service team with information on this, but if you have missed their call, please let us know so we can provide you with a full update.
The Village Square is also going to have a bit of a mini makeover with some new pathways added and some new plants and shrubs to spruce up the square. Finally, some £100,000 has been spent on fitting a new roof on the swimming pool and refurbishment of changing room showers and lockers.
Don’t forget if you fancy a dip, we have got free swimming tickets at Guest Services for our owners to use the local swimming pool, just pop in and see the team.
Following last years success you’ll have an action packed year with events, festivals and parties. This year however we are introducing some exclusive events, just for our owners and residents for 2018. These are free events and give you chance to meet the team and other likeminded people and have some fun. Please see the event calendar in this newsletter and get them in your diaries! To keep you in the loop with all the new developments, we are hosting exclusive winter warmers for you to meet out holiday homes sales team and have a chat about our 2018 plans and the new holiday homes, Join us on the 3-4 Feb to Enjoy a glass of wine and a selection of local cheeses. Or if you’d prefer Local sausages and cider, 10-11 Feb. We’ve also got Wine & Choc’s, 17-18 Feb which rounds off our winter warmer events. So, make sure you pop in and have a chat. We would love to see you!
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A Warm Welcome Lorna is a familiar face in Guest Services, but is now looking after our owners & residents, so if you do have any questions or queries please ask for her and she’ll be happy to assist you. Some of you may already have met Rosie. Rosie joined Sandy Balls in September 2017 as our Guest Experience Manager, she is currently looking at ways to enhance the owner & guest experience on park and is always happy to meet you if you have anything to discuss.
Cream Pie Fight Sun 26 Aug The annual tradition that is the ‘Cream Pie Fight’ returns. Our largest gathering of guests, armed with cream pie plates, have the biggest, messiest fun fight of the year.
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Introducing...
The
Everyone leads busy lives these days, with barely an hour in the day to relax. So, when we do find time to get away for a few days, we really want to cut off from the outside world – and the perfect place to do this is in a Zen Lodge, in the magical forest of Sandy Balls.
These little lodges of tranquillity are calming, peaceful and beautifully simplistic, with a big influence on bringing the outside in through the natural woodland interior.
events
On park The Zen has a central living space with a 55” TV screen and panoramic bifold doors, which provide a great window on the wooded world outside. Either side of the living area is the master and second bedroom. The master features a king-size bed complete with sumptuous soft bedding, and a TV screen that is viewable from the bed. The en-suite bathroom boasts his and hers sinks and a double shower. The second bedroom can be configured to either three single bedrooms or one double and one single, so you can choose to either bring the kids, or bring your friends. Added extras include a DVD player with complimentary movies and a welcome basket with a bottle of bubbly. If you have friends and family always wanting to visit you in your lovely holiday home here in the new forest (which we are sure you will have!!) and don’t have the room why not show them the Zen!
Easter Egg Hunt
Fri 26 - Sun 28 Oct Halloween at Sandy Balls more actioned packed than ever! With our spook-tacular schedule of Halloween activities and entertainment. It’s time to create some fang-tastic memories!
Festive Show
Fri 30 March - Sun 1 April
Fri 7 - Mon 31 Dec
Join us for Easter! Choc’d full of eggciting Easter activities; egg painting, Easter egg hunts and a brilliant line up of sparkling family entertainment.
The New Forest is magical in winter. Get in the festive mood with activities, Santa’s grotto, family panto and more! Please see entertainment Guide more.
Colour Festival
New Years Party
Fri 27 - Sun 29 July
Mon 31 Dec
A lively colourful weekend featuring our brightest Saturday of 2018. Inspired by the famous Indian ’Holi Festival of Colours’, a programme of family events daytime centered around colour throwing powder. Cameras at the ready, this weekend is as fun to watch as it is to take part.
We’ll be welcoming you with nibbles and serving up seasonal drinks aplenty, accompanied by the world’s greatest music. Just the thing to put you in the mood for partying the night away. Separate ticketed event and numbers are limited, keep an eye out for further information.
events
Local Out and about The Domus Starts: 16 February Domus in Beaulieu
Compliment your fitness routine with a stay here at Sandy Balls this weekend. The stunning New Forest scenery can be the backdrop to your run, swim or cycle and will inspire you to reach for your goals. We’ll have a pumped-up gym class timetable, pop-up juice bar and there’s a workout welcome pack on arrival.
Halloween Weekend
With February just around the corner, love will definitely be in the air as cupid works his magic on Valentine’s Day. And if you are feeling in a romantic mood, then head over to the Pop-Up Cinema at The Domus in Beaulieu on 16 February where you can enjoy a double bill of movies, Disney’s ‘Beauty and the Beast’ and ‘80s classic, ‘Dirty Dancing’. There is a licensed bar selling drinks and bar snacks throughout the evening. Tickets cost £10 and the screenings begin at 5.20pm. nightstarcinema.co.uk/whats-on/
Grab your walking boots Starts: 18 - 28 October The New Forest If you love nothing more than a walk in the countryside, then you are spoilt for choice when it comes to walking trails in the New Forest.
There’s more than 140 miles of tracks and footpaths, where you can enjoy ‘easy-to-follow’ walking routes, short strolls or longdistance trails. And while you are enjoying your walk, you are likely to come across thousands of free-roaming ponies, donkeys and cattle on your travels. To celebrate its fantastic variety of walks, the New Forest Walking Festival will be taking place from 13 to 28 October. The festival will boast dozens of guided walks led by knowledgeable local experts to help walkers discover more about the history, heritage and wildlife of the Forest. The 2017 Festival saw 1,500 people enjoy 75 behind the scenes family strolls, history hikes, wildlife walks and more. All walks were expert-led by the New Forest National Park Authority and partner organisations, helping people learn more about the National Park. newforestnpa.gov.uk/ walkingfestival
Hottubs
If you have a hot tub, we want you, your family and friends to use and enjoy your hot tub safely. It is important to be aware of the potential risks that can arise from hot tubs. Hot tubs are a recognised source of diseases caused by infections agents including the bacteria that causes legionnaires’ disease. There have been a number of outbreaks of Legionnaires’ diseases, including fatalities which have been linked to poorly designed and/or managed hot tubs. Legionnaires’ disease is caused by legionella bacteria infecting your lungs. It’s usually caught by breathing in small droplets of contaminated water. This means that other park guests may be exposed to it even if they are not using your hot tub. The Health & Safety Executive Guidance (HSG282) ‘The control of legionella and other infectious agents in spa-pool systems’ explains how to manage and control the risks from legionella and other infectious agents. We expect you to maintain your hot tubs in a safe condition to ensure the safety of your family, your guests and others using the park. The complete guidance document may be downloaded free from the HSE website and we strongly advise you to do so. http://www.hse.gov.uk/ legionnaires/spa-pools.htm We also advise you to follow any other recommendations for the hot tub manufacturer and/or supplier. Please note if you are subletting your Holiday Home, you will be deemed to be undertaking a commercial operation and your legal responsibilities with regards to the management of hot tubs will be more stringent. This will include the completion of suitable and sufficient risk assessment and implementing a strict water testing regime and management procedures. When your hot tub is not in use, it must always be covered with a suitable and secured lid to prevent accidental access by unsupervised children and potential drowning. If you have any queries please don’t hesitate to contact us.
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Don't forget you can download our Away Resorts App from the app store or google play store today. It's jam packed with handy features, like ordering a new gas bottle, booking activities and holding all your holiday home ownership documents.
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Sat 3rd Nov Once upon a forest night 7pm - 9pm Wrap up warm for a night around the fire, cooking marshmallows and sipping hot chocolate while some of the region’s most fantastic storytellers perform dark tales in the round. Folk Moot Circle by Giants Grave
1, 2, 8, 9th Dec 3rd- 4th Feb
Sat 12th May
Cheese and Wine 2pm - 4pm
Cheese and Wine Event 6pm - 8pm
Enjoy a glass of wine and a selection of local Cheeses at the Sales Office.
We’ve got some tasty entertainment for Owners as we invite you to our annual Cheese & Wine Evening! Come along and try an array of cheeses and wash them down with some of the best tipples going,
10th- 11th Feb Sausage and Cider 12.30pm - 2.30pm Try a local sausage and some mulled cider with the team at the Sales Office.
17th- 18th Feb
Sat 7th J uly
Salt and Soup 12pm - 2pm Pop in for a chat over some warming soup and a nice crusty roll! We’ll also be offering FREE bowls of salt for you to place in your holiday home, as well as a smoke alarm battery. This is available to all owners who pop in and see us between 12pm-2pm.
Sun 16th Dec
Wimbledon Week 4pm - 6pm
Christmas Celebration 7pm - 10pm
Join us for strawberries, cream and a lovely glass of Pimms. Let’s celebrate Wimbledon in style, we have ordered the sunshine ready!
A chance for us all to get together before Christmas, share some mulled wine, roasted chestnuts and mince pies and Santa may have a gift for you if you’ve been good?
Wine and Choc’s 2pm - 4pm
We are already busy working on the 2019 events diary. If you have any ideas you would love us to consider, please get in touch via email to:
Enjoy a glass of fizz and sample some chocolate treats at the Sales Office.
holidayhomes@awayresorts.co.uk
Sat 21st April Riverside Picnic 2pm - 4pm A lovely classic British riverside picnic for you to enjoy, on the Queens birthday too! Sit yourselves down on our blankets and enjoy a couple of hours with some great games and music. Riverfield.
Sat 22nd Sept Starlight Singalong 7pm - 9.30pm Join us round a roaring campfire at Greenwood for a light BBQ and refreshments, an acoustic singer songwriter will provide an entertaining backdrop while you warm your cockles around the fire. Greenwood
To make a booking: For bookings please call Guest Services. All events are ticketed and on a strict first come first served basis so please book early.
Cancellations and locations: Please visit Guest Services for more details.
Our Investments Every year we’ve invested in our parks to give you the ultimate in holiday bliss!
Winter 2016 £1.6 Million
Fancy £500, £750 or £1000 off your pitch fees?
Don’t keep it
a secret
Winter 2017 £2.2 Million
Love is… a holiday home! If you find yourself falling in love with Sandy Balls and always counting down the minutes until your next visit, then you may also find yourself telling your nearest and dearest about it too. Whether you want to enjoy holidays with family or friends or you just want them to have as much fun as you do, don’t hide your light under a bushel. For a start, the bushel might spontaneously combust from your excitement. Secondly, it’s nice to share.
only £78,995
How about £1,000 in Pitch Fee Credits? Do we have a deal for you? You bet! If you recommend a friend who becomes a holiday home owner here at Sandy Balls then you get some additional benefits. Not only can you enjoy holidays together, we will give you an account credit of £500 once they have taken over their
Purchase a holiday home between 5th January and 19th February 2018 and take your pick on one of
these fantastic offers 0 Finance %
1 year’s free insurance and 5 Free gas bottles^
20% off
any decking **
£1000
High street vouchers
*0% finance of up to a maximum of £25,000 over a maximum of 48 months. Only available on holiday homes purchased between 5th January – 19th February October 2017. *Finance subject to status written details available on request. Away Resorts Ltd is a licensed credit broker authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority. **Decking supplied by Away Resorts recommended supplier, subject to pitch alteration form being signed off. ^1 Years FREE Insurance with Leisuredays, gas bottle credit added to your account once you complete on your holiday home purchase. £1000 high street vouchers paid on completion.
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6 and ask fo part ex r your change quote t oday
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only £89,995
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only £89,995
Brand new
2 Bedroom | 39ft x 12ft Warm traditional feel Classic Lodge Living A home from home
2018 ABI Bramshaw -
Brand new
2 Bedroom | 38ft x 12ft Great light & Open Space En-Suite Front Opening Doors
2018 Carnaby Helmsley Lodge
No hard sell promise Yuck, don’t you hate a hard sell? We do too. It’s not our way. We think we have a great offering which doesn’t need a hard-ball pitch because you don’t need a sledgehammer to crack a walnut. We promise that we will treat your referrals with absolute respect and courtesy and that includes giving them the option to say ‘no thanks’. No pressure.
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2018 Victory Belmor
How it works All you have to do is complete an owner referral form and send it in to us and let us do the rest. Alternatively, you can bring them along or even call to make an appointment for them. Simple!
Call us now
Holiday homes for sale
A great many of the Holiday Home Owners here at Sandy Balls have joined us because they were recommended to the park by their friends or family members. You can’t keep a good thing secret for long!
holiday home. The second person you refer will earn you £750 and the third is worth a whopping £1,000. Bring your friends and help save on your pitch fees. For referrals to escalate, all sales must be complete within a 12- month period.
Total: £3.8 Million
Brand new
2 Bedroom | 38ft x 12ft Exclusive to Away Resorts En-Suite Bathroom Front Patio Doors
How would you like to earn
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of pounds simply by letting out your holiday home? Last year some of our owners earned up to £6,500 from their holiday homes – without having to do any hard work. We took care of it all for them, from marketing to handing over the keys and even the cleaning. We can do the same for you too. Just imagine what you could do with that money – help towards the annual running costs for your holiday home, treat yourself to something nice, maybe build up some savings for later on.
HOW OUR MANAGED LETTING SERVICE WORKS:
1. 2. 3.
You decide the dates you wish to let your holiday home out. You decide how you would like your sublet money paid to you three times a year. You sit back, relax and let us do all the hard work!
A complete service from the people who know your holiday park Some holiday owners manage the lettings themselves, and that’s certainly an option. The down side is that you have the stress of being responsible for everything, from start to finish. We’ve deliberately designed our service so it takes care of everything. It means no worries for our owners and a perfect stay for your holiday guests.
Visit Guest Services to find out more and to help you decide if letting your holiday home with us is right for you
Pop into the Holiday Home Sales Office to find out more | Open 7 days a week