Summer holiday season 'almost 10 out of 10'

A holiday park owner has said the weather this summer helped boost bookings in a season that had been "almost 10 out of 10".

Jon Hyatt, of Hendra Holiday Park in Newquay said 2026, had been 'building from January", after quieter years for the industry in 2024 and 2025.

Sally Everton, of tourism organisation Visit Devon, said this year had been a "mixed bag" but coastal holiday locations had benefitted from the sunshine.

The Devon Association of Tourist Attractions said its members had given "mixed reviews" of the year, with some reporting lower visitor numbers as holidaymakers opted for "beach days over attraction days".

Hyatt said it had been a fantastic summer for his holiday park in north Cornwall.

"We've seen strong demand ever since the start of the year but the heatwaves and the increase in staycations has been the cherry on top," he said.

"This summer has got to be close to 10 out of 10 in terms of the weather and the bookings we've seen."

Hyatt said the park had just opened an indoor activity centre which it hoped would boost visitor numbers outside the main holiday season.

The project cost about £3m and was part funded by the government, through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.

Everton said the 2026 season so far had been "seven out of ten" in Devon.

"We may have had heatwaves but we've also had cost of living pressures, with people being very careful about how they are spending their money," she said.

Everton added families feeling the financial squeeze may have "chosen to go to the beach and take a picnic, rather than spending in cafes".

"Visitors may come for the holiday but it's about what they choose to do when they are here," she added.

Roger Sell, who is managing director of River Dart Country Park near Ashburton, said it had been a brilliant year for the attraction with visitor numbers up on 2025.

"We're up on day visitors, the campsite is up and we're seeing an increase in last minute bookings too," he said.

The park, which has about 70,000 visitors a year, is celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2026.

But Sell, who is also chair of the Devon Association of Tourist Attractions, said other attractions had given "mixed reviews" of the 2026 season.

"Some attractions have slight increases in visitors, some are saying it's slightly down on footfall but nearly all are saying the visitor spend is up."

"It's all been weather related," he said.

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