Pontins Brean Sands

Sammiejayne

Hi everyone,

I'm new to the site & not sure if this is the correct thread for this post.
My husband & I are off to Pontins Brean Sands in October & after looking at TripAdvisor I am now very nervous & a little bit scared of what we are going to find. We booked it through the Sun £9.50 holidays.
What can I do if we get there & the accommodation/camp is not fit for pigs etc ? There have been many posts on TripAdvisor about inhabitable apartments, insanitary conditions & the lack of interest from staff when dealing with complaints.
I have read the Ts & Cs for Sun Holidays & they will not amend a booking so we are pretty much stuck there.
I would like to know what we can do about complaining if we get there & the camp lives up to the TripAdvisor reviews.
Many thanks.
Sam

mew

I returned from Pontins Brean Sands a couple of weeks ago and wrote my fair but truthful Tripadvisor review yesterday (don't think it's published yet). As always with accommodation, a lot depends on personal standards and expectations.

I was in Club accommodation and would consider staying again in club but only for the right price (I paid the bargain price of £195 for two 2x bedroomed apartments for 4 days over August Bank Holiday). I personally would not consider anything less than Club because of previous experiences in Popular/Classic and the fact club is comparable to a Travelodge, which I am more than happy staying in.

In Club the new furniture is badly put together Argos style crap with an Argos value kettle & Toaster. Uncomfortable beds and a futon style sofa bed. Bed linen is provided but beds not made. In classic & Popular you have to pay for and collect your bed linen as well as presumably returning it to get your £20 cash deposit back.

Outside the accommodation, the grounds are acceptable but quite bare, the mini golf course is derelict (but still open) and the other activities are in need of repair.

I avoided the food outlets on a family recommendation and wasn't bothered about night time entertainment, so I can't comment on that. The swimming pool is acceptable with one small slide and a splash pool but can get very overcrowded. The on site Nisa shop has acceptable prices but there are cheaper/better supermarkets in Burnham-on-Sea.

Most staff were cheerful until you had a problem then it was a case of pass the buck but when you finally get to talk to the managers, they are friendly and helpful.

Finally if you are still apprehensive about Pontins, the Sun can change your booking (My mum got hers changed this year) but they will obviously be reluctant to do so, so best thing would be think of a good reason why you need to change your holiday and hope that the sun takes pity on you.

Sammiejayne

My husband & I have been on many Sun holidays & always stayed in "budget" accommodation so as long as it's clean & not falling apart we don't mind. In fact some of the caravans/chalets etc we have stayed in have been absolutely top class.
But I have also seen the pictures on TripAdvisor of the apartments at Brean & I am dreading the fact that we might have to go & complain after other responses people have received.
I have been onto Sun Holidays & although I have a chronic pain condition, they will not change our booking unless they have a letter from my doctor up to 16 days before we are due to go. This will only cost me more money as no-one does anything for free.
At the moment we are discussing whether we pay for the doctors letter or risk going to Brean & complaining when we get there. But would love to know where we stood legally over asking for a refund etc.

chiefsfanuk

I have done Pontins Brean Sands before and wouldn't return, however there are some nice things if you don't stay onsite and treat it as just a base. I also stayed in Club, and seeing as this is meant to be their top accommodation it is quite a let down as it doesn't even compare to the lowest grade Haven accommodation for quality/size. The mini golf was in terrible disrepair, but not a bad pool and a fairly nice play park. The evening club didn't have any draught drinks available, so we had to stick to expensive bottles, but that probably was best for hygiene reasons! Even one of the comedians made a crack about the poor standards!! BUT... Head out to western super mare, really lovely day out and not far to drive. Also a nice stretch of beach for a walk, even in the colder months.
Hope you manage to have a nice holiday, and I'd recommend Park Dean/Haven sites for future (In particular Mullion Park Dean and Perran Sands Haven, they are smaller more personal but great quality)

mrs_sparrow

We have also stayed at Brean Sands and for that reason I'll never return to a Pontins site again.

The apartment was disgusting and Pontins should be ashamed of charging people to stay somewhere in that condition, we cleaned it before we could put anything down, the carpet was sticky, the bed was held up with bricks and there was blood on the mattress along with other bodily fluids. To this day I think of that place and shudder.

Use it as a base and go for days out in the surrounding area.

Alternatively spend the whole holiday drunk so you cannot remember just how bad it really is there. And don't take any photos.

Urgh. I need a wash now just thinking about it.

mummybear32

i went last year in term time must say i wouldnt go back not much on and the facilities were dirty ares was a sun holiday and disappointed after paying the extra for entertainment passes and half of it was cancelled we found the park abit rough round the edges and in the midlle did have a meal in the buffet part which was nice but definatly an experience our chale was very dirty and the mattress were dirty i didnt complain tho as couldnt really fine anyone to complain to but as soon as you get there if there are any problems moan at them they may upgrade you or move you just so you go away good luck

ps were doing another sun hol this time oct hol bude hope its good (fingers crossed)

Batchy

Just went to brean pontins. Its all dependant on expectations.

It was good for us with baby, it was cheap, it was two nights, but we barely had time to enjoy it, check in was after 4, you have to queue up like dogs for your dinner, to get your key. Then Queue up to get your sheets, then go to the room and make all the beds.

Sleep on a creaky sofa bed.

Brean is ACE, Pontins apart from basic swimming facilities is not great. just use it as a base and if you get a nice clean one you should be ok.

The problem is, my sister would have a fit if she went there... but we found it ok. even with a 3 month old baby.

She would not have step foot in there, we just got on with it.

There were no carpets just a vinyl floor! So nothing too much to worry about. Bathroom, just clean, kitchen basic, but not enough sockets (1) not very good when you have sterilisers, bottle warmers, and phone chargers.

You have an electricity meter too, we had 5 quid on it, but only used about £1... lol so next person will be fine too.

Its all relative... In all fairness we went to blackpool the week before and the Grand Metropole is not so grand anymore... but breakfast and dinner was just about ok. But it cost a bit more... Great location thou.

interstellaflyer

Sammiejayne wrote: »

Hi everyone,

I'm new to the site & not sure if this is the correct thread for this post.
My husband & I are off to Pontins Brean Sands in October & after looking at TripAdvisor I am now very nervous & a little bit scared of what we are going to find. We booked it through the Sun £9.50 holidays.
What can I do if we get there & the accommodation/camp is not fit for pigs etc ? There have been many posts on TripAdvisor about inhabitable apartments, insanitary conditions & the lack of interest from staff when dealing with complaints.
I have read the Ts & Cs for Sun Holidays & they will not amend a booking so we are pretty much stuck there.
I would like to know what we can do about complaining if we get there & the camp lives up to the TripAdvisor reviews.
Many thanks.
Sam

I have to say that this type of holiday isn't our thing and I've never been to a Pontins, anywhere. However, Pontins Brean Sands do a week for Radio control model flying and I know people who've been and enjoyed it. What really do you expect of a £9.50 holiday, I guess where ever you choose on these schemes, the accomadation will be low end and basic, just use the place for a roof over your head and do your own thing.

Sammiejayne

Thank you all for your comments and help.
I have been to Brean before on more than one occasion & loved it there. We even stayed at Pontins 3 years ago & although it was very shabby & outdated, it was clean & the camp wasn't too bad.
But it just looks like it has deteriorated badly in those 3 years.
I have spoken to Pontins & they have added a note to our booking that because of my condition, we need to be in an apartment near to the amenities so I don't have to walk far.
We have decided to chance Pontins & see what happens. I want to show my husband what Brean is like as it is where we are going for our summer holiday next year but at John Fowlers Sandy Glade park.
How we ended up booking to go there is a whole other story :rotfl:

Okydoky25

If its anything like Cmber Sands, Honestly would not go back if you paid me. We left the day we arrived!

Sammiejayne

Still not sure where we stand legally if the chalet/apartment is a disgusting mess and we need to go to reception to complain.
Looking for any information on Consumer Rights that I can use if anyone can point me in the right direction.....