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Reviews of The Orchards Holiday Park ( Haven Holidays)
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The Orchards Holiday Park ( Haven Holidays)
St Osyth
Clacton On Sea
Essex (Browse area)
CO16 8LJ
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Pitches: 30
Open: 01/03/2025 to 31/10/2025
Rating: 
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Photos (5)
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 No Tents |
 No Caravans |
 No Motorhomes |
 No Campervans |
 No Glamping Units |
 Holiday Homes for Hire |
 No Statics for Sale |
 No Seasonal Pitches |
 No Electric Hookups |
 No Hardstandings |
 No Fully Serviced Pitches |
 Show Full Facilities |
| Who's it for |
 Families Welcome |
 Not Members Only |
 No Rallies |
 Not Naturist Site |
 Dogs Welcome |
 No Dogs Allowed |
 Groups Welcome |
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| Facilities |
 Toilet Facilities |
 Hot Showers |
 Washing Up |
 No Bathroom |
 No Baby Changing |
 Laundry On Site |
 Drinking Water |
 Disabled Friendly |
 No Chemical Disposal |
 No Battery Charging |
 No Gas Exchange |
 No Recycling Facilities |
 No Kitchen Facilities |
 No Freezer / Fridge |
 No Motorhome Point |
 No Wifi Access |
 Shop On Site |
 Bar On Site |
 Restaurant or Cafe or Takeaway On Site |
| Activities |
 Kids Playground |
 No TV Room |
 Games Room |
 Evening Entertainment |
 Fishing On Site |
 Wild Swimming On Site |
 Indoor Pool On Site |
 Outdoor Pool On Site |
 No Horse Riding |
 No Cycle Hire |
 No Golf |
 No Tennis |
 Beach On Site |
 Watersports <1 mile |
 No Boat Launch |
| Other Features |
 Sea Views |
 Not Working Farm |
 No Campfires Allowed |
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 Coastside Pitches |
 Public Transport |
 No Dog Walk |
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Reviews:
44 in total, now showing 31 to 40
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| Date of Visit: July 2010 |
Unit: Tent |
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| Reviewer: Bec_xx |
8 reviews from this member |
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 Our first ever camping trip. Family of five and not knowing if we would enjoy it or not?
On arrival we were told by reception to go to the camping area and find the warden.
We did just that and were greeted with no more than Name? and Go pitch somewhere over there!
Its a free for all with pitching on this site and it doesn't seem as though anyone checks the spaces between tents. We had some one set up next to us and their ropes crossed with ours along one side.
We pitched by the road as it was the only space big enough for our tent. Wasn't a bad pitch and we had a clear view of the children on the park which was helpful with three little ones.
Noise levels were high and it did not go quiet till gone 1am maybe later at times with people leaving the club.
Lighting was poor at night on the camping area so would advise keeping a torch handy for late toilet trips.
The price was great £33 for three nights with fun passes included. Only let down was there are no electric tent pitches.
The site was nice, the facilities were clean. The pool was gritty and got very over crowded and allowing ball games in there it got very rough for the kids at one point.
Clubhouse was ok, things for the kids to do throughout the day. For a haven site we saw very little staff, we had to go find them for the kids activities. I remember as kids we were asked by staff walking round if we wanted to join the clubs.
The night entertainment was good but the drinks and other bits very expensive. Not good for a family on a budget.
Overall a nice holiday and we would go back for a short break. 
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| Date of Visit: August 2010 |
Unit: Touring Caravan |
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| Reviewer: Prematurity |
2 reviews from this member |
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We went to this site the last week in august, there was 4 of us plus a dog.
We was not overly impressed with this site and this surprised us after reading past reviews.
Firstly I will list the good points, the toilet block is indeed new and their seemed to be plenty for size of site, 3 washing up sinks in a covered area, the sinks were the biggest I have seen and you can easily wash a cadac grill in them fully submersed, the water points are shared between 2 pitches and drains were basically road drains located along the road (a bit smelly whilst emptying I am afraid). Also the site is very flat. So no problem for wheelchairs.
The site is very child friendly with all the usual things you would expect.
Thats all the good points I am afraid.
When we drove onto touring side of the orchards we were immediately thinking oh no, the site just looked untidy and scruffy, there was litter everywhere and the grass was quite long, my wife was told over the phone that the pitches were astro turf now I'm sorry but plastic netting under laid grass is not astro turf, it was still patchy and weedy the same as any other grass pitch, so sorry but please don't make it out to be something it is`nt.
To be quite honest we never saw the warden tidying up the site at all and even though there were pitches empty, there was no grass cutting except for where the statics are.
The toilets although new were not particularly clean, tiles and shower curtains had all sorts of dirt on them.
Haven describe this site as dog friendly, unfortunately it is not! there is one main road/path through site and the start of this from the touring field is full of glass please be careful with your dogs paws.
If you carry on down this road you come to the main complex which is out of bounds for dogs and as all outside eating/drinking areas are facing into the complex you cannot even have a cup of coffee or something to eat, this becomes a problem if it is too hot in the caravan and you have no choice but to take them out with you, there are lots of areas around the statics where you could walk but cant because no dogs are permitted basically the only place you can walk with the dogs is to the shop or around the sea wall, when I questioned reception on the policy of dogs not being allowed in the outdoor areas of the complex I was told that it was health and safety and dogs were not permitted in any outdoor pedestrianised area at all even in shopping centres or markets in towns, however this is the first we have ever had heard of this.
Also there seems to be no enforcement of the noise policy in place as we were frequently kept awake until 1 or 2 am with kids screaming and shouting or people in tents shouting.
So we cant really comment on the actual complex as we did not spend much time in it.
Unfortunately we struggled to find much to do in the surrounding area, we went to jimmys farm which was ok would recommend the sausages although quite expensive (£11 for 15 sausages), if you like pigs you will like this attraction.
A few mile down the road st osyph is a nice place to walk with the dogs and has the usual amusements (dogs are welcome in these amusements)and rock,burgers,chips etc, it also has a small market on a wednesday.
Unfortunately because of the condition of the touring site and because we felt more tied down with a dog than we ever had in 16 years.
And would definitely not recommend it to dog owners.
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| Date of Visit: June 2010 |
Unit: Touring Caravan |
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| Reviewer: Jane cornell |
2 reviews from this member |
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Brilliant. As a mum with 4 kids under 5 this is excellent- great swings and slides in a super setting.Club house just far enough away to be good! excellent swimming pool,
Would recommend for all tourers. Super site and with the option of using local cafes as well. Really good for the family who want to involve in all the facilities or just refrain from some
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| Date of Visit: July 2010 |
Unit: Touring Caravan |
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| Reviewer: Andyokeeffe |
36 reviews from this member |
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Our party, as usual, was made up of me (Dad), the wife; our two boys aged 9 & 7 and our doggie.
Driving to the site with the aid of a Sat-Nav is recommended but with the following advice: The directions provided by Haven are for those who wish to proceed through to almost Clacton-on-Sea and then back towards the site.
I would only say to do this route if towing a van as Sat-Nav will try taking you down routes that are not very van friendly. I recommend using a good A Class road as above and then when you are near the village of St Osyth, following the Sat-Nav as there is many a road near to the park that is just not suitable for towing an outfit down.
The Haven on site directions to the touring area are clear and check-in is simple and straight forward and the touring warden was helpful and polite. During our stay the Warden was always polite and helpful and was generally seen keeping busy around the field.
During pitching we found the grass pitch to be very uneven but it is hit and miss as some pitches like ours was poor but others were perfect. Electric and water were on tap so to speak and grey water points were also nearby.
The touring field was amongst the quietest I have even known of haven and we never had cause to complain about any noise at all. However, the Haven texts quotes 30 pitches and this is nothing but incorrect.
I'm writing this review from the site and looking out of my vans windows there is not less than 30 mobile homes and caravans plus at least another 10 tents at the very least. In conversation with the Warden, it appears there is 50 Electric pitches and 10 tent pitches, but of course, tents can also book on the electric pitches.
There is a new toilet block installed but I hope Haven have a way to claim back their money as during our stay we found a list of faults as follows: 1, one of the 3 showers was out of use due to the door hinge hitting you on the head as you walk in due to stress failure of the securing screws. 2,
There is no shelving and only one hook in the showers to hold either dry clothing or soaps while you wash. 3, Should you be in the shower for more than 30 seconds then the waste water overflows the shallow drain and spills out into the drain outside of the shower therefore soaking anything on the floor due to no hooks.
There is no family room provided but the wash block has 3 covered sinks for pot washing.
During our stay, the gents showers were always at an acceptable level, but the wife said that the ladies was at times not up to basic levels with used female hygine and used nappies all overflowing the minimal bin provided.
As always, these sites have to contend with some people that seem to treat camp site's wash blocks different to their homes and one afternoon I passed a bloke who should know better after he had been washing his bike in the shower.
There is the usual Haven entertainment complex which is protected by a security guard / watchman who ensures no-one enters the complex with any food or drink not brought in the complex. We saw one family turned away as they had a pint of milk which had just been brought from the Spar. Random bag searches are in force to protect their business here.
The day time and evening entertainment was up to its usual standard but as always, you have to pass them arcades to get there.
We found near-by attractions to be a task to get to each day with most being a long drive away. Near-by is Clacton-on-Sea but we only found a day’s worth of entertainment there.
On site Vodafone mobile signal is good and 3G mobile broadband had fair to good reception.
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| Date of Visit: July 2010 |
Unit: Tent |
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| Reviewer: Bluepoolshark |
1 review from this member |
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We booked this site as the location for our first ever camping trip and generally all was good. The lure was the new shower block and the fact it only had 30 tent pitches, also the cost of £26 for 3 nights! The only problem was the tent area was a bit of a free for all and when the warden told us where to pitch there were only probably around 15 tents up but we found that there was only one place to put our tent as everybody had pitched unhelpfully. It also left us a little to close to other tents but we didn't really have a choice. It wasn't a big issue as long as you like cosy living!
The shower block was good on the male side as I had no issues with the showers, but my other half and daughter got wet shoes a couple of times as there was nowhere to place them other than the floor and the water didn't seem to clear.
The park itself is excellent, the children's entertainment was top notch and my daughter had a fantastic time. The swimming pools were both clean. The shop was well stocked and not too bad price wise. There is a Tesco store not too far away should you need one. There is also a small children's play area directly opposite the camping area which is handy if you have children.
We would definitely go back but I sure wouldn't want to be on the tent area in peak season which starts this week, especially if they do book the full 30 tents.
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| Date of Visit: July 2010 |
Unit: Trailer Tent |
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| Reviewer: Black-cats |
4 reviews from this member |
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What to say? It was cheap as chips. But don't be fooled by the 30 pitches quoted in the blurb. They probably do have 30 pitches for caravans and camper vans but goodness help you if you book a tent.
We had a trailer tent and booked electric hookup which is what probably saved us from the ram them in free for all which we saw on the tent bit of the touring area where some of our party were staying.
Apparently when you book a tent you are only getting the size of your tent and anyone and everyone could and does turn up sitting beside you when you have a barbecue or a drink! At one point over the weekend we saw about 8 or 9 families occupying what I would have said was the equivalent of 2 average caravan pitches.
On the plus side, there are new washing up facilities and new shower blocks. The downside of those is that in the ladies some of the showers don't drain away so you end up paddling in the previous person's bubbles and I was seriously worried about the lack of adequate ventilation in the showers. Hot and steamy is not a good health indicator in a shower as I am sure the local health protection agency would confirm!
There is an on-site Spa shop but my advice would be to head out of the camp site and just up the road (5 minutes) is a local NISA mini market with everything you could want. From fresh veg and lovely fresh bread to barbecue packs and local papers all very reasonably priced.
We took the local foot ferry across to Brightlingsea which was lovely and there were plenty of walks in the area. The ferry operates a scheduled service in the summer and doesn't need to be telephoned (in spite of what Reception told us) and we wish we had made the round trip. But, honestly it was not our scene - we were lulled by the mention of only 30 pitches.
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| Date of Visit: June 2010 |
Unit: Touring Caravan |
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| Reviewer: MARKNSYLV |
3 reviews from this member |
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If you are looking for a large, well run, family site with always lots to do. Look no further.
If however you like things a bit more personal and laid back then this is possibly not for you.
Site is large with good facilities, although you do get the impression as a tourer that you are an afterthought, after the owners, which this site is very much geared up for, the bar even shut early one night for an owners party, even though as far as I know they have a separate building that could have been used for this.
Entertainment is child friendly, early on, and good for the adults later.
Some good deals can be had so do check before booking.
Reception staff I found to be extremely helpful and pleasant.
Nice walks around site, with plenty to do in Clacton or Colchester or Flatford mii (Lovely), should you get bored which is unlikely.
Indoor/ out door pools.
Would visit again but probably as part of a larger group.
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| Date of Visit: June 2010 |
Unit: Campervan |
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| Reviewer: Francophile1947 |
17 reviews from this member |
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Brand new toilet and shower block - only let down was no shelves in the showers for specs etc. Pitch was pretty uneven, but it didn't affect me and other pitches looked fine.
Staff were very welcoming and shop well-stocked, if, as expected, a trifle expensive (£1.49 for a loaf of Kingsmill bread). Entertainment was possibly the worst I've seen at a Haven site, but improved after a couple of drinks LOL.
All in all, it represented excellent value at £8.50 per night (including EHU) for Monday to Thursday nights. There is also a half-hourly bus service from the site entrance to Clacton - ideal for us old folks with bus passes.
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| Date of Visit: June 2010 |
Unit: Touring Caravan |
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| Reviewer: Bus nut |
7 reviews from this member |
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Our first impression was that we had arrived at a military field hospital then realised the world cup was on. We were given welcome packs by a friendly welcoming site warden.
Flat,firm and large pitch. The toilet and shower block was immaculate in the centre of the touring field. The site is huge with lots to do including a free indoor pool. The Spar shop is well stocked but does not sell chips.
Clacton is only 7 miles away with the normal seaside attractions. A 24hr Tesco is at CO15 4EF.
The on site Museum is well worth a look but not for under 14's.
Now the down side. 29 chips for £1.95 in the central bar!
We will be back only off season as mid-week deals are unbeatable.
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| Date of Visit: May 2010 |
Unit: Touring Caravan |
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| Reviewer: Ppjjo |
3 reviews from this member |
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Good Haven site lots of improvements (new toilet/shower block) and decor.
Level/large pitches that take a mix of tents/caravans etc
Some pitches face the play park which the kids loved and. Nice dog walks around the sea wall. They have just added a boating lake on the fleet, never used ourselves but plenty out on the water. Its a large park but with plenty of room and was very hot when we went and the pools were not to crowded.
Some of the entertainment was good, some not my taste. Staff friendly and a 5 min walk to the main complex and shop
Food ok but small portions.
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Common Questions
Is The Orchards Holiday Park ( Haven Holidays) child friendly? YES, it accepts children & has a playground View all facilities
Does The Orchards Holiday Park ( Haven Holidays) have a swimming pool? YES, there is a pool on site View all facilities
Where is the nearest shop to The Orchards Holiday Park ( Haven Holidays)? There is a shop on site View all facilities
Is The Orchards Holiday Park ( Haven Holidays) dog friendly? YES View all facilities
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