KarenWe recently spent the weekend at Riverside Holiday Park, Southport. My son wanted to go camping for his birthday so we took the motorhome an hour down the road and met up with a group of friends who were there for the week.
Riverside Holiday Park accepts tourers, motorhomes and trailer tents and has static caravans too. There are no tent pitches on site though.
First impressions of Riverside were pretty good. I was a bit worried when we pulled up to discover guests queuing out of the reception building door on arrival, but the staff on the welcome desk were efficient and we were checked in within 10 minutes.
Our pitch was one of the furthest away from reception and the site’s facilities, but it was still less than a five minute walk.
The site was clean, mostly litter-free and well kept. There were some pitches behind us which were empty and clearly being laid out, removed of refurbished. These weren’t in use and nobody was pitched near to them, so there was no impact of these works on holidaymakers.
The tourer pitches were fully serviced with water and electricity, and hook up points were well placed – none of this needing an extension lead business like we’ve experienced in some places.
Facilities
The facilities at Riverside were good. The toilet and shower block was clean and well kept for the most part, save for some stray loo roll on the floor sometime. When you have a fully booked campsite during the school summer holidays it must be nigh on impossible to keep them pristine every moment of the day. All in all more than acceptable.
Riverside has a large children’s playground and splash park available for guests to use. The playground is well equipped, though the zip line appears to have been removed and not replaced which seems a shame, but if it was unsafe then it’s good to see the site taking health and safety seriously. The splash park was the biggest hit with my youngest son, who was just about to turn two. It isn’t huge but it is big enough and it is a lot of fun for little people.
Service
The staff on reception were very good, friendly and polite and happy to answer any questions. We didn’t experience any issies with which we needed assistance so I can’t comment on their problem solving skills.
The man in the shop was a bit grumpy but we all have our off days I guess.
Price
We paid £74 for two nights in the motorhome, for 3 adults, 3 children and two dogs. I think that’s pretty reasonable for a weekend in August.
Entertainment
There is regular entertainment on in the club house at Riverside. One evening, I took my youngest son up to the club house to watch the children’s entertainer. He was very good for slightly older children, say from around age three or four to maybe seven or eight. Squidge was just a little bit too young but enjoyed the music, the dancing and the general atmosphere nonetheless.
The drinks prices in the club house were reasonable – I’d say average for a pub in the area. If you travel up from London to Riverside you’ll think they’re an absolute bargain!
I did see signs for an afternoon tea that was being arranged for guests but we missed it. It appears to me that Riverside do try to arrange an assortment of events for guests.
There is an arcade/games room on site which appears to be permanently closed. This is a real shame, because aside from the playground there isn’t anything for the older children to do. That’s no problem when the weather is fine, but had we had rain I fear they would’ve been conplaining that they were bored. It is a great site to visit if the kids have their bikes though, as there is plenty of space for them to explore.
All in all, Riverside Holiday Park is a nice site offering adequate facilities, with some small room for improvement. I think we would probably go back, given that it’s only an hour away and there is so much room for the children to play out.
