Are you planning on booking a holiday at Haven Devon Cliffs? We stayed over the first May Bank Holiday 2022 and I wanted to share our experience.
At the start of this year, I decided to book a couple of weekends away for us as a family as due to Covid we hadn’t really taken our daughter away very much.
We tend to book budget stays (under £200) that are within an hour to an hour and a half of where we live so we can travel down when my husband finishes work for the day on Friday Afternoon and then he’ll either take Monday off work or we organise it over a Bank Holiday weekend when he’d be home from work anyway.
How Much Did We Pay To Stay At Haven Devon Cliffs?
We paid £170 for a three-night stay over the early May bank holiday. This was a Haven Hideaway break so didn’t include access to the swimming pool or entertainment venues and we booked the budget ‘saver’ accommodation.
For us, we decided it just wasn’t worth paying an extra £50 for maybe two swimming sessions and entertainment we wouldn’t use as it’s just not our thing.
The same break is currently available for the same price for the early May bank holiday 2023.
Read about some of our other budget breaks:
Parkdean Torquay Budget Break in Totnes Apartment
Butlins Minehead Review Spooktober Half Term 2022
Arrival At Haven Devon Cliffs
Haven was really great at keeping us updated in the weeks leading up to our holiday. We downloaded both the Haven apps and were able to check in online before our arrival. This made the arrival process super quick and easy.
We were given a check-in time of 4 pm-5 pm but I think this can be amended if you call the team. However, it worked perfectly for us so we didn’t need to change it.
When we arrived, I simply showed our booking on my phone and we were directed to our accommodation. Haven Devon Cliffs is an extremely large park so do be aware of that.
It didn’t take long to find our accommodation and we were pleased to find there was parking right outside.
Our Caravan At Haven Devon Cliffs – 91 Karo Place
I have to admit after reading some reviews on Trip Advisor, I was a little bit worried about the budget accommodation we had booked. I was concerned it would be really dated or worn and grubby.
However, this was absolutely not the case. we were really happy with the caravan and although it wasn’t quite as modern as the one we had when we stayed at Dawlish Golden Sands, we felt it was perfectly in line with what we had paid.
The kitchen was reasonably well equipped, the only thing it was missing that we hadn’t thought to bring ourselves was a tin opener!
As we’d only booked for three of us, we were surprised to find three bedrooms (one double, two twins) and two toilets (one bathroom and one single WC). We also found there was a sofa bed in the living room so the caravan could have slept eight people in total.
Other things we felt were a bonus were the large TV and a heated towel rail in the bathroom.
The heating was a gas fire in the living room and two small fan heaters in each of the twin rooms. After an unseasonal frost on the first night we stayed, we could see our breath inside the caravan when we got up on Saturday morning!
The double bedroom was especially cold, despite the bed being really comfy. I was glad we had packed proper pyjamas and extra blankets! If you are staying during the winter months I would definitely opt for a van with central heating if you can.
91 Karo Place is three caravans back from the cliff edge but still had an amazing sea view! Looking around we think most caravans would have a sea view due to the way they are staggered.
The biggest negative of the caravan for us was the lack of phone signal and no options to purchase wifi. And I’m talking zero signal, no E, no 3G, not even able to send a text without walking several minutes away from the van.
While I know some people would love the idea of being offline for their holiday, for me it was a source of anxiety as my Dad has been in and out of hospital recently and I was concerned that my Mum would be unable to contact me if anything happened to him.
Wifi is provided in the communal areas but it just wasn’t feasible for us to spend all our time there, especially with a toddler who goes to bed at 7 pm!
Haven ask you to rate the cleanliness of your accommodation on arrival which we couldn’t do due to the lack of signal.
We’d also planned to order a takeaway to our accommodation via the Haven Serve app, but again it wasn’t something we could do due to no signal so it felt a bit pointless that they offer this.
We would have been more than happy to pay for a wifi pass for the weekend had it been offered and this is one of the main things that would stop us from returning to this site.
Sandy Bay – The Beach At Haven Devon Cliffs
The beach at Haven Devon Cliffs, known as Sandy Bay, is absolutely stunning. We popped down to the beach when we arrived at around 6 pm on Friday night and this is what it looked like.
I wasn’t quite so deserted when we visited again Saturday afternoon – there must have been upwards of 1500 people there!
We walked to the furthest end of the beach which was much less crowded but of course, this meant we were a long way from toilets, ice creams etc.
However, as the forecast for Sunday was terrible, I think everyone was just making the most of the good weather!
We did find that lots of people were extremely inconsiderate with their behaviour on the beach, in particular people playing volleyball right at the entrance (at the end of the slope) where our daughter was hit by the ball and no one even bothered to apologise.
Huge stretches of empty sand and people chose to play at the busiest point of people entering and leaving the beach – seemed very inconsiderate to us!
Also seeing so much litter being left everywhere was disappointing although this is of course a reflection on the other guests rather than Haven themselves.
Signage towards the beach could be much better. There are lots of little roads of caravans and although we knew we were heading vaguely in the right direction, more signs would have been helpful.
Food and Entertainment At Haven Devon Cliffs
As we were on a budget we took plenty of food with us and had planned to mostly cook and eat at the caravan or take a picnic with us when out and about.
As I mentioned at the start of this review, we booked a Haven Hideaway break which didn’t include swimming or evening entertainment, so these are not features that I can comment on.
Our original plan had been to order a takeaway to the caravan as a treat on the first night but of course, this wasn’t possible due to the lack of phone signal, so instead, we walked over to the main entertainment area.
This was much bigger than we expected and the takeaway food options are all located within the arcade area. We decided to order a Burger King and eat it there rather than it going cold on the ten-minute walk back to the caravan.
There are only about ten tables in this area so we felt lucky to be able to grab one considering how busy it was. This area could definitely do with much more seating as there were continually people waiting to jump on tables as soon as they were vacated.
The food was lukewarm so we were glad we ate here and didn’t take it back with us.
This area also houses the arcade which is huge with plenty of 2p and 10p machines as well as the usual arcade games and some more modern options including virtual reality rides.
There is also a small soft play which we went back to try on Sunday morning when it was much quieter.
World of Country Life
World of Country Life is right next to Haven Devon Cliffs and we really enjoyed our day out here. It offers a mix of wildlife, farm animals, museum exhibits and both indoor and outdoor play areas for children.
To be honest, we went in with pretty low expectations but actually had an amazing time.
While there is a lot less to do than some other bigger local attractions (such as Crealy) we stayed for around four hours and only left because we wanted to get in some beach time before the bad weather that had been forecast for the following day.
We paid extra to do the deer train (£1.70 each) and were very glad we did. My husband says this is one of the best things he’s ever done. You’re given a time slot and you hope on a little land train pulled by a tractor. Each child is given a pot of deer food.
The train goes into the deer fields and the deer (and sheep!) run alongside the train until it stops and then they come looking for their food!
We loved feeding the deer and our three-year-old daughter thought it was hysterically funny. Most of the deer were gentle and all were very friendly. This experience was well worth the extra fees!
There are other wildlife and farm animal-related events throughout the day including a falconry display, ferret racing and goat walking.
In between all the animal fun, there is plenty for kids to do, including two indoor soft play areas, a large pirate ship, two bouncy castles, several play areas with slides, swings, climbing frames etc, trampolines, a zip line, a ninja warrior style assault course and a giant bouncy pillow.
There is also the museum of country life and other exhibits including vintage car and motorbike displays.
All in all we had a brilliant time here and would definitely return, even if we weren’t staying at Devon Cliffs.
Pros of Staying At Haven Devon Cliffs
- Great accommodation considering it was a budget break.
- Amazing Sea Views.
- Quick and easy check-in process.
- Well-equipped caravan with parking close by (although this may vary by location on the site).
- Stunning Beach.
- World of Country Life Park is within easy walking distance and a brilliant day out.
- Great children’s play areas are located throughout the site.
Cons Of Staying At Haven Devon Cliffs
- Lack of phone signal and wifi.
- Very hilly which might not suit those with mobility issues, although there is parking both at the beach and the entertainment centre.
- The caravan we choose didn’t have central heating and took a long time to heat with just the gas fire although it was unseasonably cold for April.
- The large size of the site means that the restaurants, entertainment areas and beach were all extremely busy, especially at peak times.
- We did find it to be quite noisy at night, especially when people were returning from the evening entertainment.
Would We Stay At Haven Devon Cliffs Again?
To be honest, I’m quite torn on this. Devon Cliffs does have a lot going for it, including being good value for a budget break, a stunning beach and being really close to World of Country Life, which we would 100% visit again.
However, the lack of phone signal and wifi was a massive issue for us. I run my own business and even when on holiday I do still need to be able to reply to the occasional email and I wasn’t keen on trekking to somewhere with wifi to be able to do this.
If there was an option to purchase wifi for our stay then I think we would more than likely return at some point for another weekend break. I did mention this on the feedback forms Haven provided so hopefully it’s something they’ll take on board.
