Postcards from Spain: The Camp

 

 

 As a child I grew up spending my summers at holiday camps: Pontin's or Butlin's.

As a child my brother and I were full of energy and extremely competitive.

We entered all the competitions, from whist drives to table tennis and fancy dress.

We didn't notice the main problems faced by our parents- leaking chalets, limited food choices and of course, the dreadful weather.

During the heatwave of 1976 we chose the only week of the summer when it rained to go on holiday!

And as we hit our teens the holiday camps lost any charm they once had.

Our friends were holidaying in exotic locations such as Spain, France and Jersey.

In 1980 we acquired a dog and our parents refused point blank to leave it behind.

At the age of 16 I vowed never again to holiday in England and with my parents and through the rest of my teens and twenties, enjoyed holidaying with friends in France, Spain and Yugolsavia.

When we became parents of one we still managed holidays in apartments in the Canaries and France.

But life changed forever in 2005 when, with four children we managed to keep everyone happy including us by spending our summer holidays in a campsite in Spain.

Apart from breaks in 2006 (Italy) and 2007 (France) we have stuck to holiday camps within an hour's drive of Barcelona.

Now if you are a child of the 70s and shudder at the thought of spending your hard earned summer break in holiday camps then let me share our Spanish secret with you.

Come with me and I will take you on a journey through our lovely campsite.

 

 

 

 

Blink and you may miss the campsite entrance on the main road between Barcelona and Tarragona.
But if you pass this Roman archway you have gone too far as it is located just outside the campsite.

 

 

Here is the pool which is surrounded by sunbeds.

 

At the far end of the campsite is this lovely beach.

 

 

Here I am on the top tier of the pool area and you can see the beach.

 

 

  Building on the region's Roman history is this amphitheatre where the main evening entertainment takes place.

At 8pm it is the mini disco lead by the animation team.

 

And here they are again performing Shrek - there is a different show every night.

 

 

At 8pm it is Happy Hour where you can buy two for one drinks - handy if you have a large family like ours.

 

As my children share our competitive genes there are fabulous tennis and table tennis facilities.

Table tennis is free and tennis is just 4 euros for an hour.

During the day there are competitions most days.

 

The site is beautifully landscaped.

 

And below these steps hides my teenager's favourite haunt - the nightclub which is open until 4am each evening/morning!

 

And while it may be a camp and yes some people do take their tents - we opt for a mobile home like this one - three bedrooms, shower, bathroom and fully fitted kitchen.