It’s choosing low-stress and booking-free holidays, complete with your home comforts where you left them. Invite family members or friends, bring along your pets or have a private escape to yourself, holiday homes can suit everyone.
Comparing holiday homes
But how do you decide on which type of holiday home to buy? This article will cover 11 advantages and disadvantages of holiday lodges. Lodges are somewhat of a middle ground between caravans and buying another property as a second home.
11 considerations when buying a holiday lodge
We have tried to stay as unbiased as possible throughout this article. To give a full overview, this list is split into three of the most important considerations of holiday homes - their location, the logistics and the lifestyle.
You can read the whole article, or skip to the most relevant parts:
The lifestyle of owning a holiday lodge
A huge part of buying any holiday home is the lifestyle it provides. But how does a holiday lodge differ to a caravan or second property?
1. Holiday homes provide unlimited holidays
Though a positive of any holiday home is being able to take unlimited breaks, the older or more maintenance-prone the building is, the more it can feel like a chore to look after.
Positive: Holiday lodges are often newly built and are purposefully easy to maintain. This keeps visits feeling like proper getaways, rather than time spent maintaining or fixing a property.
2. Caravans and holiday lodges aren’t a financial investment
Disadvantage: Unlike a second property, caravans and lodges do not retain their value and therefore may not be an investment in the same manner.
This prompts some crucial decisions for what you want from your holiday home:
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Do you want a holiday home as a money investment or for holidays?
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Is it to sublet out as a business, or is it a private space for you and your loved ones?
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How long do you plan to keep this holiday home? Because…
3. Buying and selling from a caravan site/holiday park is easy
Advantage: Holiday lodges and caravans can avoid one of the most painful parts of homeownership - the lengthy, expensive and stressful buying and selling processes.
Buying from a holiday park is a more simple process which can take weeks rather than months. Plus, sometimes holiday lodges come fully furnished so you’re ready for breaks from day one!
4. Not every site or park stocks holiday lodges
Disadvantage: Caravan sites and holiday parks are likely to have more caravans for sale than holiday lodges.
Plus, the lodges that they have in stock are likely to be 2 or 3 bedrooms. If you want a property with more or fewer rooms, you may struggle to find multiple options to compare.
However, it’s important to not base your decisions solely on the holiday home alone…
Part 2 - Location on a holiday park
Holiday lodges are often located on holiday parks or caravan sites, whereas a second home may not be. But is this a good thing or a bad thing?
5. Holiday parks are designed for great holidays
Whether you want a scenic and quiet getaway, or a bustling site with facilities and entertainment, parks are created to be the perfect holiday destination.
3 Holiday Park Advantages:
- Grounds are often well maintained - a beautiful landscape can give you that peaceful holiday feeling
- There’s minimal traffic - in comparison to residential areas, parks are safer to walk around and there’s less noise
- Get to know other owners - owner communities within holiday parks are often welcoming. Plus, there may be owner-only events to get to know each other.
Whereas a second home can be a rather unpopular choice within a local community.
6. What is the reality of owning at a specific holiday park?
The way a holiday park is run can drastically impact your experience.
Before you choose a park, do plenty of research, including:
- Look up reviews (for example on Google, Pitch-Up and Facebook)
- Can you talk to some current Owners there?
- How long has the park/company been in business?
As well as getting answers to important questions - is it pet-friendly? Family-friendly? Could you rent out your holiday lodge? How much are site fees?
Disadvantage: You don’t want your dream property to be hampered by a nightmare holiday park!
7. Private sites are more secure
Advantage: Holiday parks and caravan sites will have security measures to keep your property and belongings protected.
It brings peace of mind to know that there are active measures in place (such as licence-plate barriers, CCTV, members of staff etc). Plus, as a private site, the general public won’t be wandering around.
Part 3 - Logistics of holiday lodges vs caravans or second homes
This section explores the physical differences between holiday lodges, caravans and second properties.
8. Holiday lodges are spacious in comparison to caravans
Advantage: Holiday lodges are up to 22ft wide, in comparison with a caravan’s max of 14ft. This gives them a spacious, lighter and airier feel, with less propensity to clutter.
This gives them more layout flexibility than a standard caravan. For example:
- Rooms off corridors (eg. second bedrooms or bathrooms) feel less cramped
- Larger kitchens have more space for appliances and storage
- They can include more rooms such as en-suites, utility rooms or walk-in wardrobes
More space results in more storage for keeping more at your lodge and less packing per holiday. However, if you’d prefer a smaller, cosier space a caravan could be well suited.
9. Holiday lodges often cost more than caravans
It’s difficult to compare the price of a holiday lodge to a residential property, as the latter can vary drastically depending on the type of property and location.
A 2 bedroom property in a popular tourist area will come at a price premium. However, a more rural or rundown property may cost less than a luxury lodge.
Disadvantage: When it comes to caravans, holiday lodges are usually more expensive for three reasons:
- The extra space and higher specs
- Some holiday parks charge higher site fees for lodges
- The larger the unit, the higher the running costs
10. Lodges have secure structures built to last
Advantage: Holiday lodges can be built to the same building standard as permanent residences (BS 3632), resulting in a reassuringly sturdy structure no matter the weather.
However, the more simple design of a lodge (from foundation to roof) requires less maintenance than brick-built properties. Saving money and time spent supervising.
The interiors are built to a high spec too. The higher price of a holiday lodge vs caravan buys you premium fixtures, fittings and finishes.
11. Caravans and lodges don’t have private gardens
Disadvantage: Though a holiday park’s grounds and gardens are likely to be well-maintained, caravans and holiday lodges are unlikely to have their own private gardens.
If you want personal outdoor space, it’s worth enquiring into whether decking is an option or whether you can use the space around the unit. At least you’ll save money on hiring a gardener!
Holiday Lodge vs Caravan vs Second Property
Cost
Versus Caravans: Holiday lodges are likely to cost more upfront and to run, but for that price you get upgraded space and luxury.
Versus Second Properties: Once you factor in buying/selling fees, renovations and furniture costs, they’re likely to be cheaper than a traditional property with equivalent bedrooms.
Though holiday lodges’ and caravans’ values will depreciate, on a societal level, they’re beneficial as they don’t distort local property prices.
Maintenance
Versus caravans: Holiday lodges are usually a higher spec, and therefore a higher quality. This should keep everything running more smoothly and for longer.
Versus second properties: Lodges’ ease of maintenance and location in secure, private sites will give owners peace of mind.
This makes visits less about keeping the property up to scratch and ensuring it doesn’t look vacant when you’re not there, and more about enjoying a relaxing getaway.
Quality of holidays
Versus caravans: More space inside the lodge can be a big advantage on holidays with multiple people. Plus, you can leave more belongings at the lodge.
Versus second properties: You can choose from hundreds of holiday parks to find one catered to you, unlike a second property which is more of a toss of a dice.
Experience Holiday Lodges Yourself
- Go to holiday park open days or lodge trade shows to see the latest stock available
- If you find a region you’d like to buy within, take holiday park tours at a number of sites there (either online or in-person)
- Book a holiday let at the holiday parks you like to get an authentic feel for the day-to-day atmosphere
At Rockbridge Country Holiday Park in Wales, we have a number of brand new holiday lodges available. Find out more here: