European resorts are half the price

DEATH DRIVER

BRITS are forking out double the price to stay at Center Parcs resorts in the UK than near-identical holidays in Europe.

Families can expect to pay hundreds of pounds more than those in Germany, France or Belgium.

And the huge difference means it is cheaper to visit a Center Parcs on the continent – even taking into account the extra travel costs.

A family of four can expect to pay £1,938 to stay in a woodland lodge at Woburn Forest, Beds, for seven nights in August.

Similar accommodation at a German Center Parcs is £909. A premium cottage at a site in Belgium, is about £1,027.

Consumer advocate Helen Dewdney said: “It is really shocking that British families can be charged hundreds of pounds more than those in Europe for what is effectively an identikit holiday.

“This is typical of rip-off Britain.”

Brits’ purse strings are further hit by on-site restaurant chains such as Café Rouge, Bella Italia, Las Iguanas and Strada charging more for meals than on the high street.

A Rouge breakfast costs £5.95 at a normal outlet but inflates by 60% to £9.50 for customers at Center Parcs.

Rory Boland, editor of Which? Travel, said of higher food prices: “Families have already paid a lot of money for their Center Parcs stay and will be rightly upset to find they are being charged inflated prices for the food at chain restaurants on site.”

A Center Parcs spokesman said: “Center Parcs UK is a separate company to Center Parcs Europe; we operate in very different market conditions.

“We heavily reinvest in our accommodation, activities and restaurants each year and our pricing is based purely on demand for the short break experience we offer in the UK, which differs from Center Parcs Europe significantly.”

A spokesman for the Casual Dining Group, which includes Café Rouge, Bella Italia and Las Iguanas, added prices differ “dependent on where a site is located”. The Star Says: Page 6