Need a holiday? Don’t rent, buy!

IF YOU have money to spend and would like to buy or rent somewhere in Britain for your holidays, there are various options.

One is to buy a park home, which, because of their designs and how many weeks some can be occupied each year, are much cheaper than bricks-and-mortar properties.

Countrywide Park Homes has sites in Berkshire, Cambridgeshire, Derbyshire, Lancashire, the Isle of Wight and Nottinghamshire. And what Countrywide is particularly proud of is its part-exchange deals for those wishing to sell their existing home.

Countrywide’s latest offering – Shotley Country Park in Suffolk – opens its gates for the first time next weekend. The park, which is open all year round, is close to Shotley Marina, which offers views of the Orwell and Stour estuaries. Local activities include horseriding, golf and swimming.

For owners who want to make money out of more traditional holiday properties, lettings agency Mulberry Cottages offers events – hosted at residences on its books – to give tips on how to maximise incomes.

‘Our first holiday-let event in Kent was a great success,’ says Mulberry Cottages operations manager Rowena Owen.

‘We saw attendees travel from all over the country – even as far as Yorkshire – to join us.

‘We are thrilled to be expanding the events to different regions.’

Mulberry Cottages has more than 600 handpicked properties across the South of England.

One of them is the unique Radar, built on the site of two timber sheds at Dungeness, Kent, that were used to test new radar technology from 1961 to 1984. So far this year, Mulberry has seen a sharp rise in bookings.

Another recent trend in the holidaylettings industry is the number of Airbnb properties on offer in scenic areas of the country.

Traditionally seen as somewhere to book accommodation in cities, the website now offers stunning stone cottages in locations such as the Cotswolds and the Forest of Dean.