WE decided to go Dutch this year — and Duinrell holiday park definitely fitted the bill.
Having enjoyed several Eurocamp trips to France we fancied a change so opted for the Netherlands.
And what we found there was a little bit of everything — fun in the water; a theme park; a beautiful beach; a day in the city; and a few drinks at the bar.
We started our adventure by driving down to Harwich in Essex — a nine-hour journey taking in a few stops in Friday traffic — and spent the night in a hotel ahead of our 9am sail with Stena Line the following day.
The weather on both legs of our trip was gorgeous so the journeys over the North Sea were a real joy.
It took around seven hours but it really felt like part of the holiday with a visit to the on-board cinema, a meal in the restaurant and the simple pleasure of relaxing with a book while watching the beauty of the ocean.
Read more in travel
We’d heard of nightmare delays at ports and airports all over the UK and abroad but at both Harwich and Hook of Holland on the other side the waiting was minimal and our car was ferried on and off the ship with minimum hassle.
Once on Dutch shores it was less than an hour to our destination in the leafy suburb of Wassenaar, which sits just 35 miles from Amsterdam and less than eight from The Hague.
It’s an affluent little town teeming with colourful flowers, lovely big houses, cycling locals and then slap bang in the middle is Duinrell — one of the best theme parks in the country.
This place is an intoxicating buzz of activity with over a kilometre of covered water slides, 40 rides and attractions, restaurants, a pub, football pitches, play parks, go-kart hire, tennis and much, much more.
Most read in Travel
And the beauty is that as well as day-trippers there’s also a brilliant campsite set far enough away from the action to unwind at night with a glass of wine and a barbecue.
That’s where me, my wife Lesley-Anne and our three sons Luke, 13, Josh, 10, and Scott, seven, spent a wonderful week staying in an Azure Plus holiday home with three bedrooms and a great outdoor decking area, where we did most of our eating.
There’s a wide range of accommodation — from tent pitches to luxury Duingalows.
We arrived in mid-July during Europe’s heatwave but had no problem keeping cool thanks to the double aquatic complex.
The tropical-themed indoor Tiki pool area has a stonking 21 slides including the epic flumes, Triton, Moonlight and Starfright – where you can hit top speeds of 60km an hour. I’ll admit it felt more like the speed of fright as I was whizzed around in the pitch black.
Thankfully my passenger – young Scott, who minutes earlier had stood on his tiptoes to meet the height requirement – was much calmer and as soon as we splashed down at the bottom he was laughing at me and desperate for another shot.
It’s one of those places where youngsters run around with their faces fixed with looks of awe and excitement.
There’s also the brilliant fun of the Lazy River where you get swept along without a care. Younger children can also play safe in the kids play zone or a heated pool.
Then there’s the waves section to contend with as huge buckets of water are tipped onto your head.
And if all the aqua adventures get too much there’s a nice relaxing cafe to enjoy a drink and gaze out over the action. That’s all just indoors.
GO: THE NETHERLANDS
Seven nights self-catering for up to six sharing a two-bedroom Comfort home in Duinrell is from £348 arriving on site on May 6, 2023. Travel not included. Take advantage of the new Eurocamp hopper holiday for trips taken until August 29 where you can save 10 per cent by changing your Eurocamp accommodation once, 15 per cent if you change twice and 20 per cent if you change three times. You can choose from the full range of holiday homes, as well as Classic and Safari tents or mix and match. There’s also 30 per cent off selected holidays this summer. See eurocamp.co.uk for more
Outside there’s another pool, extra splash zones for kids and sun lounger spots to soak up some rays. Access to the pool complex is discounted for those staying on-site and is well worth splashing the cash.
Right next to it is the amusement park – which doesn’t cost a penny for holiday guests. It sits in a picturesque wooded area and boasts 40 attractions for all ages.
I wasn’t a huge fan of rollercoasters but when it’s on your doorstep and sort of free then it’d be rude not to get the heart racing. And that’s what we all did – hurtling around on rides then looking at funny pictures of ourselves in various states of shock and/or joy.
The fact this was readily available to three energetic young lads every day was a huge bonus, with queues minimal and a more chilled atmosphere than you’d expect in the UK. And I have to admit that by the end of the week I was a convert.
But Duinrell is much more than the pool and rides, as great as they are. There are also woodland walks, a pretty plaza area with restaurant, pub, bowling alley and takeaway, spaces for football – which hosted quite feisty nightly intercontinental games – gift shops, a mini market, cycle hire, trampolines and playparks.
Luke and Josh had a great time tearing about the place on hired go-karts, paying scant regard to the Dutch preference for driving on the right.
Wassenaar also has a stunning beach just a couple of miles from Duinrell and we spent a great day there playing in the surf and spending too many Euros on new buckets and spades that every year seem to go missing from the car boot.
We also took a day trip to Amsterdam for a stroll round the city centre, taking in Ajax’s Johan Cruyff Arena en route.
I know it’s boring to hear Brits abroad talking about transport but it really was a pleasure to drive on perfectly maintained roads, dump the car in a cheap park and ride zone, then take an effortless train journey into the city.
Amsterdam in the sunshine is obviously great and we savoured a lovely lunch in a cosy little cafe before wandering around the place.
Then we went back to base and jumped on another rollercoaster, obviously.
Duinrell at night is blissfully calm as the theme park day trippers head home and the rides shut down. It’s a perfect contrast to the early action and allows time to unwind. But for those who like to keep it lively there’s also karaoke in the pub.
That’s the great thing about this place – something for everyone and enough space to keep it all separate.
Our holiday to the Netherlands definitely didn’t leave us feeling flat – in fact it was a Dutch of class.
