Devon holiday park sees bookings soar while UK staycations slump

Woolacombe Bay Holiday Parks has reported higher forward bookings for 2025 and 2026, with its latest figures showing reservations up 6 per cent year‑on‑year and 10 per cent ahead for next year. 

The operator is completing a £10 million upgrade of its parks, including new caravans and expanded leisure facilities.

The boost at one of North Devon’s largest holiday park operators reflects a complex picture for the UK tourism and hospitality sector, which continues to be shaped by post‑pandemic trends, cost‑of‑living pressures and shifting travel patterns.

The growth at the North Devon holiday operator comes at a time when broader data suggests mixed performance for the UK domestic tourism sector. 

A New Economics Foundation (NEF) analysis published on 9 February 2026 shows that spending on seaside, countryside and small‑town staycations has fallen sharply in recent years, with a decline of around £1.8 billion over the year to September 2025 and nearly 65 million fewer overnight nights since 2022.

The think‑tank’s figures are drawn from the Great Britain Tourism Survey, which is designated as official statistics.

According to the House of Commons Library, British residents made 105.6 million overnight visits within Great Britain in 2024, spending £32.9 billion on these trips and accounting for 308 million nights away from home.

While these figures underline the enduring scale of domestic tourism, the NEF analysis suggests the staycation boom seen after the pandemic has softened, even in strongly seasonal regions like the South West.

Tourism is a significant part of Devon’s economy, underlining the stakes for local businesses if broader trends persist. 

According to Visit Devon, the county’s visitor economy generates around £2.3 billion in annual spend and supports more than 50,900 jobs, equivalent to roughly 9 per cent of all employment. 

These figures include both domestic and international visitors and reflect around 23.4 million staying visitor nights and 23.9 million day visits each year, which together contribute nearly £944 million in day‑visitor spending.

A strategic partnership launched in April 2024, the Devon & Partners Local Visitor Economy Partnership, aims to build on this foundation by encouraging higher‑value overnight stays and supporting sustainable growth across the county’s wide‑ranging attractions, from two National Parks to the UK’s first National Marine Park.

At a more local level, North Devon and Torridge attract an estimated over 4.5 million visitors annually, contributing more than £350 million to the local economy, as previously reported in the North Devon Gazette. 

These visitors are drawn by the area’s coastline, designated as a World Surf Reserve, national parks and outdoor activity opportunities.

Analysts say that while domestic tourism remains significant, many households are adjusting behaviour due to rising accommodation, travel and household costs, with implications for seaside destinations that rely on discretionary spending.

Despite the continued importance of tourism to Devon, analysts say longer‑term structural challenges are shaping visitor behaviour across the UK. 

NEF attributes part of the spending decline to rising costs and international travel competition; even in 2025, Britain’s hottest and sunniest on record, seaside tourism spend dropped by 28 per cent significantly compared with 2022.

Other research points to a broader slide in domestic tourism spending. Analysis from April 2025 found spending on domestic holidays in Britain fell by more than one‑fifth between 2022 and 2024, with coastal regions such as the South West among the hardest hit.

Tourism industry bodies have also highlighted persistent headwinds including cost‑of‑living pressures, higher accommodation and travel costs, and uncertainties over future policy support for the sector.

While sector‑wide figures present a mixed picture, Woolacombe Bay Holiday Parks’ bookings suggest that targeted investment and upgraded facilities can still attract demand, particularly for families and groups seeking domestic breaks. 

The operator’s recent upgrades include new caravans with enhanced interiors and amenities, as well as expanded leisure offerings.

“Demand for UK coastal holidays remains strong,” said the park’s sales and marketing director, pointing to rising forward bookings as evidence of continued interest in staycations.

However, industry analysts caution that increasing demand for premium domestic breaks may not counter wider declines in overall overnight tourism spend unless broader economic conditions ease and travel patterns stabilise.

For local economies that depend heavily on visitor spending, from accommodation and hospitality to retail and transport, the coming years will be critical in determining whether the domestic tourism sector can return to sustained growth, or whether deeper structural changes are reshaping the way Britons holiday.