Looking for a great place to go for a family holiday in The UK, then Celtic Haven is well worth taking a look at.
It's peaceful, relaxing and even better, it's safe for the children to play outside - and boy will they love it.
Celtic Haven is a self-catering coastal cottage resort, in the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park, near Tenby in West Wales. There are 26 cottages, which can sleep anything from 2 to 12 people. A couple of families could holiday together quite easily but still have their own privacy and independence. It's a fair bet that if your children played outside their cottage at any given point in the school holidays, it wouldn't be long before they made new friends.
Amongst the excellent facilities at Celtic Haven are an Elemis Premier Spa, a lovely Italian bar & restaurant called Waves and a leisure club with a good-sized swimming pool, hot-tub and fitness suite. Oh yes and outside there are some all-weather tennis courts for the sporty types and a nine-hole Headland golf course, which Mr. C tells me is 'brilliant'. The pool is lovely and warm and we've been reliably informed that many a baby has had their first dip in it and many a child has learned to swim there too! The children's playground is safe and fun and even has a 'Summer House' if the weather takes a turn for the worse - and let's be fair, you never know what the weather's going to be like here in the UK. One thing's for sure though- I can guarantee that it'll be pretty difficult to drag the kids away from the playground area so you might want to have some strategies in mind before they go out to play.
Now to the Spa - I have to say that I've been to a few Spas over the past few years and I absolutely love them. What's not to like about having a couple of hours of Me-Time and being pampered and spoilt rotten? Waiting in my gown in the relaxation room of the Spa, the views over the sea and Caldey Island were stunning to say the least. I've never been to a Spa with views like this one and I challenge you to find one. On my visit, I was called into one of the state-of-the-art treatment rooms by Bianca, who proceeded to give me one of the most blissfully indulgent Elemis facials I have ever had. I'm not ashamed to admit that she relaxed me so much that I fell asleep! Now I'm not saying I left looking like Gisele Bundchen but my skin felt soft, smooth and it did have a bit of a glow to it. More importantly though I felt revived and looked refreshed.
On the Saturday night of our weekend in Celtic Haven, we went to Waves Restaurant, which is very popular with the locals as well as holidaying guests. The friendly, cheerful staff in Waves couldn't do enough for us. None of that deferential, overbearing service here. The waitresses were chatty and smiley and that, in addition to the scrummy meal we had, made for a thoroughly pleasant evening.
The breakfasts, brought to our cottage every evening, were varied, delicious and very big! Croissants, rolls, cereals, cheeses, cold meats,smoked salmon and plenty of milk and orange juice. This might be an additional cost but so worth it although for a large family staying for a week, it could be a little costly.
Celtic Haven is only a mile or so from the beach and overlooks the picturesque Lydstep Bay and Caldey Island. The beaches in and around Tenby are vast, clean and even in the height of the Summer, they never really feel too crowded. Tenby is a bustling town with plenty of bars, bistros, restaurants and coffee shops and the surrounding area is packed with attractions for children of all ages.
Folly Farm is my personal favourite for the little ones and Oakwood Theme Park has one of the best roller coasters in the country - Megafobia. Though even Tree Tops, the roller-coaster for the younger childre, is exciting enough for us big kids who have to accompany our offspring to want to go on again and again!
Our weekend at Celtic Haven came to an end all too quickly as is always the case when you're fully relaxed and wound-down. Would I recommend it for a weekend break? Yes - it really is a haven! Would I recommend it for a full scale family holiday? 100% Yes! Families with young children will love Celtic Haven as much as a young urban couple wanting a romantic break or a middle-aged, work-stressed couple needing R & R!
Kathryn Crawford
April 2011Celtic Haven FacilitiesElemis Premier Spa
Health & Leisure Club
Indoor heated pool
Fitness suite
Hot-tub
Sauna
All-weather tennis courts
Celtic Mile jogging/walking trail
Gentle Gym classes
Nine-hole golf course with two new Par-5 championship holes
Golf Academy
Waves - Italian Influence cliff-top restaurant
Wi-fi internet available in Waves
All cottages are non-smoking
Pets accepted
Baby-sitting
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