TURN “on vacation” into “on location” when you choose a great getaway with The Sun’s sensational bargain breaks.
Be starstruck and sunkissed at the same time with a hol at a park in the area where a top telly series is set.
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To help you find one of these parks, we did our own detective work at Parkdean Ocean Edge in Morecambe, Lancs, the town where they filmed ITV’s The Bay, and Parkdean Resorts Looe Bay in Cornwall, which features in BBC One’s Beyond Paradise.
The Bay, now into its fourth series, stars Marsha Thomason, and features the dramatic coastline of north-west England. In Cornwall, Looe Bay was turned into the town of Shipton Abbott for Beyond Paradise, which stars Kris Marshall and Sally Bretton.
On both holiday parks, we caught up with Sun readers enjoying a fun-tastic holiday without breaking the bank.
Join in with all the drama when our latest Hols From £9.50 launches tomorrow.
MORECAMBE BAY
‘So close to set of drama, we should’ve been extras’
SUN Holiday couple Lesley and Gordon Baron very nearly ended up as extras in TV drama The Bay while enjoying one of our brilliant breaks at Parkdean Ocean Edge in Morecambe.
The pensioners from Wigan had driven to the town centre to enjoy a bit of retail therapy only to find that the area had been cordoned off.
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Retired secretary Lesley, 72, says one of the production staff explained to them that they were shooting the second series of the detective show.
“We were probably quite close to appearing in the show as extras!” joked Gordon, also 72, who spent all his working life in the building trade.
Lesley agreed: “That would have been something to tell our three grandchildren. We usually bring them with us on our trips.
“The Bay is one of our favourite telly dramas. The storylines are always deep but done in a wholesome believable way.”
Last week, even without the grandkids, Lesley and Gordon took a spin with Starland Krew favourites Sid the Seagull and Sparky in a scene reminiscent of another TV fave, Strictly Come Dancing. Lesley adds: “That’s another picture for the grandchildren. They love the characters.”
On our fab Hols From £9.50, she adds: “Going on holiday with The Sun saves us so much money. You just can’t beat it. We’ve been to Ocean Edge eight times – and we’ll be back again in May.”
‘Trip ticks all the boxes for a hands-on geography lesson’
THERE’S always something to celebrate on a Sun Holiday – and not just the unbeatable cost.
Caroline Parker was marking her 40th birthday with hubby Paul, 37, and their four-year-old daughter, Bryony, at Parkdean Ocean Edge.
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As Paul is homeschooling their daughter, the family from Halifax reckon their Sun Holidays are like one big geography lesson.
Paul explains: “You can’t beat showing Bryony different parts of the country.
“Sun Holidays tick all the right boxes for a hands-on geography lesson with some history thrown in as well.
“We like to check out the local tourist attractions and historical places of interest. We’re also members of the National Trust so we’ll often combine a Sun break with a visit to one of its attraction.”
Both Caroline and Paul are big fans of The Bay so they visited some of the locations from the series.
Caroline, who works as a stroke rehabilitation physio, says the getaway proved the perfect holiday. “Bryony loves the fun of staying in the caravan and all the activities. She loves the soft play area, swimming pool and adventure playground.
“Plus, Bryony adores the Starland Krew – her eyes light up when she sees them.
“The entertainment staff put so much effort and enthusiasm into making sure everyone has a holiday to remember.”
‘We love them as much as our three grandchildren’
IT is no mystery why Tracy and John Allan love their Sun Holidays – they get to spend quality time with their three grandchildren Isla, five, Alfie, four, and two-year-old Louis.
The couple from Cleveleys, Lancs, have nothing but praise for our money-saving promotion, especially as families struggle with the cost-of-living crisis.
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Process worker John, 53, says: “You don’t get this time again. We are creating magical memories which maybe we didn’t get when bringing up our own two daughters because of the pressures of working all hours.
“Tracy and I love these holidays as much as the youngsters. And they can’t get enough of them.
“Isla took her first steps on a Sun Holiday. They have so much fun. There is so much to do at all of the parks.
“Here at Ocean Edge we’ve got the added value of visiting Morecambe and seeing if we can work out locations for scenes from The Bay, one of our favourite telly programmes.
“It’s such a great series and Tracy and I have really enjoyed trying to work out whodunnit!”
Tracy, 51, who works as a depot manager, is appreciative of the hard work of all the staff at Ocean Edge.
She says: “They go that extra mile to make sure the youngsters and adults have a holiday to remember.”
LOOE, CORNWALL
‘We couldn’t have wished for a better first family hol’
WE caught up with some more telly fans when we visited Parkdean Resorts in Looe, the picturesque Cornish town where hit show Beyond Paradise is filmed.
Joanna Borkousky, 34, and Tom Northcotte, 36, from Honiton, Devon, took son Freddie, one, on a Sun Holiday for his first ever trip away from home.
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They decided to take advantage of our Hols From £9.50 deal as Tom buys the paper every day.
Hairdresser Joanna says: “We’ve had a brilliant week. Freddie has loved all the activities.
“We have been in the pool every day and then enjoyed the amazing entertainment on offer in the afternoon.
“We’ve just enjoyed relaxing and spending time as a family.
“The range of local activities are what makes it and obviously it’s tremendously good value. We couldn’t have wished for a better first holiday for Freddie and will be booking another Sun Holiday.
“We went into Looe to check out where they made Beyond Paradise. Now we keep trying to spot the locations when we watch the programme at home!” Tom thinks going on a Sun break is a no-brainer.
He says: “We have been going abroad for holidays to Tenerife, Ibiza and Lanzarote but after Freddie was born it was an easy choice to do a Sun Holiday. The park is so friendly and safe.”
‘The staff make it so special we will keep coming back’
FULL-TIME mum Katie Elderbrand 43, and daughter Kitty, three, from Plymouth, Devon, can’t get enough of Parkdean Resorts Looe Bay – they’ve been there five times in the last year!
She says: “It’s like a second home for us.
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“We love it because we can get a bus here in an hour and living in a city it’s just a completely different setting to experience. Even when it’s raining there’s always something on in the Clubhouse.
“Kitty loves the staff here. They all remember her and know her name and we will keep coming here because it’s the people that make it special.
“We’ve been taking loads of photos with the characters and these will go on the wall in her bedroom and be memories she can enjoy for years to come.”
Katie has been coming to Looe since she was a child herself and was first put on to Sun Holidays by her brother.
She adds: “My grandma lived in Looe so seeing how it looks in Beyond Paradise is really incredibly exciting.
“I love all the independent shops and that view across the harbour just can’t be beaten. I think the big difference between staying in a hotel or Airbnb in the town and staying somewhere like this is how all the activities are put on for you and you can just pick what you want to do.
I think most parents with young kids will agree that’s important. So, we’ll keep coming here for as long as Kitty wants.”
‘Loads of fun, child-friendly activities for when it rains’
PARENTS Jessica Ward and Josh Evans travelled from Mountain Ash, South Wales, with their son Orion, three, to enjoy a family break together.
Support worker Jessica, 32, says: “We chose Looe because it’s somewhere we haven’t been before.
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“One of the things we love about Sun Holidays is there is so much choice, it gives you a chance to experience new places all over the country.
“The weather hasn’t been great this week but we have still had a lovely time because of how child-friendly it is.
“We have been doing stuff every day with the clubs and activities on site.”
Vehicle technician Josh, 33, adds: “We’ve been visiting local towns and villages like Looe, where we thought we spotted some of the locations used in Beyond Paradise as well as going to Polperro. And we’re going to round off the trip by visiting Bodmin Jail.”
The couple used to travel abroad before the pandemic, but say flying seems more stressful now they have Orion. Josh added: “We’re having a really good time. We’ve managed to explore plenty of the local scenery, including the beach and the aquarium in Plymouth – and Orion loved it.
“It just goes to show you don’t need to go abroad. We’ve been on loads of Sun Holidays before so know how good they can be and we’ll definitely book again.”
