A HOLIDAYING complex which has been owned by the same family for more than 30 years has been sold off to a specialist caravan company.

Brightlingsea Leisure Village has been purchased by Countrywide Park Homes and Luxury Lodges for an undisclosed amount.

Countrywide Homes, which boasts 50 years of experience in the sector, specialises in offering both residential park homes and high-end lodges.

The deal, overseen by Savills on behalf of Brightlingsea Haven Ltd, will see the 9.36 acre site change hands, alongside 97 developed caravan pitches.

More specifically the pitches can accommodate a total of 63 lodges and 34 caravans.

Stephen Hammerton, managing director of Brightlingsea Haven Ltd, said he was sad to relinquish the site but insisted the time had come to move on.

“Brightlingsea Leisure Village has been owned by our family for over 30 years,” added Mr Hammerton.

“But the time has now come for retirement and to allow a new owner to take this well-established holiday park into the future.”

Since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, and the subsequent popularity of staycations, the demand for caravans and caravan holidays has soared.

Late last year, for example, bosses at Park Holidays UK said the volume of people wishing to buy a caravan was “unprecedented” resulting in lengthy waiting lists.

Given the ongoing resurgence of the caravan industry, coupled with Brightlingsea Leisure Village’s beach links, the opportunity was arguably too good to pass up.

Ian Simpson, head of leisure and trade at Savills, says he is not surprised to see the Brightlingsea Leisure Village has been snapped up so quickly.

He said: “The holiday lodge and caravan park market has been extremely resilient over the past 18 months.

“The sector has attracted considerable interest, particularly from new investors looking to enter the leisure arena.

“We are finding that assets which come to the market are in huge demand from both existing operators and new entrants to the market.”