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Holiday villages are growing in popularity with families who are looking for a laid back holiday where they can completely relax, but yet have the all the facilities of a large resort at their fingertips. In the UK villages are open year round, and are as popular for a winter getaway as for a summer holiday.

One of the largest brands of holiday villages in Europe is Center Parcs. Apart from their centres in the UK they have sites in Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and France. In the late 1960s a Dutch entrepreneur bought some woodland in the south of the country and started the first holiday village using tents. He soon changed these for bungalows and the Center Parcs brand as we know it today had started.

Center Parcs now have four holiday villages in the UK in Cumbria, Nottinghamshire, Suffolk and Wiltshire, plus one more under development in Bedfordshire. Each village is located in woodland sites of up to 400 acres, and are particularly marketed to appeal to families with young children. The main ethos of the villages is to provide a relaxing forest holiday for visitors. Cars are not allowed on site and visitors leave their vehicles in large car parks by the exit after unloading their suitcases. Bikes are the encouraged form of transport around the site, and there are hire facilities for people who have not bought their own bikes with them. The villas are grouped in small clusters and are all low-rise so as to blend in perfectly with the forest environment.